Navigating paradoxes of responsible management education (RME): insights from the Global South

Amid the global drive for sustainable development and the evolving role of business schools in the Global South, we present a framework for Responsible Management Education (RME) from a paradox perspective. Drawing on a case study of a Malaysian business school, we employ a mixed-methods approach that integrates a survey of 543 students with follow-up focus group discussions involving 35 participants (educators and students) to illuminate how paradoxes shape RME. Findings demonstrate that the economic–environmental/social responsibility paradox is intertwined with individual–institutional and globalization–localization paradoxes across macro (institutional), meso (business school), and micro (individual) levels. To address these paradoxes, a multi-level RME framework advocating transformative curriculum and pedagogy is proposed, thereby advancing RME from a Global South perspective with wider implications for business education globally.