Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report about research how Society 5.0 balances Industry 4.0, responsible economic development and resolution of social problems by advancement of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in organizations.Design/methodology/approach: Drawing from organization, sustainable development and social functionalism theories, the authors designed an integral model of CSR in line with goals of a forward-looking and socially responsible society. This study includes analyzing of present governing principles, multidisciplinary and multifunctional consideration and developing of integral framework for CSR in organizations.Findings: This study’s findings suggest incorporation of technology in models of CSR, a regionally grounded solving of individuals’ social problems and changing of CSR’s environmental, social and economic dimensions according to circumstances of Society 5.0.Practical implications: This study has created guidance for improvement of CSR practice in organizations through its responsible operating and behavior grounded on the governing environmental and social circumstances in modern society. It also revealed new possibilities for interest-based usage of human-centered society among individuals and organizations.Originality/value: The reported study proposed an integral model of CSR for solving the main social problems with usage of advanced technologies in responsible economic growth founded on circumstances of Society 5.0, previously not considered in literature.

This article reports on examination of the relationships between manager’s personal values, their attitudes toward concern for environment, concern for economic results and enterprise environmental responsiveness. Schwartz’s list of values and statements about the environmental and economic concerns is used. We analyzed 1179 managers’ answers from Slovenian enterprises with structural equation modeling. Manager’s concern results: (a) for environment positively and significantly and (b) for economics negatively and insignificantly, in influence on enterprise environmental responsiveness. Two value dimensions significantly influence enterprise environmental responsiveness and one negatively. Environmental concern mediates the effect of three, and concern for economic results mediates the effect of two value dimensions on enterprise’s environmental responsiveness. Generalization can be limited due to the focus on one Central Europe country; future examination is needed. Findings are useful for the development of enterprises’ pro-environmental behavior and development of enterprise value system. A model of enterprise’s environmental responsiveness is developed.

The main purpose of this study is to examine how the use of management tools supports the readiness of manufacturing organizations for the implementation of Industry 4.0. The originality of the research is reflected in the exploration of the relationship between the use of the selected well-known management tools and their readiness for the implementation of Industry 4.0, which was assessed using a combination of two models—one developed by the National Academy of Science and Engineering (Acatech) and the other by the University of Warwick. The relationship was assessed by applying structural equation modeling techniques to a data set of 323 responses from employees in manufacturing organizations. The results show that the use of six sigma, total quality management, radio frequency identification, a balanced scorecard, rapid prototyping, customer segmentation, mission and vision statements, and digital transformation is positively associated with Industry 4.0 readiness. Inversely, outsourcing and strategic planning are negatively associated with Industry 4.0 readiness, while lean manufacturing, which is often emphasized as the cornerstone of Industry 4.0 implementation, is not associated with Industry 4.0 readiness in our study. These findings can help organizations to understand how to consider and measure readiness for the implementation of Industry 4.0 more comprehensively and present guidelines on how the use of management tools in manufacturing organizations can foster their implementation of Industry 4.0 principles.

The main purpose of this study was to examine the influence of leaders’ personal values on their democratic behavior from a sustainability perspective. We specified and tested the research model, drawing upon modified versions of the theory of basic values and the autocratic–democratic leadership continuum. A total of 208 Slovenian and 196 Austrian leaders’ responses were used in hierarchical regression and structural equation modeling analysis. The results reveal a significant and positive influence of collectivistic values in both samples on democratic leadership behavior. A significant and negative effect of individualistic values on democratic leadership behavior is present in Austria, while in Slovenia, the effect is positive but not significant. Based on acknowledged associations between leader’s values, leaders’ democratic leadership behavior, and sustainable development, we argue that democratic leadership behavior contributes to the sustainable working and behavior of organizations. These results have theoretical implications, indicating how personal values affect leaders’ democratic behavior and contribute to the sustainable working and behavior of organizations. The practical implications relate to the strengthening of leaders’ democratic behavior in Slovenian and Austrian organizations. In addition, these findings will be helpful in increasing the sustainability of organizations via fostering democratic leadership behavior and its underlying personal values.