System transformation through the ethical agency of marketing managers

Our environmental and social systems are on the brink of collapse and this polycrisis is linked to modern production-consumption systems. This conceptual article challenges the dominant focus on consumers by exploring the transformative potential of marketing managers as ethical agents capable of catalysing significant systems change towards ethical and responsible business practices. We propose the concept of ethical marketing agency as central to the capacity of marketing managers to subvert dominant corporate strategies through their everyday practices. Drawing on de Certeau’s theories of everyday resistance and Jasper’s concepts of moral shock and moral protest, we reimagine marketers as key agents of ethical change, capable of transforming the prevailing economic system to an equitable and sustainable model of capitalism that aligns with broader societal values.