IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/iburev/v6y1997i5p537-558.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Managing human resources in Africa: Strategic, organizational and epistemological issues

Author

Listed:
  • Kamoche, Ken

Abstract

In an attempt to re-evaluate human resource management in Africa, this paper takes a critical look at the problematic status of organization theory and strategic management. The antecedents of organization theory and the shortcomings of extant strategy analysis are examined within the historical context of organization science in Africa. We identify the effects of the epistemological problem that exists in the conception of organizational context and the adoption of "foreign" practices. While acknowledging the value of the predominant "external environment" paradigm, this paper advocates a more appropriate "evolutionary" paradigm which draws from resource-capability approaches and the concept of internal resource heterogeneity. This facilitates closer attention to the potential strategic value of internally held human resources and related sources of organizational diversity in the African context. Two case studies are offered to illustrate the arguments.

Suggested Citation

  • Kamoche, Ken, 1997. "Managing human resources in Africa: Strategic, organizational and epistemological issues," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 6(5), pages 537-558, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:iburev:v:6:y:1997:i:5:p:537-558
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969593197000206
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Henry Mintzberg & James A. Waters, 1985. "Of strategies, deliberate and emergent," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(3), pages 257-272, July.
    2. Ken Kamoche, 1996. "Strategic Human Resource Management Within A Resource‐Capability View Of The Firm," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 213-233, March.
    3. Jan. J. Jøsrgensen & Taieb Hafsi & Moses N. Kiggundu, 1986. "Towards A Market Imperfections Theory Of Organizational Structure In Developing Countries," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(4), pages 417-442, July.
    4. Merrick Jones, 1988. "Managerial Thinking: An African Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(5), pages 481-505, September.
    5. Frank Mueller, 1996. "Human Resources As Strategic Assets: An Evolutionary Resource‐Based Theory," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(6), pages 757-785, November.
    6. Ukandi G. Damachi, 1978. "Theories of Management and the Executive in the Developing World," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-1-349-03586-1, December.
    7. Ingemar Dierickx & Karel Cool, 1989. "Asset Stock Accumulation and the Sustainability of Competitive Advantage: Reply," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 35(12), pages 1514-1514, December.
    8. Paul J. Stonich, 1981. "Using rewards in implementing strategy," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 2(4), pages 345-352, October.
    9. Jon I Martinez & J Carlos Jarillo, 1989. "The Evolution of Research on Coordination Mechanisms in Multinational Corporations," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 20(3), pages 489-514, September.
    10. Mahoney, Joseph T., 1995. "The management of resources and the resource of management," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 91-101, June.
    11. Ingemar Dierickx & Karel Cool, 1989. "Asset Stock Accumulation and Sustainability of Competitive Advantage," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 35(12), pages 1504-1511, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Khilji, Shaista E. & Wang, Xiaoyun, 2007. "New evidence in an old debate: Investigating the relationship between HR satisfaction and turnover," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 377-395, June.
    2. Souleymane Kaboré & Michel Gervais, 2006. "Quels systèmes d'animation pour l'entreprise burkinabé ?," Post-Print halshs-00558052, HAL.
    3. Xing, Yijun & Liu, Yipeng & Tarba, Shlomo Yedidia & Cooper, Cary L., 2016. "Intercultural influences on managing African employees of Chinese firms in Africa: Chinese managers’ HRM practices," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 28-41.
    4. Tatli, Ahu & Vassilopoulou, Joana & Özbilgin, Mustafa, 2013. "An unrequited affinity between talent shortages and untapped female potential: The relevance of gender quotas for talent management in high growth potential economies of the Asia Pacific region," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 539-553.
    5. Ken Kamoche & Geoffrey Wood, 2023. "International business and Africa: Theoretical and applied challenges, and future directions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 54(5), pages 956-967, July.
    6. Enyonam Canice Kudonoo & Victoria Tsedzah, 2015. "Human Capital Management: Taking Human Resources Management to the Next Level in Anglophone, West Africa," International Journal of Management Science and Business Administration, Inovatus Services Ltd., vol. 1(6), pages 19-30, May.
    7. Miguel Pina e Cunha & Armanda Fortes & Filipa Rodrigues & Armenio Rego, 2015. "Leadership paradoxes in Angolan organizations: Emic paradoxes, etic paradoxes, and paradox work," NOVAFRICA Working Paper Series wp1501, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Nova School of Business and Economics, NOVAFRICA.
    8. Gonzalo Molina-Sieiro & Katia M. Galdino & R. Michael Holmes, 2023. "Ownership types, institutions, and the internationalization of emerging economy new ventures: evidence from Africa," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 1121-1145, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Robert P. Garrett Jr. & Jeffrey G. Covin, 2015. "Internal Corporate Venture Operations Independence and Performance: A Knowledge–Based Perspective," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(4), pages 763-790, July.
    2. Iman Seoudi & Matthias Huehn & Bo Carlsson, 2008. "Penrose Revisited: A Re-Appraisal of the Resource Perspective," Working Papers 14, The German University in Cairo, Faculty of Management Technology.
    3. Malik, Omar R., 2008. "Adapting to market liberalization: The role of dynamic capabilities, initial resource conditions, and strategic path choices in determining evolutionary fitness of Less Developed Country (LDC) firms," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 217-231, September.
    4. Mehmet Ali Köseoglu & John A. Parnell & Melissa Yan Yee Yick, 2021. "Identifying influential studies and maturity level in intellectual structure of fields: evidence from strategic management," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(2), pages 1271-1309, February.
    5. Clint Chadwick & Adina Dabu, 2009. "Human Resources, Human Resource Management, and the Competitive Advantage of Firms: Toward a More Comprehensive Model of Causal Linkages," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(1), pages 253-272, February.
    6. Adamides, Emmanuel D. & Voutsina, Marinie, 2006. "The double-helix model of manufacturing and marketing strategies," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(1), pages 3-18, November.
    7. Tan, Justin & Wang, Liang, 2010. "Flexibility-efficiency tradeoff and performance implications among Chinese SOEs," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 63(4), pages 356-362, April.
    8. Jan-Erik Vahlne & Jan Johanson, 2017. "From internationalization to evolution: The Uppsala model at 40 years," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(9), pages 1087-1102, December.
    9. Steven Toms, 2010. "Value, profit and risk: accounting and the resource‐based view of the firm," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 23(5), pages 647-670, June.
    10. Baraldi, Enrico & Gressetvold, Espen & Harrison, Debbie, 2012. "Resource interaction in inter-organizational networks: Foundations, comparison, and a research agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 65(2), pages 266-276.
    11. Stoelhorst, J. W. & van Raaij, Erik M., 2004. "On explaining performance differentials: Marketing and the managerial theory of the firm," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 57(5), pages 462-477, May.
    12. Nicolaï Foss & Nils Stieglitz, 2012. "Modern Resource-based Theory(ies)," Chapters, in: Michael Dietrich & Jackie Krafft (ed.), Handbook on the Economics and Theory of the Firm, chapter 20, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    13. Sidney G. Winter & Gabriel Szulanski, 2001. "Replication as Strategy," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 12(6), pages 730-743, December.
    14. Frohwein, Torsten, 2015. "The regulated firm: Effects of regulation on competence development and sustainable competitive advantage," Research Papers on Innovation, Services and Technology 1/2015, University of Stuttgart, Institute of Business Administration, Department I - Institute of Research & Development and Innovation Management.
    15. Luo, Yadong & Bu, Juan, 2018. "Contextualizing international strategy by emerging market firms: A composition-based approach," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 53(3), pages 337-355.
    16. Reha Karadag & Laura Poppo, 2023. "Strategic resource decay," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(6), pages 1534-1561, June.
    17. Danchi Tan & Joseph T. Mahoney, 2007. "The dynamics of Japanese firm growth in U.S. Industries: The Penrose effect," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 47(2), pages 259-279, March.
    18. Thais Dalcin & Alsones Balestrin & Eduardo Künzel Teixeira, 2017. "Start-Up Cluster Development: A Multi-Case Analysis in the Brazilian Context," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 14(06), pages 1-25, December.
    19. Klaus Uhlenbruck & Klaus E. Meyer & Michael A. Hitt, 2003. "Organizational Transformation in Transition Economies: Resource‐based and Organizational Learning Perspectives," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(2), pages 257-282, March.
    20. Elena Feltrinelli & Roberto Gabriele & Sandro Trento, 2013. "Do middle managers matter?," DEM Discussion Papers 2013/11, Department of Economics and Management.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:iburev:v:6:y:1997:i:5:p:537-558. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/133/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.