Exploring Sustainable Leadership Practices among Sustainability Managers in Spain

Abstract

The concept of sustainable leadership has been explored across various contexts at both sectoral and organizational levels, including the insurance sector in Turkey and the marketing and logistics sectors in Spain. Sustainable leadership is characterized as a long-term approach that emphasizes fairness and ethical practices in dealings with both internal and external stakeholders. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of sustainable leadership practices among managers across different economic sectors in Spain. The research was grounded in the framework developed by Avery and Bergsteiner (2011), which categorizes organizations into two leadership philosophies: "locust leadership" and "bee leadership." Locust leadership focuses primarily on profit maximization, whereas bee leadership prioritizes stakeholder value by integrating economic goals with environmental and social considerations. The findings revealed a stronger inclination among Spanish managers towards the bee leadership model. All participants highlighted the importance of emotionally engaged employees, and over 90% believed that prioritizing ethical business practices was more critical than maximizing profit. Similarly, more than 90% of respondents consistently emphasized environmental protection as a key factor in setting business objectives. This study is pioneering in its approach, being the first to examine sustainable leadership practices among sustainability managers across a diverse array of economic sectors in Spain.