The context for an indigenous approach to management

Abstract

Management research and practice have largely followed the basic constructs and frameworks developed in the West during the last 150 years. Despite considerable progress that we have made in our practice of management a few fault lines remain. This includes mounting sustainability challenges and deprived meaning at work place leading to job burnout and stress experience by employees, to name a few. The other issue that merits closer attention is the assumption that management theories developed in the west are seamlessly applicable in other cultural settings such as the East. This paper emphsises the need for studying indigenous management practices and developing appropriate management theories rooted in native knowledge repositories. Indian Knowledge System can provide specific opportunties to explore new management concepts and expand our understanding of management. A few speific areas have been identified for futher study. The paper concludes by identifing potential challeneges that one will encounter when advancing research using indigenous concepts and frameworks.