Leveraging historical insights to address future strategic and managerial challenges in Africa
The Business History Research Program (BHRP) at Africa Business School explores how historical perspectives can inform and transform our understanding of management, strategy, and organizations.
In a context marked by rapid change, growing complexity, and systemic brittleness, the program advances long-term thinking as a strategic resource for navigating economic, technological, and societal transitions, with particular attention to African contexts.
The BHRP aims to:
The program focuses on key themes with a business history lens, including:
Sustainability, natural resource management, and infrastructure
Informal economy, craft and entrepreneurship
Organizational Memory, Identity, and Culture in Strategic Renewal
The emergence and circulation of management ideas, concepts, tools, and practices
Science, Technology, and Society
Qualitative research approaches adapted to African contexts
Research outputs, case studies, and publications developed within the program will be made available here.
Fournès, C., Karjalainen, H., & Beduneau-Wang, L. (2026). Back to roots! The singular introduction of statutory auditing in France, Germany and Great Britain (1844–1935). Journal of Management History, 32(1), 117-136 (ABS:1)
Beduneau-Wang, L., & Soumane, M. (2025). The quest to explore ancestral Berber management practices: Inventing sources and reimagining business history. Business History, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/00076791.2025.2555428 (ABS: 4)
Soumane, M., & Beduneau-Wang, L. (2026). The Reconfiguration Role of Carpet Making in the Siroua Mountain. Eds. Jesse Pirini , Stephen Cummings , Ana Maria Peredo. In. Indigenous Management: Knowledges and Framework. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Being ancestral or sustainable to cope with climate change’s effect in a Moroccan rural area? Aires et Territoires de Patrimoine Autochtone et Communautaire (APAC) d’Ait Ouaghard (en collaboration l’ONG Franco-Marocaine Migration & Développement)
The program is initiated and led by Prof. Laurent Béduneau-Wang, whose research explores topics such as sustainability, resource management, and the historical foundations of management practices in Africa and beyond.
As a Bambara proverb wisely suggests: “If you don’t know where you are going, remember where you came from”.
is a Project Management Officer at Africa Business School (ABS), part of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), where she coordinates strategic academic and research projects within the Business History Program.
She has extensive experience in project management, operations, event planning, stakeholder coordination, and budget monitoring.
Prior to joining UM6P, Zaynab spent seven years as a Project Manager at Agafay Desert Luxury Camp in Marrakech, leading large-scale events, managing international partnerships, and driving guest experience and operational excellence. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and Finance from Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane.
is a Research Assistant in Management, Strategy and Business History at Africa Business School (ABS), University Mohamed VI Polytechnic (UM6P) (Rabat, Morocco). She holds a Master’s degree in Political Sciences from the Faculty of Governance, Economic, and Social Sciences (FGSES) at UM6P. Additionally, she obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the same faculty.
Drawing on more than four years of professional experience and hands-on empirical fieldwork, she is particularly focusing on socio-organizational issues, with an emphasis on collective memory and ancestral practices in water resource management. Her future research interests lie at the intersection of tradition and innovation in water management practices. She was nominated for the 2024 Strategic Management Society (SMS) Best Conference Paper Award and Finalist of the Best Strategy-as-Practice Conference Paper Award.
is a Research Assistant at Africa Business School (ABS), University Mohamed VI Polytechnic (UM6P). He holds a Master’s degree in Agribusiness Innovation from Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) (Rabat, Morocco), and a First-Class Honours degree in Animal Production and Health from the Federal University of Agriculture (Abeokuta, Nigeria).
He has over three years of professional experience in agribusiness. His research interests include sustainability, business history, and management and business education in Africa. He was nominated for the 2026 Strategic Management Society (SMS) Conference Best Research Method Paper Award.
The program develops research and academic initiatives aimed at advancing the understanding of business history in Africa.
Among diverse initiatives, the BHRP contributes to the development of NetProsAfrica (Network for Practice and Process Management Studies Drawing on African Empirical Settings), an international research network focused on practice and process-based management studies grounded in African realities around themes such as sustainability, innovation, entrepreneurship, and organizational practices.
Following the African Academy of Management Conference held in Casablanca, the second in-person NetProsAfrica workshop was held on 8 January 2026 in partnership with the Business History Research Program (BHRP), Warwick Business School, and Stellenbosch Business School.
The workshop brought together more than 30 international scholars from leading universities and business schools around the world, including University of Pretoria, University of Botswana, The American University in Cairo, Strathmore University, KCA University, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, Telfer School of Management, among others. The event provided an opportunity to visit the medina of Salé and reflect on practice-based management research grounded in African empirical contexts.
Rabat Campus of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University
Rocade Rabat Salé
11103 Morocco