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ABSTRACT
This study empirically examines implications of the Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej's philosophy of sufficiency economy (PSE) for business sustainability. Based on self-administered questionnaires collecting data from 260 Thai executive respondents, the study introduces a systematic framework for assessing PSE's operational significance for business sustainability. PSE comprises three elements (moderation, reasonableness, self-immunity) and two conditions (knowledge and morality), generally known as three rings and two conditions. Rooted in Buddhist thought, these translate to five business practices: resource utilization, stakeholder engagement, critical reasoning, local technology, and long-term focus. The study finds that stakeholder engagement, critical reasoning, and resource utilization positively affect sustainability outcome through organizational ambidexterity, while local technology affects the outcome directly. Long term focus insignificantly affects the outcome but influences organizational ambidexterity by reinforcing alignment and adaptability. PSE conditions are critical to the framework. Enterprises highly aligned with PSE conditions are also aligned with corresponding business practices, are more capable of organizational ambidexterity, and have better sustainability outcomes compared with less-aligned organizations. Adopting PSE into organizations supports business sustainability. It is a practical application of Buddhist "middle way" philosophy for the business environment. Business schools should teach PSE as a framework for operationalizing sustainability.
Key words: Sufficiency economy, business sustainability, Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej
INTRODUCTION
The speed of change is a challenge for every business organization today. Economic meltdown, climate uncertainties and social upheaval challenge companies to use resources wisely in order to create competitive advantage today and into the future. Successful business cases show that business longevity is often enhanced by shifting from a sole focus on maximizing shareholder profits to include social and environmental considerations with a broader group of stakeholders, including consumers, employees, suppliers, and local community (Kotier et al. 2010). Balancing stakeholder needs and benefits with shareholder profits is a highly relevant challenge for corporations seeking to create shareholder value in the long run.
Today there is widespread agreement that the philosophy of sufficiency economy (PSE), as formulated by His Majesty the King of Thailand, is an approach to sustainable development. The links between PSE and sustainability have been increasingly studied and seen a wide range of inteipretation and application. Despite this variety of research, there are several limitations to appropriately explaining and measuring the relationship between PSE...