The role of dialogue and reciprocity in the company: legitimacy, happiness and competitiveness

Patrici Calvo, 25/01/11

Unable to fully understand the modern economic process from an approach based solely strategic rationality, during the last decade it has been witnessed, through an increasingly extensive literature on the subject, many economists have begun to question the anthropological assumptions upon which rests the modern economic theory.

This critical process has been brewing since Von Neumann and Morgenstern presented the now famous theory of games through his work Theory of Games and Economic behaviour (1944), where the "zero-sum games" are introduced as source and method study of economic interactions in order to predict the behaviour of rational agents. While games theory was also based on their day on the assumptions of homo economicus, its importance lies mainly in their method that allowed the visualization of the problem for the first time. The study and development of the theory was producing some paradoxes and dead streets ends, the more effort to find plausible solutions, the more growth in their number and complexity.

The introduction of other fields of study in games theory, such as psychology, sociology, evolutionary biology, moral philosophy and, ultimately, neurology, has revealed three important issues. First, the behaviour of economic agents do not respond implicitly to a single model of human being: selfish, individualistic and guided purely by strategic rationality. Secondly, their behaviour into the organization is much more complex than previously thought at first. Thirdly, reciprocity is currently nominated as one of the cornerstones of the new economic theory.

These issues have begun to highlight the need to transform our organizations to improve and strengthen them. It to generate a greater tangible and intangible value to the organization that minimizes the uncertainty of the market (especially in times of crisis) and, on the other hand, to ensure that the benefits of their activity also result in improved quality of life of its internal stakeholders: owners, shareholders, employees, directors, partners, suppliers, etc. And in the order to gets these issues is essential for the organization to attend one of the concepts more forgotten and derided by classical organizational theory: the reciprocity.

The current problem is, as is well known that the design of institutions, organizations and companies in the market favors strategic behavior and penalize the rest, as the ethical or reciprocal, when considered as a liability that slows or minimizes the pursuit of profit. Get rid of such unfair prejudice is the first step to have an economy with institutions, organizations and businesses, economic, social and moral development; that are consistent and not at odds with human nature, serving people and not exclusively the interests of a particular stakeholder.

As noted from the dialogic business ethics in economic contexts is not only key to the ability of firms to generate strategic benefits, but also and above all, communicative and relational. Communicative because these benefits are related to the credibility and legitimacy of the company. Through meeting the legitimate expectations of its stakeholders, the company can moral resources to manage such as trust and reputation, comunicative benefits that enable to carry out its activities in the medium and long term. And relational because these benefits are linked which the happiness of economic agents, such as friendship. This fact is very important, because through allowing build reciprocal relationships within the company, economic agents can meet his expressive needs. So, they can build their identities and achieve happiness.

Dialogue is the element that allows communication within the company. A communication oriented to understanding that enables the legitimacy of the company. And reciprocity is the element that allows non-strategic relationships within the company. Relations oriented to satisfy the expressive needs of the economic agents who allow their happiness and the improved competitiveness of the company. For these reasons, it is important that the company looks to improve its dialogue with internal stakeholders and allow reciprocal relationships within the company. This helps improve your business prospects in the medium and long term.