1 s2.0 S1048984305000731 Main

The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723 – 747
The second half of the journey: Spiritual leadership for

organizational transformation
Margaret Benefiel T
Andover Newton Theological School, MA 02459, United States
Abstract
This article proposes a conceptual framework for spiritual leadership of organizational transformation. It begins
by pointing out two challenges unaddressed in the current theories of spiritual leadership: 1) the growing
epistemological critique of the existing empirical studies of organizational spirituality and 2) the need for a more
robust and sophisticated understanding of the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual leadership.Q It addresses the challenges
by drawing on Burrell and Morgan’s organizational paradigms, Bernard Lonergan’s philosophy, Daniel
Helminiak’s extension of Lonergan’s work, and understandings of spiritual transformation from the field of
spirituality. It illustrates spiritual leadership for organizational transformation by examining the case of Reell
Precision Manufacturing.
D 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Spiritual leadership; Workplace spirituality; Organizational transformation; Lonergan
We have worked in and around organizations most of our adult lives. We have also studied them
extensively. Over the years we have tried all of the conventional techniques known to
organizational science to help organizations change for the better and, we hope, to become more
ethical. After years of study and practice, we have been forced to a painful conclusion: by
themselves, all of the conventional techniques in the world will not produce fundamental and long-
lasting changes. . . . We believe that today’s organizations are impoverished spiritually and that
many of their most important problems are due to this impoverishment. . . . The fact that spirituality
T Tel.: +1 617 436 8341.

E-mail address: mbenefiel@ants.edu.
1048-9843/$ - see front matter D 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.leaqua.2005.07.005
724 M. Benefiel / The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723–747
has been avoided for so long in the field of organizational science as a serious topic for empirical
and systematic study is damning evidence of the spiritual impoverishment of academia as well. We
believe that organizational science can no longer avoid analyzing, understanding, and treating
organizations as spiritual entities. We not only believe that organizations must become more
spiritual if they are to serve the ethical needs of their stakeholders, but we also have important
evidence to support our beliefs (Mitroff & Denton, 1999a, pp. Xiii–xiv).
A major change is taking place in the personal and professional lives of leaders as many of them
more deeply integrate their spirituality and their work. Most would agree that this integration is
leading to very positive changes in their relationships and their effectiveness. There is also
evidence that workplace spirituality programs not only lead to beneficial personal outcomes such as
increased joy, peace, serenity, job satisfaction and commitment but that they also deliver improved
productivity and reduce absenteeism and turnover (Fry, 2003, p. 703).
1. Introduction
A growing chorus of scholarly voices is arguing that spirituality is necessary in organizations — for
ethical behavior, for job satisfaction and employee commitment, and for productivity and competitive
advantage. Increasingly, this point is being demonstrated and empirical studies designed to test this
hypothesis further are being conceived and implemented even as this article is being written. Along with
the spirituality in organizations theme in the chorus runs the spiritual leadership variation on the theme.
Moxley (1999), Fairholm (1997, 1998, 2001), Judge (1999), Kouzes & Posner (1988, 1993, 2003),
Ferguson (2000), Fry (2003, 2004), and the team of Sanders, Hopkins, & Geroy (2002), to name but a few
(see also Barrett, 1998; Batstone, 2003; Boldt, 1992; Bolman & Deal, 1995; Greenleaf, 1977; Hawley,
1993; Jaworski, 1996), argue that spiritual leadership forms the backbone of the spiritual organization.
Empirical studies of spirituality in organizations have been gaining ground. Trott (1996), Beazley
(1997), Mitroff & Denton (1999a,b), Ashmos & Duchon (2000), Milliman, Czaplewski, & Ferguson
(2003), Giacalone & Jurkiewicz (2003), and Giacalone, Jurkiewicz, & Fry (2005) all have contributed to
the task of defining and measuring spirituality and assessing its impact on organizational performance.
Empirical studies of spiritual leadership are not far behind. The present focus in the empirical study of
spiritual leadership is on translating the popular literature into a full-blown theory of spiritual leadership
which then can be tested (Fairholm, 1997, 1998, 2001; Fry, 2003, 2004; Sanders et al., 2002).
This is important work which needs to be done, especially to help those who work in the new field of
spiritual leadership to be in dialogue with mainstream management scholars. These leadership scholars
are making good progress and are helping to establish the viability and rigor of this new field.
At the same time, two challenges are still largely going unaddressed in the scholarly work on spiritual
leadership. First, there is a need to respond to the growing epistemological critique of the existing
empirical studies of organizational spirituality. Second, there is a need for a more robust and
sophisticated understanding of the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual leadership.Q
This article proposes a conceptual framework that addresses both of these challenges. It first
articulates the two challenges, then develops the conceptual framework, then demonstrates how the
conceptual framework contributes to meeting the two challenges. Thus, this article contributes to the
current theory-building work in the field of spiritual leadership. While not a full-blown theory in itself,
M. Benefiel / The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723–747 725
this article contributes two important components to theory-building. First, it provides the philosophical
underpinnings for a new kind of spiritual leadership theory. Second, it draws on another academic field,
the field of spirituality, to delineate a framework for understanding both individual and organizational
transformation, and then illustrates the use of that framework through the case of Reell Precision
Manufacturing.
2. Two challenges
2.1. Responding to the growing epistemological critique of the existing empirical studies of
organizational spirituality
Most empirical studies in the field of spirituality in organizations have been quantitative studies
(Forniciari & Lund Dean, 2004). For example, Trott (1996) discovered high correlation between spiritual
well-being and organizational openness, self-efficacy, and organizational commitment. Beazley (1997)
developed an instrument to measure individual spirituality. He discovered a correlation between a high
level of spirituality and honesty, humility, and service to others. Ashmos & Duchon (2000) constructed a
definition of spirituality in the workplace which, their study found, is valid at the individual level.
Testing Ashmos and Duchon’s construct further, Milliman et al. (2003) found that there is a positive
correlation between workplace spirituality and such employee attitudes as commitment to the
organization, intrinsic work satisfaction, and job involvement.
Those who do this quantitative research argue for its necessity. For example, Krahnke, Giacalone, and
Jurkiewicz argue:
To have confidence that our suppositions are more than personal assumptions requires the
dispassionate objectivism afforded by the scientific method. . .. [O]rganizations need conclusive
evidence connecting workplace spirituality with bottom line performance; anything less would
bring into question their fiduciary responsibility to stockholders and their moral responsibility to
stakeholders. For workplace spirituality to be a viable construct in improving organizations and the
people in them, it requires a degree of confidence we can only attain through scientific
measurement (Krahnke,Giacalone, & Jurkiewicz, 2003, pp. 397–398).
At the same time, others argue that such studies are not only insufficient for the subject at hand, but
may actually be harmful. Paul Gibbons and Marjolein Lips-Wiersma address the problems of linking
spirituality, which seeks to go beyond materialistic understandings of value, to material outcomes for an
organization. This apparent contradiction is captured, for instance, when Gibbons (2000) points out that
many of the spirituality at work writings
. . . are highly dextrinsicT in stance, extolling the benefits of Spirituality at Work to productivity. . .
This news is less encouraging as it suggests that where Spirituality at Work becomes a dproject of
the ego,T or is harnessed for secular outcomes (profit), the desired benefits may not be as expected
(2000, p. 10).
Lips-Wiersma (2000) succinctly captures the dilemma that spirituality in organizations scholars face:
Does spirituality at work only warrant our attention if it contributes to organisational output? . . .
On the one hand spirituality, in its very essence, seeks to go beyond materialistic conceptions of
meaning. On the other hand . . . within the spirit at work field there is a concern that if spirituality is
not linked to materialistic outcomes for the organisation, it may never be taken seriously within the
world of work (2000, pp. 13, 15).
In addition to these concerns about the possible inherent incompatibility of spirituality with
materialistic outcomes, and therefore possibly not reaping the desired benefits, scholars question whether
conventional social science as it is now constituted can even adequately measure spirituality. For
example, Forniciari & Lund Dean (2001, p. 335) comment on the absurdity of btrying to factor analyze
GodQ and claim:
It has been generally established that the positivist, empiricist methodological model is not only
insufficient for SRW [Spirituality, Religion, and Work] research, but may actually harm the
discipline by inauthentically measuring and analyzing crucial SRW variables such as spirit, soul,
faith, God, and cosmos (Lund Dean, Forniciari & McGee, 2003, p. 379).
Those who point to the inadequacy of quantitative research often suggest alternative research
methods. Forniciari & Lund Dean (2001, p. 335), for example, challenge spirituality in organizations
researchers to consider bdevidenceT about the phenomenon of spirituality at work based on non-positivist
ways of knowing.Q They suggest ethnomethodological techniques, qualitative techniques, and tradition-
based stories, as more appropriate research methods than positivist methods (see also Lund Dean,
Forniciari, & McGee, 2003).
This debate seems to have reached an impasse. The two camps speak different languages and, more
often than not, talk past one another. Many of the discussions seem to generate more heat than light (see,
for example, Krahnke et al., 2003).
2.2. Understanding the bspiritual Q aspect of bspiritual leadershipQ
The second challenge is to gain a better understanding of the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual
leadership.Q Sanders et al. (2002), Fairholm (1997, 1998, 2001), and Fry (2003, 2004) have done the
most work to date on formulating theories of spiritual leadership. These pioneers are doing significant
work in defining and conceptualizing spiritual leadership. Their strengths lie in the area of the
bleadershipQ aspect of bspiritual leadership.Q All three survey the scholarly literature on leadership, grasp
well its developments and current trends, and clearly situate their work in the stream of leadership
research.
The limitations of these studies, on the other hand, lie in their articulation of the bspiritualQ aspect of
bspiritual leadership.Q Fairholm (1997), for example, draws on his own informal research, modeled after
Jacobson’s (1995), for his understanding of spirituality. Using a sample of nineteen graduate students,
Fairholm understands spirituality in terms of definitional characteristics given by his respondents. While
there is nothing inherently wrong with the definitional characteristics he lists (e.g., ban inner conviction
of a higher, more intelligent force,Q bthe essence of self that separates humans from creatures,Q bthe
source of personal meaning, values, life purposesQ (Fairholm, 1997, p. 29)), Fairholm needs to draw on a
wider sample, compare his results with the existing spirituality literature, and clearly argue for why these
particular definitional characteristics, rather than a host of others, should form the basis for his
understanding of spirituality. Furthermore, when Fairholm lists more than ten fields of study that could
serve as useful dialogue partners for the development of theories of spiritual leadership, he does not
mention the field of spirituality, which is directly relevant and whose scholarly study is the same age as
the study of leadership.
Fry draws on Horton (1950), Smith (1992), and (indirectly) the Christian New Testament for his
understanding of spirituality. He uses Horton’s continuum of God as Higher Power, Smith’s
understanding of the commonality of all religions, and Webster’s definition of faith as bThe assurance
of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen,Q a direct quotation of Hebrews 11:1 (Fry, 2003,
pp. 706–708, p. 713). This is a good beginning, seeking out writers who see themselves as trying to
encompass a broad understanding of religion and spirituality. At the same time, the consensus of
spirituality scholars is that Horton’s and Smith’s understandings of spirituality are naı̈ve and have been
superceded by half a century of discussion in the academy (Katz, 1978, 1983, 1992; Price, 1987;
Ruffing, 2001; Wilber, 2000; Wilber, Engler, & Brown, 1986). Furthermore, Fry’s definition of faith is
taken from a specific religious tradition (Hebrews 11:1), something he himself, in his effort to be
inclusive, wants to avoid. Finally, Fry assumes leaders’ willingness to undergo the process of spiritual
transformation, but does not delineate how this spiritual transformation occurs.
Sanders et al. (2002) draw more broadly on the spirituality literature than do Fairholm or Fry. Their
use of Wilber (1977), Fowler (1981), and Parks (2000), for example, shows promise for building a more
solid foundation for the bspiritualQ aspect of their theory. At the same time, their work is still at an early
stage, and they have not yet gone beyond an initial dipping into a range of theorists. In order to
strengthen the bspiritualQ aspect, they would need to digest and assimilate and resolve contradictions
among the various spiritual theories upon which they rely.
Thus, in all three of these theories of spiritual leadership, the authors build a strong foundation for the
bleadershipQ aspect of bspiritual leadership.Q They do such things as tracing the development of the
modern social scientific study of leadership, pointing out the paradigm shift and revitalization of the field
when Burns (1978) introduced the concept of btransformational leadershipQ and Bass (1985)
systematized research on the topic (see also Hunt, 1999), discussing the latest issues in the field, and
carefully situating their work in the context they have outlined. They demonstrate a deep and nuanced
understanding of the field, and thus construct a sturdy foundation for the bleadershipQ aspect of their
theory.
In stark contrast, the bspiritualQ aspect of each of their spiritual leadership theories wobbles on a shaky
foundation. Trained as leadership scholars, these authors know well the scholarly literature on
leadership. However their knowledge of the scholarly literature on spirituality (a literature almost exactly
the same age as the scholarly literature on leadership) is thin, and so they easily fall into various traps:
they inadvertently draw upon outdated, discredited, or shallow approaches to spirituality; they re-invent
the wheel; they dip into credible theories of spirituality but then don’t fully develop them or resolve the
conflicts among them. While these theories are comprehensive and creative in the context of leadership
studies, a more robust, up-to-date, and sophisticated understanding of spirituality is needed if theories of
spiritual leadership are to stand up under scrutiny and be taken seriously in the wider academy.
2.3. A way forward
In order to analyze the issues at stake here, this article will make several moves. To address the
first challenge (responding to the growing epistemological critique), it will first elucidate the current
debate between quantitative researchers and their critics by situating it within the paradigms
articulated by Burrell & Morgan (1994) in Sociological Paradigms and Organisational Analysis. Then
it will propose a further refinement of Burrell and Morgan’s work by drawing on the work of
Lonergan (1957, 1972, 1985), demonstrating how his work bridges the chasm between the two
camps. To address the second challenge (understanding the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual leadershipQ),
it will use the work of Helminiak (1996, 1998), who builds on Lonergan’s foundation, to introduce
another dimension into the conversation, thus extending the model constructed by Burrell and
Morgan and refined by Lonergan. Then the article will offer another contribution to spiritual
leadership theory, situating it within this extended model based on Burrell and Morgan, Lonergan,
and Helminiak.
3. Responding to the growing epistemological critique
3.1. Burrell and Morgan’s paradigms
Burrell and Morgan outline four paradigms within which, they claim, all approaches to organizational
analysis can be categorized. In Burrell and Morgan’s terminology, the foregoing quantitative research fits
within the bfunctionalistQ paradigm. As Burrell and Morgan point out, by far the most research in
organizational studies and leadership studies falls within their functionalist paradigm, thus establishing it
as the dominant paradigm. As a result, the other three paradigms
have adopted a reactive stance with regard to the functionalist orthodoxy. . . . [T]hey have often
been drawn into critique on the functionalists’ ground, thus giving an impression of their satellite-
like status (1994, p. 396).
Burrell and Morgan seek to shed light on this debate by digging deeper and exposing the philosophical
roots of the differences among the four paradigms, thus enabling each paradigm to stand on its own
terms, instead of appearing as one orthodox paradigm with three satellite paradigms orbiting it.
They begin their project by delineating philosophical influences which have contributed to
assumptions about the nature of social science. The philosophical division most significant for the
social sciences, they claim, is the division between subjective and objective philosophical positions.
They examine various philosophical streams, especially the two major intellectual traditions of
bsociological positivismQ and bGerman idealism,Q pointing out the objective character of the former and
the subjective character of the latter. Sociological positivism, they explain, breflects the attempt to apply
models and methods derived from the natural sciences to the study of human affairs (1994, p. 7).Q
German idealism, on the other hand, takes the opposite approach: it believes that bthe ultimate reality of
the universe lies in dspiritT or dideaT rather than in the data of sense perception (1994, p. 7).Q These two
philosophical positions result in opposing views of ontology, human nature, epistemology, and
methodology in the social sciences.
They then move to an examination of sociological assumptions about the nature of society, claiming
that the bsociology of regulationQ stands in opposition to the bsociology of radical changeQ.
With the two philosophical stances and the two theories of society articulated, Burrell and Morgan are
ready to present their four paradigms of organizational analysis. The bfunctionalistQ paradigm
approaches its subject from an objectivist point of view and is rooted in the sociology of regulation
(1994, p. 25). The binterpretiveQ paradigm, also rooted in the sociology of regulation, approaches its
subject from a subjectivist point of view (1994, p. 28). The bradical humanistQ paradigm approaches its
subject from a subjectivist point of view and is rooted in the sociology of radical change (1994, p. 32).
The bradical structuralistQ paradigm approaches its subject from an objectivist point of view and is also
rooted in the sociology of radical change (1994, p. 33).
As noted above, Burrell and Morgan point out the dominance of the functionalist paradigm in
organizational studies. They also point to the rise of the interpretive paradigm since the mid-1960’s, with
the development of ethnomethodological approaches and phenomenological approaches to the study of
organizations. In Burrell and Morgan’s terms, most of the debate outlined at the beginning of this article
is a debate between the functionalist paradigm and the interpretive paradigm, with the interpretive
paradigm struggling to assert itself against the functionalist orthodoxy, struggling to move out of
bsatelliteQ status. Burrell and Morgan’s work demonstrates that these two paradigms do indeed speak two
different languages, stemming from their different worldviews. It comes as no surprise, then, that they
often seem to be talking past one another. Burrell and Morgan believe that their four paradigms are
mutually exclusive:
They offer alternative views of social reality, and to understand the nature of all four is to
understand four different views of society. . . . A synthesis is not possible, since in their pure forms
they are contradictory (1994, p. 25).
Burrell and Morgan have done a masterful job of pointing out the philosophical roots of the divide
between the functionalist and interpretive paradigms. They have demonstrated that each of the
philosophical positions underlying a paradigm contains strong arguments and has many adherents. They
have thus presented a compelling argument for respecting each paradigm on its own terms. This is an
important achievement, as it helps move the field of organizational studies away from the functionalist
orthodoxy and toward a richer, more multifaceted methodology. At the same time, Burrell and Morgan
still leave us with the unbridgeable chasm between the different paradigms. Is there no hope of the two
camps delineated at the beginning of this article ever learning to talk to one another, let alone achieving a
synthesis?
The most fundamental distinction between the functionalist and interpretive paradigms is the
subjective–objective split. In an interview with Albert Mills (n.d.) subsequent to the publication of the
book, Morgan stated:
I think that everyone is always looking for some sort of synthesis, and I guess that the paradigms
will be negated by future theories that may actually transcend that subject–object relationship. It
was our judgment that no one has ever done that (n.d.).
Morgan is correct in that, at the time they wrote their book, no one in the field of organizational
studies had transcended the subjective–objective split. However, there is a philosopher who has
transcended that divide, and his work can be brought to bear in reinforcing organizational studies.
3.2. Lonergan: bridging the divide
As I pointed out in bIrreconcilable Foes? The Discourse of Spirituality and the Discourse of
Organizational Science (Benefiel, 2003a,b),Q the philosopher Bernard Lonergan addresses and moves
beyond the subject–object split in a way that can be helpful to organizational studies. Lonergan explodes
the common assumption that subjectivity and objectivity are mutually exclusive.
Table 1
Lonergan’s inherent norms and operations of consciousness
Inherent norms Operations of consciousness
Be attentive Experience
Be intelligent Understand
Be reasonable Judge
Be responsible Decide
Lonergan focuses on the structures of human knowing through what he terms bthe operations of
consciousness.Q These operations consist of experiencing, understanding, judging, and deciding.
Humans come to know what they know and do what they do by exercising these operations of
consciousness. Lonergan builds his understanding of human knowing by beginning with his audience,
asking them to start with their own experiences and verify the operations of consciousness within
themselves. Then, rather than separating subjectivity and objectivity, Lonergan demonstrates how the
two are related, by distinguishing authentic and inauthentic subjectivity.
Authentic subjectivity, for Lonergan, involves heeding the inherent norms in the structure of
consciousness, which correspond to each of the operations of consciousness, as delineated in Table 1.
As the knower heeds these inherent norms, objectivity results. Objectivity, for Lonergan, is the fruit of
authentic subjectivity (Lonergan, 1957, 1972, 1985; Morelli & Morelli, 1997). Thus, Lonergan
transcends the subject/object split of Burrell and Morgan. Burrell and Morgan point out:
Organisation theorists frequently treat the existence of organisations in a hard, concrete sense as
taken for granted. They assume there are real phenomena which can be measured through the
nomothetic methods which dominate empirical research in this area. From their point of view, our
journey into phenomenology and solipsism may seem a journey into the absurd and extreme.
However, having made that journey, the position adopted by highly objectivist social scientists
appears equally absurd and extreme (1994, p. 398).
Lonergan provides the critical grounding in the operations of consciousness for both realist and
phenomenological approaches to organizational analysis. This critical grounding strengthens both
approaches and helps scholars see that the two approaches need not be mutually exclusive, viewing one
another as absurd and extreme, but instead, when done authentically, can complement one another.
4. Understanding the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual leadershipQ
4.1. Helminiak’s higher viewpoints
Meeting the first challenge provides the foundation for addressing the second challenge. To address
the second challenge, this article will draw on the work of Helminiak (1996, 1998), who extends
Lonergan’s philosophical work to the study of the social sciences. With Helminiak, I believe it is
possible to add another dimension to the study of spirituality in organizations.
Helminiak is concerned to address the bflatlandQ state of the social sciences. Drawing on such thinkers
as Bernstein (1976), Habermas (1991), and Taylor (1989), who all address the limitations of con-
temporary social science which focuses solely on bwhat is,Q Helminiak proposes a nested hierarchy of
four bviewpoints,Q each of which transcends and includes the one below it. While contemporary social
science (including the renowned work on theory-building by Dubin, 1978) focuses on bwhat is,Q
Helminiak claims that there is also a place for a social science which concerns itself with bwhat could
be,Q i.e., with who humans are at their best.
For the purposes of the issues addressed in this article, Helminiak’s first two bviewpoints,Q the
bpositivistQ and the bphilosophic,Q are most relevant. The first viewpoint, the bpositivist,Q describes bwhat
is.Q Both the bfunctionalistQ and the binterpretiveQ paradigms of Burrell and Morgan fall within this
viewpoint, and thus both the quantitative researchers and the phenomenologists, whose debate opened
this article, fall within this viewpoint (note this somewhat different use of the term bpositivistQ from
Burrell and Morgan’s). Helminiak does not disparage the positivist viewpoint, on the contrary, he affirms
it for what it contributes.
At the same time, Helminiak believes that the positivist viewpoint leaves important questions
unaddressed. To address these questions, he builds on Lonergan and introduces the bphilosophicQ
viewpoint:
The philosopher is the seeker of wisdom, committed to the true, the good, and the beautiful. So
concern for things human in terms of whether they are true or false and good or evil is called
bphilosophicQ.
Another way of speaking about philosophic concern is to speak of authenticity. For Lonergan,
authenticity implies ongoing personal commitment to openness, questioning, honesty, and good
will across the board. In this sense, commitment to authenticity is exactly what characterizes the
philosophic viewpoint (1996, p. 20, emphasis in original).
By introducing the philosophic viewpoint, Helminiak is seeking to make the social sciences deeper
and richer. This viewpoint is particularly important for the study of spirituality in organizations, and for
the study of spiritual leadership. The dimension added by the philosophic viewpoint allows discussion of
the true and the good. It also allows discussion of spiritual development and its normative unfolding.
This article will make a contribution within the philosophic viewpoint to the study of spiritual
leadership. The academic literature cited at the beginning of this article, grounded in the bwhat isQ
approach to social science, has made and will continue to make important contributions. At the same
time, the study of spiritual leadership can be deepened and enriched by moving to the philosophic
viewpoint and drawing on the extensive and multifaceted literature on spiritual development.
4.2. Spirituality literature
By drawing on the field of spirituality to understand the process of spiritual transformation, this article
will propose a conceptual framework for spiritual leadership for organizational transformation. A key
element of this conceptual framework, drawn from the study of spirituality, is to understand that spiritual
development is fundamentally discontinuous and continuing at the same time: it involves distinct stages
and continual rediscovery of the spiritual core in new places. First the process of the individual leader’s
spiritual transformation as articulated in the field of spirituality will be considered, and then that
understanding will be extended to organizational transformation. At various points, the notion of
bauthenticityQ as outlined by Lonergan and Helminiak will be pointed out.
Organizational transformation will be illustrated through considering the case of Reell Precision
Manufacturing. In particular, the focus will be on motivation for entering upon a spiritual path and
what happens when a leader or organization hits the inevitable bumps. What kind of leader helps an
organization make the transition to what this article refers to as bthe second half of the journey,Q i.e.,
the part of the journey in which the leader and organization understand that the spiritual journey is
more about their own transformation than about what material gain they can reap from being on a
spiritual path? How can spiritual leaders help their organizations understand and persevere through the
second half of the journey? These questions will be answered by comparing individual and
organizational cases.
In the field of spirituality, many studies have been done on the spiritual transformation of individuals.
Wilber (1977), Wilber et al. (1986), and Kornfield (2001) have outlined the process of spiritual
transformation from an Eastern perspective. Fowler (1981), Conn (1986), Frohlich (1994), and Liebert
(2000) have integrated Western psychology and Western faith in their studies of spiritual transformation.
May (1987, 1991, 2004) has provided a contemplative approach. And various scholars writing in the last
hundred years, such as Underhill (1911), James (1929), Huxley (1945), Katz (1978, 1983, 1992), Price
(1987), and Ruffing (2001), have done cross-cultural studies of mysticism, outlining the process of
spiritual transformation from the mystic’s perspective. And these are merely examples of studies done by
scholars, a list which could be vastly expanded by adding descriptions of spiritual transformation by
great spiritual teachers through the ages, such as Moses, the Buddha, Jesus, Rumi, Teresa of Avila, the
Ba’al Shem Tov, Gandhi, Thich Nhat Hanh, and many others.
Because a summary of all the above studies is beyond the scope of this review, this article will offer a
condensed version of what spiritual transformation looks like in an individual, drawing out themes that
recur again and again in nearly all of the aforementioned perspectives. While details differ across times
and places, cultures, and traditions, and while emphases differ depending upon whether an author is
seeking to integrate psychology and spirituality or merely seeking to take a spiritual perspective, the
themes highlighted here occur in nearly all of the writings. In describing spiritual transformation, all of
the writings refer to the mystery which some traditions call God. This article’s account will use a theistic
perspective, which attributes agency and responsiveness to this mystery. This choice is made because the
organizational parallel discussed later is a theistic example. At the same time it is important to note that a
similar account of spiritual transformation could be offered in non-theistic language (e.g., Kornfield,
2001; Wilber, 1977; Wilber et al., 1986).
4.3. Individual spiritual transformation
4.3.1. The first half of the journey
4.3.1.1. Awakening. Many seekers seem to begin on a spiritual path because of some dissatisfaction
with life without spirituality. At first they meet with abundant gifts. Like little children discovering that
their parents want them to have good things, these sojourners discover that the spiritual path is a path of
generous abundance. Their prayers are answered, they experience oneness with the universe, they feel
the same exhilaration as falling in love. As an example, see spiritual teachers Teresa of Avila (1976–
1985), Rumi (Barks, 1997), Kornfield (2001), Heschel (1997) and scholars May (1987, 1991, 2004) and
Frohlich (1994) (Table 2).
There is nothing wrong with coming to spirituality because following a spiritual path will make one’s
life better. There is nothing wrong with coming to spirituality because spirituality will give one what one
needs to address one’s problems. Members of Alcoholics Anonymous, for example, find that relying on
Table 2
Individual spiritual transformation
Stage I Stage II Stage III Stage IV Stage V

Awakening Transition Recovery Dark Night Dawn
M. Benefiel / The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723–747

Become aware of Spiritual practices Discover new way Spiritual practices Spiritual practices move
spiritual reality not “working” of relating to ultimate not yielding transformation beyond rote to feeling
reality (e.g. God) “given” and responsive
Adopt spritual practices Disaffection with Deeper core questions
spiritual practices Adopt new emerge Self gets relativized
Seek connections with spiritual practices to higher good
others on spiritual quest Sense of isolation Sense of isolation
Connectedness with Sense of connectedness
Awareness of sacredness Confusion others on spiritual path Deeper blocks to with the universe
and glimpse of everyday progress are
life Question following Identify worth with manifested Sense of alignment
spiritual path personal transformation with transcendent
“Deep abyss” power
Frustation Renewed awareness of
daily sacredness “Is this the end?” New ways of making
meaning emerge
Renewed joy
Fullness Emptiness Fullness Emptiness Fullness
733
a Higher Power provides the first step necessary for their recovery. In fact most seekers come to a
spiritual path because of need, believing that through spirituality the need will be met. And they are
right.
4.3.1.2. Transition. At the same time, as sojourners continue on the path, they find the ground
shifting under their feet. They encounter the transition to what this article refers to as the bsecond half
of the journeyQ (the part of the spiritual journey in which sojourners transition from thinking that the
spiritual journey is about getting gifts to realizing it is about their own transformation). What happens
when they find their prayers aren’t being answered every time they turn around? What happens when
it becomes difficult to meditate, when they find the oneness with the universe they felt in meditation
drying up (May, 1991, 2004; Frohlich, 1994; Kornfield, 2001; Teresa of Avila, 1976–85)? Often they
feel they must be doing something wrong, and they try harder, only to discover even more dryness
and frustration. Or they give up on prayer and meditation entirely, deciding either that they are not cut
out for the spiritual path or that this whole spiritual thing must have been a figment of their
imaginations.
4.3.2. Sustaining individual spiritual transformation: the second half of the journey
4.3.2.1. Recovery. However, turning to spiritual teachers reveals that this is a normal and predictable
part of the spiritual journey. Spiritual teachers through the ages have observed that in the early days of
a seeker’s spiritual journey (in theistic language) God is so delighted that she is praying at all that God
showers her with answers to her prayers. As time goes on, God cares enough about the seeker to
invite her to a deeper place. Her first form of prayer or meditation dries up so that she can discover a
new form. This is when she moves to the second half of the journey. That is, she learns that the
spiritual journey is more about her own transformation than it is about getting the things she wants.
She learns to listen to God and let God shape her prayers. Maturing spiritually involves embracing
and letting go, embracing and letting go, time and again: of ways of prayer and meditation, of
relationships, of work commitments, of community (Barks, 1997; Heschel, 1997; Kornfield, 2001;
May, 1991, 2004).
4.3.2.2. Dark night. The seeker may eventually come to a Dark Night of the Soul when not only his
old form of prayer or meditation doesn’t work anymore, but even God seems to have disappeared. Even
when he lets go of his old form of prayer and opens himself to listen for something new, there doesn’t
seem to be any new path opening to God. It is in this time that he learns to desire God for God’s self, not
only for what God can give him. This may be hard for him to understand, especially if his desires have
been reshaped so much that what he desires is his own spiritual transformation.
4.3.2.3. Dawn. This is the point at which his ego and his very life become relativized to a higher good,
and he is able to fully let go (Conn, 1986; Fowler, 1981; Kornfield, 2001; May, 1987, 1991, 2004;
Wilber et al., 1986). Spiritual teachers sometimes refer to this letting go as bsurrender.Q As Walter Conn
puts it (in theistic terms):
Properly understood, one surrenders not oneself or one’s personal moral autonomy, but one’s
illusion of absolute autonomy. But such total surrender is possible only for the person who has
totally fallen-in-love with a mysterious, uncomprehended God, for the person who has been
grasped by an other-worldly love and completely transformed into a being-in-love . . . Among all
the possible realizations of human potential, such cognitive, moral, and affective self-
transcendence is the criterion of authentic self-realization (1986, p. 24, p. 31).
Of course most leaders will glimpse this place and live in it briefly, then slip back into a more
ego-centered place. Over time, as they continue to walk the spiritual path, they can learn to live
more and more fully into this place of letting go. Leaders who live predominantly in this place are
more available to the needs of the people they serve, and more available to their organizations.
Because their egos have been relativized to the higher good, they can use their skills and energies
to serve the good of the organization as a whole, rather than using them to fill their own ego
needs.
Spiritual teachers through the ages have articulated the unfolding of this spiritual path. In so doing,
they help spiritual leaders understand what is occurring when they experience it themselves or see it in
those they lead. Because a spiritual leader knows what is happening when her first bgimmeQ prayers
don’t make it bpast the ceiling,Q she can know that perhaps God is inviting her into a new form of prayer,
and be more open to that. When the first exhilaration of being in love with God begins to fade, a spiritual
leader can see the invitation to build a more solid love relationship with God, just as in a marriage when
the initial romantic exhilaration begins to fade.
4.4. Organizational transformation
Just as with individual spirituality, leaders and organizations often embrace spirituality because they
need help. And often they get the help they were seeking. They become more energized, more joy-filled,
more productive, and more profitable, because they have embraced spirituality. At the same time,
starting down a spiritual path, if leaders and organizations are open to it, will take the leader and
organization to unexpected places. The organization will eventually bump into a wall that can, if the
leader and organization are open, serve as an invitation to the second half of the journey (cf. Ferguson,
2000; Hawkins, 1991; Torbert, 1989, 2004) (Table 3).
Because most of the focus in the field of spirituality and leadership has been on the first half of the
journey, leaders know little about how to help organizations on the second half. Hawkins (1991), for
example, one organizational scholar who has done pioneering work on the second half (though calling it
by a different name), has made a good beginning. Hawkins argues that optimal organizational learning
requires the integration of spirituality, and also notes that integrating spirituality into an organization
might lead to radical restructuring or even to the organization’s demise. For spirituality reorients an
organization to its higher purpose, and when the higher purpose is no longer being served, a spiritually
grounded organization will either restructure itself to serve that higher purpose or if necessary, allow
itself to die, so that new forms can emerge that will serve the higher purpose. A spiritually grounded
organization knows that simply perpetuating itself when it is no longer serving its purpose is death-
dealing. Paradoxically, this holding onto life when it is time to die leads to bliving deadQ organizations,
organizations whose life has gone out of them but who still perpetuate a shell of what they once were.
Hawkins understands the second half of the journey well. At the same time, he merely hints at how an
organization moves from the first half to the second half, and at what can help an organization through
the transition.
736
Table 3
Organizational transformation
Stage I Stage II Stage III Stage IV Stage V

Awakening Transition Recovery Dark Night Dawn
M. Benefiel / The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723–747

Become aware of Gift's dry up: Discover spiritual path Transformation appears Organization gets
organizational values “hit the wall” is about transformation to have hit dead end relativized to
of organization higher purpose
Adopt practices to Question practices Practices questioned
nurture values Adopt new practices to at core level Practices redefined
Sense of isolation nurture vision and values in large context
Build relationships with Sense of isolation
like-minded organizations Confusion Sense of reconnection with and futility Sense of alignment
like-minded organizations with the transcendent
Awareness of sacredness and Question following “Is this the end?”
giftedness of everyday spiritual path Renewed awareness of New ways of making
life daily sacredness meaning emerge
Frustation
Renewed joy
Fullness Emptiness Fullness Emptiness Fullness

Similarly, Torbert (1989, 2004) has built on Argyris’ theory (see Argyris & Schon, 1996) of the
learning organization, arguing that Argyris’ theory needs to be complemented by developmental theory
and bintegrative awarenessQ (Eastern and Western spiritual consciousness) in order to be put into
practice. This bintegrative awarenessQ relativizes the organization to a higher purpose, so that it is no
longer focused merely on profitability and survival. Torbert illustrates his theory by examining two
highly developed, spiritually aware leaders who led their organizations into what he calls bsecond-order
transformationQ (or what this article refers to as bthe second half of the journeyQ). Torbert, like Hawkins,
makes a good start at exploring this later stage of spiritual leadership and organizational transformation.
At the same time, his work needs to be strengthened by a deeper understanding of the spirituality
involved in the transformation.
Thus, leaders need to understand the second half of the journey as well as the first half, and scholars
who study the field need to know how to accompany leaders and organizations through the second half
as well as the first. How can scholars understand and articulate the second half? How can leaders become
skilled practitioners, helping their organizations through the second half?
To answer these questions, this article will consider Reell Precision Manufacturing as an illustrative
case, considering its journey of transformation with particular focus on the second half of its journey.1
4.4.1. Reell: the first half of the journey
4.4.1.1. Awakening. Reell Precision Manufacturing (www.reell.com), located outside St. Paul,
Minnesota, is a global designer and manufacturer of intermittent rotary motion products and slip clutch
devices. Incorporated in 1970 with very little capital and three co-owners, it grew to over 200 employees
by the turn of the century. Reell’s three co-founders started the business with the vision of having a
company that would allow them to develop professionally and put family ahead of work. As they grew
in their Christian faith, they began to incorporate spiritual principles into the company. By 1972 they had
made explicit their commitment to bfollow the will of GodQ in business decisions, to be discerned by
prayer and unanimous agreement among the three of them. They also committed themselves to bdo what
is right, even when it does not seem to be profitable, expedient, or conventionalQ and to btreat the
concerns of others, e.g., employees, customers, and suppliers, equally with our own concerns (Wahlstedt,
1989, p. 5, Naughton & Wahlstedt, 2005, p. 12).Q By 1974 they were experiencing the fruits of faithfully
exercising spiritual leadership, enjoying record sales and growing the company to 10 people. Reell was a
shining example of how integrating spirituality and leadership improves organizational performance.
The company and its leaders would have been excellent subjects for an empirical study on how spiritual
leadership impacts productivity and profit. The rewards of the bfirst half of the journeyQ were theirs.
4.4.1.2. Reell: the road gets rough (Transition stage). Then bthe roof fell in (Wahlstedt, 1989, p. 7).Q
Recall that for an individual the transition to the bsecond half of the journeyQ often occurs when bthe
roof falls in,Q when the abundant gifts the individual has been receiving in response to prayer and other
spiritual practices dry up. Such turned out to be the case for Reell. In January 1975, during an
economic downturn, Reell’s sole customer informed them that they already had enough of Reell’s
product to last them through the year, and they wouldn’t be placing any orders for the rest of that year.
1
This example of Reell Precision Manufacturing is based on interviews conducted on site by the author in December 2000, on follow-up
interviews conducted later, and on written materials published by Reell and others.
The spiritual foundation of Reell was no longer resulting in enhanced organizational performance.
What were they to do?
One option suggested was to abandon the spiritual foundation and imitate many other companies’
response to the economic downturn, e.g., lay off employees. Perhaps the experiment with building the
company on spiritual principles had run its course. Spiritual principles were fine during times of
economic boom, but were an unnecessary luxury during a recession. But another option was articulated
and Reell chose that path. Just as an individual can abandon the spiritual path when the gifts dry up or
choose to listen for God’s guidance and deepen, so too spiritual leaders in an organization have a choice.
Fortunately Reell’s leaders chose to seek God’s guidance and deepen. In Lonergan’s and Helminiak’s
terminology, they chose bauthentic subjectivity.Q As an individual gradually learns that the spiritual
journey is not about getting what she wants but rather is about her transformation, so can organizational
leaders (Hawkins, 1991; Torbert, 1989, 2004). As Reell sought God’s guidance in 1975, two things
happened, both of which significantly shaped the direction of the company. The seeds of Reell’s
transformation were being sown.
4.4.2. Reell: the second half of the journey
4.4.2.1. Recovery. First, Reell’s leaders needed to decide what to do about layoffs. Even though
another contract from a new customer came through in early 1975 it was clear that the 1975 income
would not support the 1974 payroll. Usual business practice would suggest laying people off. Through
prayer and discussion the co-founders bsought God’s willQ until they reached unanimous agreement. The
result was surprising. Instead of laying anyone off, the co-founders agreed to ask all employees to take a
10% cut in salary or hours worked, while they themselves took a much larger cut. Everyone agreed.
Before the end of the year, this reduction had to be increased to 20%. Morale remained high despite the
pay cuts, as employees understood the owners were sacrificing even more than they were. The seed of
Reell’s philosophy that made the security and growth of employees the highest priority of the company
had been planted.
Second, Reell faced a research and development challenge. Their new customer issued them a
challenge to design a new clutch for a different application than the one for which they were already
using Reell’s product. Though usual business practice would be to cut R & D during a recession, Reell
again chose a different path. Through prayer and discussion, seeking God’s will, the three owners
decided to devote time and money to the development of the new product. Within a month they
demonstrated a prototype to the customer. With several years’ further development, Reell’s Radial
Electric Clutch set the performance standard of the industry. The seed of Reell’s philosophy of utilizing
excess manpower for R & D during a recession rather than cutting excess manpower to increase short-
term profits had been planted.
The point here is not that bprayer and discussion, seeking God’s willQ have anything to do with
product development, but that the strategic decision to invest in product development during a downturn
(thirty years ago) was supported and enabled by the spiritual context of the discernment. In other words,
Reell integrated spiritual discernment with its strategic decision-making process. Reell, in facing the
uncertainty that all businesses encounter, used a spiritual discernment process and found it to be effective
and transformative (see also Delbecq, Liebert, Mostyn, Walter, & Nutt, 2003).
Reell’s leaders had made the transition from the bfirst half of the journeyQ to the second. That is, when
the roof fell in, they turned to God and learned to listen for God’s guidance. Through listening and
responding, they began to learn that the spiritual path was about their and the organization’s
transformation rather than about God fulfilling their desires (Ferguson, 2000; Hawkins, 1991; May,
1987, 1991, 2004; Torbert, 1989, 2004).
As the years went by, Reell continued to experience deepening transformation. The process of
spiritual growth continued to cycle around: abundance followed by a dry spell or hitting a wall, followed
by seeking God’s guidance, followed by new direction emerging, resulting in deepening transformation.
For example the commitment to employees (or co-workers, as Reell had begun to call them by then)
was further deepened by articulating Reell’s direction statement regarding the role of profits:
We recognize that profitability is necessary to continue the business, reach our full potential and
fulfill our responsibilities to shareholders, but our commitments to co-workers and customers come
before short-term profits (RPM direction statement, 1975).
When another dry spell came in the late 1970’s, this statement was understood to mean that profits
would be taken down to zero before a layoff would be considered. Furthermore, Reell’s leaders again
requested cuts in hours worked or salary, with the co-owners again taking even larger cuts. Again,
morale remained high and new growth emerged once sales of the Electric Clutch took off. The
commitment to co-workers had been tested twice and was now deeply in place.
In 1983 further transformation occurred when once again Reell found itself up against a wall. This
time, manufacturing processes that had worked well when the company was smaller no longer worked.
The inspection process had grown unwieldy, valuable time was being wasted, and manufacturing
workers grew increasingly frustrated. The problem grew out of the set-up and inspection process that had
been instituted earlier — a manufacturing team would set up the process and produce a few samples of a
new item, an independent inspector from Quality Control would inspect and approve the samples, and
then the job could be run. Because inspectors often were not available for several hours, too much time
elapsed between the initial set-up and the job being run, especially in cases where the process required
several iterations of set-up, inspection, and adjustment. Perhaps because of the valuing of co-workers
that had already become part of the company’s culture, someone suggested, bWhat if we taught the set-
up people to do their own inspection and trusted them to do it right?Q Instead of providing for more
control when the company grew, Reell’s leaders decided to trust the co-workers and let go of control.
The seeds of another transformation had been planted.
Reell’s leaders found that the results surprised them. The quality of production actually improved. In
the words of co-founder Bob Wahlstedt, bThis was the first step in a philosophical evolution from a
Plan–Direct–Control style of management to a Teach–Equip–Trust style. . . Greater productivity, better
quality, and growth for the individual were achieved (Wahlstedt, 1989, pp. 12–13).Q Because of Reell’s
positive experience on a small scale, the leaders were willing to try Just-in-Time manufacturing when
exposed to it by Xerox shortly thereafter. The JIT techniques proved to be just what Reell needed to
extend the Teach–Equip–Trust philosophy to their entire manufacturing operation. These changes
transformed the company:
As promised by the proponents of JIT, we have experienced the positive financial effects of
reduced inventory, inspection and assembly costs, better quality and better utilization of space.
More importantly, assembly positions are enriched. Assemblers can move up in responsibility and
pay to Senior Assembler and Line Leader positions as their skills increase through training and
experience (Wahlstedt, 1989, p. 13).
Not only was the company transformed, but the owners and managers discovered something
important about what they had been taught about managing a manufacturing business:
This revolution has shown us that the biggest misconception of American manufacturers is the
belief that production workers are not dependable and must be motivated and/or constrained to do
quality work. We have been amazed by the self-motivation and dedication to quality and
productivity that they demonstrate when they are freed to develop and use their full potential
(Wahlstedt, 1989, pp. 13–14).
Reell’s leaders practiced careful spiritual discernment, patiently attending to the situation on the
ground, the challenge of quality, and the values of their organization. In Lonergan’s and Helminiak’s
terms, they heeded the inherent norms in the structure of human consciousness (Be attentive, Be
intelligent, Be reasonable, Be responsible), resulting in bauthentic subjectivity.Q This authentic
subjectivity produced objectively better results for the company.
4.4.2.2. Dark night. Having seen Reell’s transition to the bsecond half of the journeyQ and its ongoing
transformation over the years, let us now move to the deepest level of transformations (Ferguson, 2000;
Hawkins, 1991; Torbert, 1989, 2004). The 1990’s saw this deeper transformation in Reell. For some co-
workers the very foundation upon which Reell rested seemed to contradict Reell’s stated values. The
phrase bReell is committed to following the will of GodQ in Reell’s direction statement left some co-
workers feeling excluded. While they felt valued and respected in their day-to-day life at Reell, and
while they experienced the lived reality of the part of the direction statement that read bto treat the
concerns of others (co-workers, customers, and suppliers) equally with our own concerns,Q they felt that
Reell’s Christian foundation excluded them. Steve Wikstrom, then VP of Manufacturing, heard these
concerns and initiated a process by which discernment about 1) what Reell’s foundation was and 2) how
to best express that foundation could occur.
Initially it seemed that Reell had hit an impenetrable wall. The old way of discerning when there was
an intractable problem, i.e., turning to God and seeking God’s will, was the very issue at stake. The very
spiritual practice that had gotten the company through other hard times and had led to the company’s
earlier transformations was itself in question. The co-founders had experienced bfollowing the will of
GodQ to be the way to let go of their own egos and find the way forward that was best for the company as
a whole. To let go of that phrase seemed to them to be letting go of the entire spiritual foundation of
Reell. Others, for whom the phrase bfollowing the will of GodQ had no meaning, felt that there must be
another way to express the spiritual foundation that could include them. How were they to find a way
forward?
4.4.2.3. Dawn. Because of the years of practicing spiritual discernment, Reell co-workers knew the
experience, even if they described it in different ways. They knew how to be open to one another and
listen deeply. They knew how to be open to something beyond themselves. They knew that the process
involved a willingness to let go of their own agendas. They knew how to distinguish between
stubbornness and a matter of conscience. All this served them well in the process.
Although the process was bumpy, with many ups and downs along the way, the group working on
Reell’s direction statement found a way to express the spiritual foundation that was more inclusive. More
importantly it seemed to better express what Reell was already doing. It acknowledged the Judeo-
Christian roots of the company, eliminated the phrase bto follow the will of God,Q and added a phrase
bwe are challenged to work and make decisions consistent with God’s purpose for creation according to
our individual understanding.Q The relevant part of the direction statement now read:
RPM is a team dedicated to the purpose of operating a business based on the practical application
of Judeo-Christian values for the mutual benefit of co-workers and their families, customers,
shareholders, suppliers, and community. We are committed to provide an environment where there
is harmony between work and our moral/ethical values and family responsibilities and where
everyone is treated justly.
The tradition of excellence at RPM was founded on a commitment to excellence rooted in the
character of our Creator. Instead of driving each other toward excellence, we strive to free each
other to grow and express the excellence that is within all of us. By adhering to the following
principles, we are challenged to work and make decisions consistent with God’s purpose for
creation according to our individual understanding:
DO WHAT IS RIGHT We are committed to do what is right even when it does not seem to be
profitable, expedient, or conventional.
DO OUR BEST In our understanding of excellence we embrace a commitment to continuous
improvement in everything we do. It is our commitment to encourage, teach, equip, and free
each other to do and become all that we were intended to be.
TREAT OTHERS AS WE WOULD LIKE TO BE TREATED
SEEK INSPIRATIONAL WISDOM by looking outside ourselves, especially with respect to
decisions having far-reaching and unpredictable consequences, but we will act only when the
action is confirmed unanimously by others concerned (Reell direction statement, 1992,
emphases in original).
By replacing bfollow the will of GodQ with bwe are challenged to work and make decisions consistent
with God’s purpose for creation according to our individual understanding,Q the group sought to
acknowledge the diversity of spiritualities present at Reell and the richness contributed by various
spiritual traditions. Reell had always welcomed spiritual diversity in its hiring and promotion practices;
now the direction statement reflected this reality.
Reell lived with the revised direction statement for more than a decade and found it to generate
high ownership and satisfaction in the company. In 2004, when the direction statement was revised
again, the phrase bwe are challenged to work and make decisions consistent with God’s purpose for
creation according to our individual understandingQ remained the same (Reell provides an example of
a company which walks the line between neglecting religion/spirituality and imposing religion/
spirituality, as discussed on National Public Radio’s bSpirituality in the WorkplaceQ series, June 28–30,
2004.).
Throughout the discernment process, in Lonergan’s terms, Reell leaders and co-workers heeded the
inherent norms in the structure of human knowing to achieve authentic subjectivity and ultimately an
objective result for the company. In so doing, the company operated from Helminiak’s philosophic
viewpoint, seeking the good and the true.
Reell leaders found that walking through the Dark Night led to deeper transformation. The apparent
impasse became an opportunity for deepening.
5. Discussion
This article began by noting the growing chorus of voices arguing that spirituality is necessary in
organizations and that spiritual leadership forms the backbone of the spiritual organization. It surveyed
the empirical studies done to date on spirituality in organizations and then outlined two challenges
facing scholars of spiritual leadership: 1) The challenge of responding to the growing epistemological
critique of the existing empirical studies of spirituality in organizations, and 2) the challenge of
developing a more robust and sophisticated understanding of the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual
leadershipQ.
The moves this article has made contribute to meeting these two challenges. First, by situating the
debate within Burrell and Morgan’s paradigms and then using Lonergan’s work to transcend the
subjective–objective divide, the first challenge is met. The quantitative and qualitative approaches no
longer need to be at odds with one another. Both the realist empirical and the phenomenological
approaches can stand on their own terms, each critically grounded, complementing one another.
Furthermore, meeting the first challenge provides the foundation for addressing the second challenge.
By drawing on Helminiak’s use of Lonergan to articulate the philosophic viewpoint, the way is opened
to discuss normative spiritual development. It is then possible to contribute to the bspiritualQ aspect of
spiritual leadership theories by outlining normative spiritual transformation in an individual leader. This
understanding of the individual leader’s spiritual transformation can then be extended to the
organizational level, illustrating how a leader might lead an organization through spiritual transformation
by considering the case of Reell Precision Manufacturing. The article thus provides 1) a deeper and
more robust conceptual framework for understanding the leader’s spiritual transformation and 2) a
deeper and more robust conceptual framework for understanding the organization’s spiritual
transformation.
What then are the implications of meeting the two challenges for 1) leadership theory and research,
and 2) leadership practice?
5.1. Implications for leadership theory and research
In his 1999 The Leadership Quarterly historical essay on the field of leadership, Jerry Hunt argued for
the need for an expansion of conceptual frameworks and research methods if the field was to progress
adequately. While he praised the increase in qualitative studies in the previous five years, he also voiced
his concern that the preponderance of leadership studies remained survey-based and cross-sectional. He
warned:
I believe tenure and promotion and other pressures tend to push people in the direction of easy
publication, and then it is but a small step to get beguiled by the esoteric statistical packages
available. This temptation to over-rely on surveys and the two-factor transformational/transactional
approach forms the basis for my caveats (1999, p. 140).
The present article is one attempt to expand the conceptual frameworks and research methods used in
the field. As noted above, transcending the subjective–objective divide allows both the realist empirical
and the phenomenological approaches to stand on their own terms, each critically grounded,
complementing one another. This allows for both quantitative and qualitative research and theory-
building in leadership studies, moving beyond Burrell and Morgan’s claim that the two are
incommensurable. While other scholars have argued that the two approaches can complement one
another (see, for example, Lee, 1999; Parry, 1998, pp. 87–88), no one to date has provided the
philosophical foundation for that claim which this article provides. This philosophical foundation
contributes to more solidly integrating qualitative methodologies into the toolset of leadership studies, so
that the qualitative approach no longer needs to be a bsatelliteQ paradigm to the dominant quantitative
paradigm.
Fry (2003) has argued that
organizational environments in the 21st century are chaotic and require rapid response from highly
committed, productive, intrinsically motivated learning organizations (2003, p. 717).
He claims that spiritual leadership is necessary to create and sustain these learning organizations. His
proposed theory of spiritual leadership is one attempt to expand conceptual frameworks in the leadership
field. While Fry’s theory makes an admirable contribution to the understanding of spiritual leadership, it
lacks a deep understanding of spirituality. By drawing on Helminiak’s philosophic viewpoint and the
field of spirituality’s current understandings of spiritual transformation, this article contributes to the
bspiritualQ aspect of spiritual leadership theory.
This contribution, while not a full-blown theory in itself, opens the way for scholars of spiritual
leadership to learn from spirituality scholars. For example, scholars of spiritual leadership might use
Dubin’s method of theory-building to construct a theory of spiritual leadership based on the model of
individual spiritual transformation articulated above, considering how a leader develops through the
stages and what impact such transformation has on the leader’s organization. Or further, scholars of
spiritual leadership might use Dubin to construct a theory of spiritual leadership based on both the model
of individual spiritual transformation articulated above and the model of organizational transformation
articulated above, considering how a leader’s individual transformation is related to an organization’s
transformation, and what impact such transformations have on the organization’s performance. Or
further, scholars of spiritual leadership might use qualitative research methods to generate grounded
theory, learning from the bthick descriptionsQ found in the spirituality literature which have informed
understandings of spiritual development. Or further, scholars of spiritual leadership might use action
research, noting the compatibility of the topic of spiritual leadership, which focuses on the leader’s and
the organization’s transformation, with the bent of action research as a methodology which seeks not
only to understand but also to transform.
5.2. Implications for leadership practice
Meeting the two challenges also leads to implications for leadership practice. How does the
conceptual framework articulated above reconcile the leader’s impulse to demonstrate that
spirituality improves organizational performance with the impulse to argue for the value of
organizational spirituality completely apart from demonstrable financial gains? Further, how does
understanding the bsecond half of the journeyQ help leaders who walk with organizations through
their spiritual deepening? What does the illustrative case of Reell Precision Manufacturing have to
teach leaders?
First, it helps leaders understand that, even through the spiritual path is not ultimately about
enlightened self-interest, most individuals and organizations begin the spiritual journey at that point.
This is a natural starting-point and there is nothing wrong with seeking spirituality for bselfishQ reasons.
At the same time, if they continue on the spiritual path, they eventually reach a different place. They
learn that the spiritual journey is about their transformation, rather than about the material gain they can
procure from it. They ultimately learn that self-preservation is not the highest good, experiencing the
relativization of self and organization to a higher purpose. Thus, rather than worrying about
organizations starting on the spiritual path for the bwrongQ reason, i.e., to enhance organizational
performance, leaders need to recognize this as a natural starting-point for a spiritual journey, both for
individuals and for organizations. Then they can re-focus their attention on the inevitable bumps
organizations will encounter, and in particular on how to help them through the transition to the bsecond
half of the journeyQ.
Second, it helps leaders know how to lead organizations on the bsecond half of the journey.Q Just as
spiritual teachers help individuals on the bsecond half of the journeyQ by understanding and pointing out
the recurring cycles of spiritual challenge and growth, so can leaders help organizations on the bsecond
half of the journey.Q When they understand the process of spiritual growth and deepening in
organizations, leaders can help bnormalizeQ what an organization is experiencing, and point it toward
examples of others who have traveled the path before them. This way each organization seeking to
follow a spiritual path doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel when it encounters the inevitable challenges of
the bsecond half.Q Spiritual leaders for organizations, like spiritual teachers for individuals, can draw on
the collective wisdom of others’ experience and compassionately walk with organizations through their
transformation. While such leadership may not make the process any easier, at least it demystifies it and
lets the organization know it’s not alone, but that it is surrounded by a cloud of witnesses who have hit
the bumps and made it through to the other side.
Acknowledgments
I wish to thank Linda Ferguson, Ken Haase, Monica Manning, Michael Naughton, Stephanie Paulsell,
Michael Stebbins, Bob Wahlstedt, and two anonymous reviewers, who all read earlier drafts of this
article and whose comments helped make it much stronger. I also thank the faculty and students of the
Milltown Institute in Dublin, Ireland and Philip Endean, my respondent, who listened and responded to
the lecture from which this article grew, and I thank the Seeing Things Whole retreat group (October
2004), who read an earlier draft and commented helpfully. I am deeply grateful to the leaders and co-
workers of Reell Precision Manufacturing, who invited me into their world and allowed me to write
about them. My special thanks go to Diana Yount of the Trask Library at Andover Newton Theological
School, who left no stone unturned in filling Interlibrary Loan requests. And I am most appreciative to
Jody Fry, editor and colleague, who labored with me and whose many helpful challenges and
suggestions helped bring this article to see the light of day.
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The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723 – 747

The second half of the journey: Spiritual leadership for

Keywords: Spiritual leadership; Workplace spirituality; Organizational transformation; Lonergan

T Tel.: +1 617 436 8341.

2.2. Understanding the bspiritual Q aspect of bspiritual leadershipQ

2.3. A way forward

3. Responding to the growing epistemological critique

3.1. Burrell and Morgan’s paradigms

3.2. Lonergan: bridging the divide

4. Understanding the bspiritualQ aspect of bspiritual leadershipQ

4.1. Helminiak’s higher viewpoints

4.2. Spirituality literature

4.3. Individual spiritual transformation

4.3.1. The first half of the journey

Stage I Stage II Stage III Stage IV Stage V

M. Benefiel / The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723–747

Fullness Emptiness Fullness Emptiness Fullness

4.4. Organizational transformation

Stage I Stage II Stage III Stage IV Stage V

M. Benefiel / The Leadership Quarterly 16 (2005) 723–747

Fullness Emptiness Fullness Emptiness Fullness

4.4.1. Reell: the first half of the journey

4.4.2. Reell: the second half of the journey

5.1. Implications for leadership theory and research

5.2. Implications for leadership practice

Barrett, R. (1998). Liberating the corporate soul. Newton, MA7 Butterworth-Heinemann.

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