Key Dimensions of Spirit atWork—An Indian Perspective

Abstract

Post-globalization trends have left many people with a sense of insecurity—on both the economicand the employment fronts. Business re-engineering, downsizing, lay-offs, excessive consumerism andgreed have altered the rules of the business game. Skewed attention to mere economic criteria in manybusiness organizations, even at the cost of societal and environmental factors, is leading to a senseof hollowness, ‘something missing’, in the organization and its employees. People are making everyattempt to discover this ‘missing component’ in their lives, with particular reference to their work lives.This ‘missing component’ is referred to as ‘spirit at work’ in management literature. Bringing in spiritat work has become a matter of priority for many business organizations, in their drives for sustainedsuccess. Spirit at work is about care, compassion, integrity, and about attempting to live one’s valuesat the workplace. It is about employees who are passionate and energized by their work, who findmeaning and purpose and pursue excellence in their work, and who feel that they can express theircomplete selves at work. It is about individuals and organizations that see work as an opportunity togrow and to contribute to society in a meaningful way. Spirit at work can be better understood bygaining clarity about the key aspects that constitute this concept. This article reviews the extant litera-ture on spirit at work, highlights the key dimensions of spirit at work, and elaborates on each of them. Anumber of Indian scholars like S.K. Chakraborty, Subhash Sharma, M.B. Athreya, Panduranga Bhatta andothers have proposed an Indian perspective of spirit at work and have elaborated on it since a decadeand a half. This article extends the Indian perspective further, based on Indian psycho-philosophy, andestablishes its comprehensive and inclusive nature that enables incorporation of most of the key dimen-sions of spirit at work as identified in literature.