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Back to the future with spirituality in the workplace: an introduction to an update of the Krishnakumar and Neck 2002 framework and “Spiritual Freedom” model

Well over a decade ago, Krishnakumar and Neck (2002) published one of the more impactful articles (in terms of citations) on Spirituality in the workplace. This article helped provide some clarity and structure for the emerging field. In this issue of the Journal of Management, Spirituality and Religion we are delighted to introduce an update and extension of this work. More specifically, this Invited Feature article by Houghton, Neck and Krishnakumar revisits the “What,” “Why”, and “How” of workplace spirituality as was addressed in the original article. It reviews research and theory, including the literature over the last decade since the publication of the original article, providing a summary of workplace spirituality meanings and definitions (“What?”), the potential organizational benefits it offers (“Why?”), and methods for fostering and implementing aspects of spirituality in organizations (“How?”). With a few notable exceptions, such as writings by Robert Greanleaf on Servant Leadership (Greanleaf 1977), prior to the 1990s, little was published in the management literature on workplace spirituality (Manz et al. 2008). Now some 25 years later, the body of work is substantial and continuing to grow. The original Krishnakumar and Neck (2002) article provided an informative snapshot of the emerging field at the approximate halfway point of this 25-year span. Here, the ground Houghton, Neck and Krishnakumar cover includes the three perspectives from the original article – intrinsic origin, religious, and existentialist views. Then they address literature including empirical research and conceptual work that considers potential expanded benefits of workplace spirituality including: intuition and creativity, honesty and trust, personal fulfillment, commitment, organizational performance, and a variety of other potential benefits such as job satisfaction, reduced intention to quit, and organizational citizenship behavior (OCBs). Ultimately, they explore new territory beyond the domain of the original article by addressing potential contributions of several leadership approaches for workplace spirituality. This paper addresses the heart of the publishing domain of the Journal of Management Spirituality and Religion. In a very real sense, it tackles several elusive questions that are essential to mapping the field of workplace spirituality. What do we mean when we discuss workplace spirituality? What are some alternative ways of viewing this continuously emerging field? Why should scholars and practitioners bother with exploring this seemingly soft area with questionable connections to the bottom line in organizations, let alone whether, at least in the minds of some, it is even an appropriate area of consideration for scholarship? How can workplace spirituality be nurtured, fostered, or dare we say “managed”, for organizational and employee benefit, if this is even possible? And in terms of a particularly new distinct contribution of this article, beyond largely updating the original piece by Krishnakumar and Neck (2002), does leadership have a role to play in the (purposeful) unfolding of spirituality in the workplace and if so, what leadership approaches might be most relevant and why? Perhaps more than any of the previous invited feature articles published in JMSR to date, this contribution by Houghton, Neck, and Krishnakumar takes yet another significant step toward helping the young field of workplace spirituality to progress toward greater maturity. In our view, the time is right for stepping back and considering where we have been, where we are, and