Revisiting the Concept of Managerial Competence: Toward a Theoretical Integration of Skills and Values
Keywords:
managerial competence, skills, values, theoretical integration, management educationAbstract
The contemporary business landscape, marked by grand societal challenges and ethical crises, demands a reconceptualization of managerial competence that transcends the traditional skills-value dichotomy. This conceptual paper argues that prevailing competence models often treat skills and values as separate domains, leading to fragmented education and ethically neutral leadership development. Through a qualitative, integrative literature review, this paper critiques this separation and explores theoretical foundations for a more holistic integration. The analysis traces the historical divergence between performance-oriented skill frameworks and normative value-based approaches, identifying their respective limitations. Building on theories of practical wisdom (phronesis), responsible management, and virtue ethics, the paper proposes an integrative model where skills are value-laden and values are actionable. It concludes that managerial competence must be redefined as the contextual enactment of value-guided skills, with significant implications for curriculum design, pedagogy, and assessment in management education. The integration fosters leaders capable of generating not only economic value but also sustainable and ethical outcomes.
References
Alvesson, M., & Willmott, H. (1992). On the idea of emancipation in management and organization studies. Academy of Management Review, 17(3), 432-464.
Aristotle. (2009). The Nicomachean ethics (W. D. Ross, Trans.). Oxford University Press.
Barnett, R. (2009). Knowing and becoming in the higher education curriculum. Studies in Higher Education, 34(4), 429-440.
Barnard, C. I. (1938). The functions of the executive. Harvard University Press.
Boyatzis, R. E. (1982). The competent manager: A model for effective performance. John Wiley & Sons.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101.
Bright, D. S., Winn, B. A., & Kanov, J. (2014). Reconsidering virtue: Differences of perspective in virtue ethics and the positive social sciences. Journal of Business Ethics, 119(4), 445-460.
Cardy, R. L., & Selvarajan, T. T. (2006). Competencies: Alternative frameworks for competitive advantage. Business Horizons, 49(3), 235-245.
Crossan, M., Mazutis, D., & Seijts, G. (2013). In search of virtue: The role of virtues, values and character strengths in ethical decision making. Journal of Business Ethics, 113(4), 567-581.
Gentile, M. C. (2010). Giving voice to values: How to speak your mind when you know what's right. Yale University Press.
Ghoshal, S. (2005). Bad management theories are destroying good management practices. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 4(1), 75-91.
Haidt, J. (2001). The emotional dog and its rational tail: A social intuitionist approach to moral judgment. Psychological Review, 108(4), 814-834.
Laasch, O., & Conaway, R. (2015). Principles of responsible management: Glocal sustainability, responsibility, ethics. Cengage Learning.
Maak, T., & Pless, N. M. (2006). Responsible leadership in a stakeholder society: A relational perspective. Journal of Business Ethics, 66(1), 99-115.
MacIntyre, A. (1981). After virtue: A study in moral theory. University of Notre Dame Press.
McClelland, D. C. (1973). Testing for competence rather than for "intelligence." American Psychologist, 28(1), 1-14.
Melé, D. (2012). The firm as a "community of persons": A pillar of humanistic business ethos. Journal of Business Ethics, 106(1), 89-101.
Mintzberg, H. (2009). Managing. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Miska, C., Stahl, G. K., & Fuchs, M. (2013). The moderating role of context in determining unethical managerial behavior: A case survey. Journal of Business Ethics, 113(2), 213-231.
Nonaka, I., & Takeuchi, H. (2011). The wise leader. Harvard Business Review, 89(5), 58-67.
Painter-Morland, M. (2008). Business ethics as practice: Ethics as the everyday business of business. Cambridge University Press.
Podolny, J. M. (2009). The buck stops (and starts) at business school. Harvard Business Review, 87(6), 62-67.
Porter, M. E., & Kramer, M. R. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review, 89(1/2), 62-77.
Rittel, H. W., & Webber, M. M. (1973). Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sciences, 4(2), 155-169.
Schön, D. A. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. Basic Books.
Sison, A. J. G., & Ferrero, I. (2015). How different is neo-Aristotelian virtue from positive organizational virtue? Business Ethics: A European Review, 24(S2), S78-S98.
Sison, A. J. G., & Fontrodona, J. (2012). The common good of the firm in the Aristotelian-Thomistic tradition. Business Ethics Quarterly, 22(2), 211-246.
Solomon, R. C. (1992). Corporate roles, personal virtues: An Aristotelian approach to business ethics. Business Ethics Quarterly, 2(3), 317-339.
Torraco, R. J. (2016). Writing integrative literature reviews: Using the past and present to explore the future. Human Resource Development Review, 15(4), 404-428.
Treviño, L. K., Weaver, G. R., & Reynolds, S. J. (2006). Behavioral ethics in organizations: A review. Journal of Management, 32(6), 951-990.
Wiek, A., Withycombe, L., & Redman, C. L. (2011). Key competencies in sustainability: A reference framework for academic program development. Sustainability Science, 6(2), 203-218.
