Abstract

GOLDMAN, Geoff A.. On the possibility of fostering critical management studies in South Africa. Acta Commer. [online]. 2016, vol.16, n.2, pp.3-30. ISSN 1684-1999.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ac.v16i2.415.

Critical management studies, as an emergent paradigm, has found its way into the discourse surrounding the academic discipline of business management since the early 1990s. However, in South Africa, critical management studies remains virtually unexplored. Through a critical, dialectical approach, this conceptual paper sets out to introduce the South African academic community to the notion of critical management studies. This will be done through highlighting how critical management studies came to be and through a differentiation of critical management studies from conventional thinking concerning business management. The discussion on critical management studies concludes by emphasising the central tenets of critical management studies, namely denaturalisation, reflexivity and anti-performativity. After introducing critical management studies, the discussion turns to what it can offer in advancing business management as an academic discipline in South Africa. In this regard, the notion of postcolonialism is explored. Regardless of the political and theoretical ambiguities surrounding postcolonialism, the relevance of postcolonial thinking in the realm of business management is advocated as a possible avenue in the search for mechanisms to promote indigenous knowledge and Africa-centred wisdom as far as business management is concerned. In an academic discipline dominated by American and European wisdom and knowledge, the search for local and indigenous knowledge concerning business management is of paramount importance if we wish to successfully engage with the unique challenges posed by the South African business environment.

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