Beyond ownership as usual: the implications of steward-ownership for management research

Journal article

Steward-ownership is a novel conceptualization of ownership galvanizing attention from entrepreneurs, business owners, policymakers, and academics around the world. Two main principles distinguish it from traditional models of ownership: (1) decoupling control rights and economic rights and (2) asset lock, whereby company resources cannot be privatized by shareholders. This curated conversation among 11 interdisciplinary researchers unpacks the transformative potential of steward-ownership for management theory. Contributors discuss how our current knowledge of steward-ownership, along with what we can come to know through targeted future research, offers important insights for scholarship on purpose, entrepreneurship, corporate governance, impact investing, hybridity, and alternative forms of organizing.

Authors: Manelli, L; Pek, S; Waldkirch, M; Hachigian, H; Jamal, A

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Journal: Journal of Management Inquiry
• Article number: 10564926251357812
• Publication date: 2025-08-08
• DOI: 10.1177/10564926251357812
• EISSN: 1552-6542
• ISSN: 1056-4926
• Language: English
• Keywords: steward-ownership; purpose; entrepreneurship; corporate governance; hybridity; impact investing; alternative forms of organizing