CHAMAS AS STABLE ORGANISATIONS: A BINDING PROPOSITION TO MCPHEE AND ZAUG’S FOUR FLOWS
Keywords:
Chamas, CCO, Four Flows, Intangible FabricAbstract
Purpose: Chamas are popular social collectives in Kenya. Literature suggests that one in three Kenyans belong to at least one Chama, and that though Chamas are formed for a variety of valid reasons, many often break within their formative years. The four Chamas presented in this study are between 8 and 16 years old, and in their words, are growing stronger. The study takes on a Communicative Constitution of Organisation (CCO) metatheoretical stance, to explore how communication constitutes the Chamas as such stable organisations.
Methodology: The study adopted the McPhee and Zaug’s Four Flows model, which suggests that organisations are communicatively constituted through Four flows: membership negotiation, reflexive self-structuring, activity coordination, and institutional positioning. While Chamas exhibit these flows in unique ways, we argue that a more binding, additional flow contributes to a stable Chama, creating an organisation better placed in meeting its objectives, and therefore working better for the wellbeing of its members, as well as its wider social context. This study presents findings from four purposively selected Chamas: KP, BC, UFN, and TW, which were observed over 6 months. Four in depth interviews were held with the leadership of the Chamas, in addition to four focus group discussions with members of the Chamas.
Results: The findings reveal a unique Flow, which we refer to as the Intangible Fabric Flow, which arguably, smoothens the running of McPhee and Zaug’s Four Flows, in the context of the Chamas, and adds an exclusive theoretical contribution.
Unique Contribution to theory and practice: The study provides a unique contribution to theory and practice since Chamas and organisations in general will benefit from considering and nurturing an intangible fabric which helps them to hold together, beyond the work that they are doing. This stability can bring with it immense rewards brought about by a stable organisation
Downloads
References
Cohen, D., & Prusak, L. (2001). In good company. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
Cooren, F., Fairhurst, G., & Huët, R. (2012). Why Matter Always Matters in (Organizational) Communication. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199664054.003.0015
Fayol, H. (1949). General and Industrial Management. New York ; Ravenio Books: Pitman.
Gartner, W. B., & Brush, C. (2016). In Entrepreneurship as Organizing: Selected Papers of William B. Gartner. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Giacalone, R. A., & Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2010). Handbook of Workplace Spirituality and Organizational Performance (3 edition). Armonk, N.Y: Routledge.
Giddens, A. (1984). The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Greene, C. P., & Cramer, J. M. (2011). Beyond mere sustenance: Food as communication/communication as food. (J. Cramer, C. Greene, & L. Walters, Eds.). Newyork.
Greenfield, E. A., & Marks, N. F. (2007). Religious Social Identity as an Explanatory Factor for Associations between More Frequent Formal Religious Participation and Psychological Well-Being. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 17(3), 245–259.
Hanifan, L. J. (1916). The Rural School Community Centre. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences, 67, 130–138.
Haslett, B. B. (2012). Communicating and Organizing in Context: The Theory of Structurational Interaction. New York: Routledge.
Herbling, D. (2014). Bank’s Chama awards to showcase power of group investments. Retrieved from about:reader?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.businessdailyafrica.com%2FAwards-to-showcase-power-of-group-investments%2F-%2F1248928%2F2493346%2F-%2Fb1j2il%2F-%2Findex.html
KAIG, K. I. A. (2014). The Chama Handbook (2nd ed.). Nairobi: Raspberry Haven.
Kim, H. S. (2017). Funeral foods and its role as vehicle of communication.
Kinyanjui, M. N. (2012). Vyama: Institutions of Hope - Ordinary People’s Market Coordination & Society Organization Alternatives. Oakville, Ontario, Canada: Nsemia Inc.
Marino, S. (2017). Digital food and foodways: How online food practices and narratives shape the Italian diaspora in London. Journal of Material Culture, 00(0), 1–17. https://doi.org/1359183517725091
McPhee, R., & Zaug, P. (2000). The Communicative Constitution of Organisations: A framework for explanation. The Electronic Journal of Communication, 10(1and 2). Retrieved from http://www.cios.org/EJCPUBLIC/010/1/01017.html
Njeru. (2017, July 10). What am I learning? Retrieved August 18, 2017, from https://phdyangu.wordpress.com/2017/07/10/what-am-i-learning/
Nobus, D. M. (2016). Esprit de corps, Work Transference and Dissolution: Lacan as an Organisational Theorist. Psychoanalytische Perspectieven, 34(4), 355–378.
Nordbäck, E. S., Myers, K. K., & McPhee, R. D. (2017). Workplace flexibility and communication flows: a structurational view. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 45(4), 397–412. https://doi.org/10.1080/00909882.2017.1355560
Onea, A. N. (2013). Levels of culture and barriers in organizational communication. The USV Annals of Economics and Public Administration, 12(2 (16)), 123–128.
Overman, S. J. (2011). The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Sport: How Calvinism and Capitalism Shaped America’s Games. Georgia: Mercer University Press.
Putnam, L., & Mumby, D. K. (Eds.). (2014). The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Communication: Advances in Theory - Google Books (3rd ed.). London: SAGE Publications.
Putnam, R. (2001a). Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Putnam, R. (2001b). Social capital: Measurement and consequences. Canadian Journal of Policy Research, 2(1), 41–51.
Raisinghani, M. S. (Ed.). (2008). Handbook of Research on Global Information Technology Management in the Digital Economy. New York: IGI Global.
Tracey, P., Phillips, N., & Lounsbury, M. (2014). Taking religion seriously in the study of organizations. In P. Tracey, N. Phillips, & M. Lounsbury (Eds.), Research in the Sociology of Organizations (Vol. 41, pp. 3–21). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0733-558X20140000041009
Tzanakis, M. (2013). Social capital in Bourdieu’s, Coleman’s and Putnam’s theory: empirical evidence and emergent measurement issues. Educate∼, 13(2), 2–23.
Venter, H. J. (2012). Maslow’s self-transcendence: How it can enrich organization culture and leadership. International Journal of Business, Humanities and Technology, 2(7), 64–71.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal.
