Challenging envy in organizations: multicultural approaches and possibilities

Abstract

PurposeThe paper's aim is to discuss envy as an institutional force that can sap peoples' energy and provoke inner conflicts that may prevent institutional flourishing. This represents a crucial element in the so‐called hidden curriculum of any institution, including higher education ones. The paper also intends to further the analysis of envy, its effects and ways to diminish them in the context of academic and non‐academic organizations, from a multicultural perspective.Design/methodology/approachThe paper's approach is a literature review and a qualitative methodology of story lives in the form of narratives of main actors in high echelons of institutions in Brazil that deal with key areas in higher education institutions (HEI). It discusses how envy has been perceived in their institutional contexts and what possible models of multicultural leaders could emerge from those narratives.FindingsCounteracting forces in relation to the effects of envy in organizational climate could be noted, particularly highlighting the role of multiculturally sensitive leaders in dealing with it.Practical implicationsThe role of leaders in enhancing organizational and collective goals and promoting the valuing of plural institutional actors was particularly stressed as a possible path towards minimizing envy at the work place. The role of the curriculum in HEI and even of citizenship education in primary and secondary schooling is highlighted to better equip students to address ethical and multicultural dimensions in their future professional lives.Originality/valueProductivity and capacity for innovation – issues increasingly addressed in institutional evaluation – should be likely boosted in environments where leaders competently deal proactively in a way that prevents envy to become a destructive force. The paper shows that HEIs have a high potential for contribution, by preparing future professionals in broader, multicultural perspectives that better equip them to become leaders for a better world.