Mr Zulu

 

Strategic Management Accounting and Managerial
Decision-Making reconceptualised: towards a
collaboratively oriented theory of organizational
decision enhancement (ODE)

David Anthony Holloway B. Com, MBA

This thesis is presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Murdoch University
2006

 

I declare that this thesis is my own account of my research and contains as its main
content work which has not previously been submitted for a degree at any tertiary
education institution.

Signed

David A. Holloway

 

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Abstract
This thesis critically assesses the literature on strategic management accounting that is
budgeting and corporate governance and also the managerial decision-making literature
(primarily in the areas of strategic planning and change management). It is essentially a
theory building and analytical thesis utilising a critical social science approach. The main
aim is the construction of a collaborative theory of decision-making and associated
methodology that will underpin and explain a more ‘robust’ construction of decision
outcomes within an individual organizational context.
In doing so it evaluates and synthesises Habermas’s theory of communicative action with
the intention of incorporating key elements as well as insights from Latour, complexity
theory and Peirce in relation to doubt-driven inquiry in a proposed collaboratively
oriented theory of organizational decision enhancement (ODE). ODE theory is argued to
be widely applicable in the decision-making process utilised by organizations (private,
public and non-profit). The claims implicit within the theory and its associated decisionmaking methodology are assessed empirically at the strategic planning level. This was
part of an action research project commenced in July 2001 with Tertiary Institution’s1
current strategic planning round covering the planning time horizon 2003-2007.
ODE theory postulates that effective decision-making in a... [continues]

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