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My approach comprises two main points. I begin by reiterating my proposed argument that corporate social responsibility develops within organisations, over time, in four general phases and that practitioner attitudes are moving away from the dominant phase of social responsibility (SR) as public relations activity (Hemingway, 2013). The financial crash of 2008 was the catalyst for this marked gear shift in the awareness of organisational ‘ethics’ and ‘morality’ (SR) that was previously confined to the concerns of the business ethics scholars. Second, I contend that the legitimacy and credibility of SR in business schools is lagging behind that shift due to misunderstandings about its relevance, the obsession with performance metrics and a lack of political will in some cases. In the final part of this article, I suggest ways forward for research, teaching and practice.

This introduction to the 20-year anniversary issue of Research in Ethical Issues in Organizations notes that the role of organisations in society, the international and multidisciplinary scope of business ethics and the importance of narrative, issues identified in the early volumes, remain important.