Department of Management
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Browsing Department of Management by Author "Ahmad Raza"
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Item Connecting east and west: a discourse on the synthetic interpretation of culture(Iqbal Academy, 2008) Ahmad RazaThis paper undertakes a socio-philosophical critique of the concept of culture. It is argued that centrality of the notion of culture owes its theoretical legitimacy to the peculiar cultural and historical developments which took place in the Western Europe connected with French revolution, Enlightenment and Industrial revolution. The modern culture as understood and interpreted in contemporary texts of cultural sciences happens to be the direct philosophical consequence of these intellectual developments. The concept of culture replaced the philosophical primacy of medieval Christian worldview and in turn was established to explain and interpret social reality for the modern Western societies in particular and the rest of the world societies in general. These societies although deeply rooted in religious foundations of culture, nontheless, were influenced and shaped by the Western philosophical discourse through the political and technological forces of colonization and modernizationItem Culture, cognition and knowledge-based development(Journal of Knowledge Management, 2006) Ahmad Raza; Abdul Rashid Kausar; Paul, DavidPurpose – The purpose of this article is to provide a theoretical critique of the concept of the knowledge-based development. Design/methodology/approach – A cross-disciplinary critique is discussed. Findings – Provides cross-disciplinary analysis and critique of the concept of the knowledge-based development. Originality/value – This paper provides a deeper analysis of the knowledge-based development and proposes a broadening of the current paradigm on the economic development by integrating psychological and anthropological points-of-view.Item Epistemic context of strategic decisions: interpreting the grammar of managerial praxis(The Institute of Business Administrator Karachi - Pakistan, 2010) Ahmad Raza; Hasan Sohaib MuradThis paper makes a theoretical assertion that strategic decisions are deterministic and apriori cognitive programs, internalized by human actors through an epistemic context, generated by culturally contingent conditions. It is argued that, a pervasive worldview reverberates underneath the seemingly calm strategic attitude of the managerial leadership and, consequently shapes the grammar of managerial praxis. The leaders during their strategic engagements choose to decide on the basis of this deeply ingrained language of their respective worldviews, which have grown out of the collective symbolic knowledge of their respective societies. By analyzing three examples one each from society, economy and politics, which have become profoundly interlocked spheres of human societies in the unfolding millennium, we intend to demonstrate the validity of the foregoing assertion.Item The existential face of organization: a literature review(European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences, 2011) Rana Zamin Abbas; Ahmad Raza; Muhammad Ashraf; Naveed Yazdani; Abdur Rahman Malik; Zulfqar AhmadThe notion of existential meaning has its roots in the literature and insights of existentialist philosophy and existential phenomenology. Many figures – Erasmus, Luther, Rousseau, Newton, Decartes, Vico, Goethe, Emerson, Netizche – cried out for a deep psychological understanding. This study brings together the thoughts of philosophy, thinking of literary figures and business thinkers and presents them in the form of literature review, for highlighting the humanistic and existential context in business organizations.Item Gender gap in Pakistan: a socio-demographic analysis(Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2010) Ahmad Raza; Hasan Sohaib MuradPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a descriptive analysis of socio-demographic bases of gender gap in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach – The paper analyzes various aspects of gender gap (gender inequalities) in Pakistan. The analysis is based on the secondary data drawn from reports published by several governmental, international development agencies, and local non-governmental organizations. The analysis is descriptive in nature and interprets certain social and demographic data to ascertain the states of affairs about the prevailing social conditions relating to gender inequalities in Pakistan. Besides review of literature, the paper focuses on sectoral discussion of gender gap in population, health, education, political, and economic empowerment. In light of the secondary data analysis, suggestions to improve the current gender inequalities and possible recommendations to improve the current gender inequalities in Pakistan are also given. Findings – The paper demonstrates that there are significant socio-demographic and cultural factors, due to which gender gap persists in Pakistani society. Research limitations/implications – The current analysis is based on secondary and published data and, therefore lacks empirical reliability. However, published quantitative data reveal certain social characteristics of gender gap. Originality/value – The paper provides a descriptive cultural analysis of gender inequalities.Item God, culture, and old age: social constructions of gerontological experience in a muslim society(Casa Verde Publishing, 2008) Ahmad Raza; Ashraf Khan Kayani; Hasan Sohaib MuradThe paper explores the social constructions of “gerontological experience” in the context of Muslim society, particularly Pakistan. Old-age occupies a socially significant mode of collective experience through which social continuity of tradition as well as practice is communicated to the posterity. It is predominantly associated with wisdom, self-poise and benevolence in the general social experience of the society. The “old” is looked upon as the cultural repositories of knowledge, experience and historical connectivity. The “gerontological experience” is deeply embedded in the social structure of the family, wherein the process of “aging” is taken as natural and social given to be revered by the young ones and joyfully lived by the “old.” The social perception of being an “oldman” as a meaningful construct in the society is derived from the unique spiritual, ontological and historical symbolism of the society and its continued traditions of such forms of social legitimization. Finally the paper concludes with a contemporary redefinition of the “gerontological experience” amidst the emerging “technological” transformation currently experienced by the society and future shape of social recontextualization of the “old-age” facing new social scenarios.Item Knowledge democracy and the implications to information access(Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2008) Ahmad Raza; Hasan Sohaib MuradPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the concept of “knowledge democracy,” deploying a pluralistic, and cross disciplinary and humanistic critique. Design/methodology/approach – This is a culturally pluralistic and humanistic interpretation of globally emergent form of learning pedagogy, particularly manifested in e-learning. Findings – This paper explores the concept of knowledge democracy in the context of knowledge and information revolution. It has been argued that knowledge democratization implies freedom and equality to access information and knowledge across cultures and societies, particularly in the context of globalization. It is asserted that a democratization of the notion of knowledge would cause a paradigm shift; the way instruction and education are socially structured in different social systems. The knowledge society provides a new spirit of global sharing of values, acceptance of others and learning to live with divergent worldviews. It is contended that e-learning in particular sets a new global social opportunity to transcend regional, racial and national prejudices. Originality/value – The paper underscores the significance of pluralistic and humanistic perspective on knowledge and e-learning.Item Learning new management viewpoints: re-contextualizing strategic leadership in global and regional context(Business Review, 2014) Ahmad Raza; Hasan Sohaib MuradThis paper makes a theoretical critique of the current paradigm on strategic leadership and proposes an epistemology of managerial practice as unfolded in the business contexts. It is argued that there exist diachotomic views of managerial practice based on profit-logic versus responsibility- logic throughout the corporate world. The strategic leaders, instead of practicing one of these logics, should try to synthesize best of the both at the cognitive level and then apply them into the bus iness and management environment. The rapid technological changes coupled with the profound cultural heterogeneity at the workplace have also created the determinants of humanly responsive and socially aware strategic leadership, which must respond sensibly to the hyper-transformative forces both at the regional as well as global level. Therefore, this paper suggest that strategic leaders in business, society and industry must cultivate a culture of courage, vision and will to transcend the established strategic straitjackets and usher into the new brave world of strategic opportunities and alliances.Item Perceptions of MBA students towards learning climate for managerial knowledge: a study of business school in Lahore(Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2010) Ahmad Raza; Hasan Sohaib Murad; Ashraf KayaniPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore different cultural dimensions of the learning climate at a business school located at Lahore, Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reports the result of an empirical study of the learning climate for managerial knowledge at a business school, located in Lahore, Pakistan. A sample of 150 MBA students were asked to respond to a self-designed learning climate scale, in order to assess their perceptions of the learning climate. The study has attempted to measure five dimensions of learning climate, which include culture, learning styles, resources, methodology and environment. In addition to that, we intend to describe the patterns of effective learning climate for business knowledge by the students of the school amid dynamic challenges of globalization and diversity. Findings – The study revealed that students highly regarded school culture and trust of stakeholders in defining learning climate. Research limitations/implications – First, this paper reports the results of a business school located in a developing country. Second, the results presented in this paper have important implications for those engaged in the strategic management of business education in Pakistan and other developing countries of South Asia and Africa due similar socio-economic contexts. Originality/value – The study is first of its kind conducted on a Pakistani business school. It brings forth significant cultural dimensions of learning climate in a developing country.Item Philosophy of science since bacon; readings in ideas and interpretations(Nova Science Pub Inc, 2011) Ahmad RazaItem The social democratization of knowledge: some critical reflections on e-learning(Multicultural Education & Technology Journal, 2007) Ahmad Raza; Abdul Rashid Kausar; Paul, DavidPurpose – This paper aims to make a theoretical critique of the revolutionary sociocultural transformations created by e-learning in the manner knowledge is created, codified, retrieved, managed and transmitted across the boundaries of different cultures. Design/methodology/approach – The structure of these transformations remains European and North American in orientation and very cautious in sharing the benefits of e-learning with the developing societies. The paper contends that this might lead to a parallel academic bureaucracy of e-learning institutions, alongside the traditional Western universities, making it economically hard for people of developing countries to participate in this great and new found experience of learning. The paper proposes a, “democratization of knowledge,” for this new venture of elearning. This rests on the premise, that e-learning, in order to be truly effective, must be multilingual in content and context, culturally divergent, morally relativistic and technologically sharing and integrate non-Western views on knowledge, morality, economics and politics, especially in curriculum designs. Findings – The paper demonstrates that the social democratization of knowledge can lead to the establishment of viable global civil society, helping millions in Asia, Africa and South America to contribute and share the fruits of knowledge explosion in a just, equitable and honorable fashion. Originality/value – The paper shows how e-learning can help the growth and improvement of less developed communities.Item The social management of embodied knowledge in a knowledge community(Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2007) Ahmad Raza; Abdul Rashid Kausar; Paul, DavidPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the patterns of social management of knowledge in a knowledge-community, reflecting on multiple social processes at work. Design/methodology/approach – This is a social epistemological critique ofmanagement of knowledge. Findings – First, knowledge communities are essentially multiple interactive social structures ranging from localization in space to emergent cross-boundary social spaces operating at micro, meso and macro-social levels. Second, patterns of knowledge management in different contexts such as organizations, groups, communities and virtual communities are predominantly social in nature and new knowledge emerges through social interactions. Originality/value – The paper underscores the significance of a social-epistemological view of knowledge communities and management of knowledge.Item The structure of scientific knowledge(Elsevier, 2007) Ahmad Raza; Ahmed F. SiddiqiThis paper makes a theoretical critique of the concept of scientific knowledge. The classical conception of scientific knowledge has been discussed and analyzed in the first section. In the second section, emerging conception of the scientific knowledge has been explored. The author hopes to show on the basis of veritable critique from different philosophers of science as well as scientist (Kuhn, 1967, Polanyi, 1983, Prigogine, 1984), that the structure of scientific knowledge, the way it is interpreted and legitimized, is not only shaped by the personal and cultural orientations of its practitioners but also by the larger cultural context, in which it is carried out.