Less than three per cent of the more than 25,000 titles submitted to the Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries magazine make it to their Outstanding Academic Titles (OAT) list. The five-volume Encyclopedia of Business Ethics and Society, of which York Professor Mark Schwartz was a contributor and a member of the editorial board, beat the odds.
Left: Mark Schwartz
Schwartz (BA ’87, LLB ’91, MBA ’91, PhD ’99), a professor of governance, law and ethics in York’s School of Administrative Studies in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, contributed eight articles to the 2,592-page encyclopedia, edited by Robert Kolb and published by SAGE Publications in 2008. Schwartz’s articles include “Canadian Business for Social Responsibility”, "Tylenol Tampering", "Ford Pinto" and the key entry “Business Ethics”.
The five-volume work was selected for the OAT list for its excellence in scholarship and presentation, the significance of its contribution to the field and its value as an important treatment of its subject matter.
The Encyclopedia of Business Ethics and Society was also designated as outstanding by the Reference & User Services Association of the American Library Association, one of only two books to receive the designation. In addition, the encyclopedia was named a Best Reference Source by Library Journal last year.
The encyclopedia tackles several issues as they relate to business ethics while recognizing the inherent unity between business ethics and business and society, which stems from their shared primary concern with value in commerce. The encyclopedia spans the relationships among business, ethics and society by including more than 800 entries that feature broad coverage of corporate social responsibility, the obligation of companies to various stakeholder groups, the contribution of business to society and culture, and the relationship between organizations and the quality of the environment.
It is touted as the premier reference tool for students, scholars, practitioners and anyone else interested in knowing more about the role business plays with regard to the environment in which it exists.
Schwartz has also won two teaching awards, one from York’s Schulich School of Business in 2005 and another from the School of Administrative Studies in 2007. He was also the recipient of the Atkinson Dean’s Award for Outstanding Research in 2006.