Strategycontent&strategyprocess

StrategicManagement

Strategyfromdifferentperspectives
Strategycontentandstrategyprocess Twobroadapproaches tostrategydevelopment Different perspectives onstrategydevelopment

Strategycontentistheresultofstrategicactivities Strategyprocessconsidersthewayinwhich strategiesare,orshouldbe,formed. Broadlytherearetwotypesofapproach;

theplanningapproach theincrementalistapproach

deliberatestrategies emergentstrategies

SheenaDavies

Deliberate&emergentstrategies
DELIBERATESTRATEGY

Strengthsofthetwoapproaches
(DeWitandMeyer:2004)

Deliberatestrategies Direction Commitment Coordination Optimisation Programming

Emergentstrategies Opportunism Flexibility Learning Entrepreneurship Support

Unrealised Strategies

Realised Strategy

EMERGENTSTRATEGY

CONTRADICTORYBUTBOTHARENECESSARY Skilfulstrategicmanagementcanachieve abalanceofthetwoapproaches

FromMintzberg&Waters(1985)

Risk of incremental approach: Strategic drift

Amount of Change Environmental Change DRIFT Strategic Change (incremental) Time

Frameworksforunderstandinghow strategiescomeabout
Whittington (seenextslide) Mintzberg etal(TheStrategySafari)
(seetheBlindMenandtheElephantpoemonVictory)

Johnson, Scholes andWhittington (2008) Fourlensesforunderstanding how strategiescomeabout thisisareworking ofpreviousframeworks

(note previouslyonly3)

Perspectivesonstrategy:Whittington
Outcomes Profitmaximizing

Mintzbergetal Tenapproachestostrategy

CLASSICAL

EVOLUTIONARY

Processes deliberate

emergent
PROCESSUAL

SYSTEMIC

Whittington2002:10

Plural

Thedesignschool Theplanningschool Thepositioningschool Theentrepreneurialschool Thecognitiveschool Thelearningschool Thepowerschool Theculturalschool Theenvironmentalschool Theconfigurationschool

Johnson, ScholesandWhittington (2008):

Thestrategylenses

Thedesignlens

Designlens Experiencelens Ideaslens Thediscourselens

Alsoknownastheclassical,prescriptive,deliberate, plannedorrationalapproach. ExemplifiedbywriterssuchasAnsoff andPorter Involvesrationalanalysisusingmodels/matricesinan attempttomatchtheorganizationscapabilitiestothe environment Favouredbymanagementbecauseitisneat,self contained,tangible,lookslikeatechnique Favouredbylendersandinvestorsbecauseitgivesthe impressionofprovidinganswersaboutthefuture BUT itisnotaperfectrepresentationofreality

Thedesignlensassumesarationalmodelof decisionmaking Assumesthatrationaleconomicmanmakes decisionsthatwillmaximizereturnon investment Alsoassumes; Itispossibletogatherallrelevant information Information isquantifiable
(HarrisonandPelletier1997)

Theexperiencelens
Acceptsthatanalysisiscolouredbyhuman irrationality,andtakenforgranted assumptions Strategiesdevelopincrementally Strategiestendtomimicthepast
GROUPTHINK IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT

RISKY SHIFT SYNDROME

Theexperiencelens: Boundedrational modelofdecision making

Theexperiencelens: Wellknowndrifters.

Aperfectrepresentationofrealityisnot available Timeandcostconstraints Cognitivelimitations

Fromthis..

Tothis

(HarrisonandPelletier1997:360)

Becauseofthese

Theexperiencelens: Culturalinfluencesonstrategy

Theideaslens

Nationalculture Organisationalfield(industrylevel) Divisionalculture Organisationalculture Departmentalculture Individualattributes

Thedesignlens viewsorganizationsastightly controlledsystems/machines Theexperiencelens viewsorganizationsas culturesthatdonotbreakfromthepast Theideaslensseesorganizationsasevolutionary systems wheretheorganizationssurvivalrests ontheinnovationprocess.Newideasmustbe givenbreathingspaceotherwisetheywilldie.

So,howdonewideasbreakthrough?

Education,race,religion,gender,class, nationality.

Theideaslens: Evolutionaryperspective

Thediscourselens

Amongallcompetitors,thosewhose particularconditions happenedtobemost appropriatefortestingandadoptionwillbe selectedassurvivorsthe survivorsmay appeartobethosehavingadapted themselvestotheenvironment,whereas thetruthmaywellbethattheenvironment hasadoptedthem(Alchian1950inWhittington2002:19)

Howthelanguageofstrategyinfluences organizations

Thewayinwhichwetalkaboutstrategy aswellasthe wayinwhichweanalyzeparticularactionsthatwe categorizeasstrategichavepoliticalimplications. (Hardyetal,2000,p1229)

Conclusion

Finally
Shouldorganizationshave astrategyatall?

Thedifferentperspectivesandlensesareonlya viewpoint.Theyareadifferentwayoflookingat thesamething. Theyareallcorrecttosomeextent Theclassicalschooldominatesbecauseitgives managersandstudentssomethingtangibleto learnfrombutitdoesntnecessarilyreflectreality Strategiescannotbedetachedfromthepeople whoformulatedthem.

strategiesaretoorganizations what blinders aretohorses:theykeepthemgoing inastraightlinebuthardlyencourage peripheral vision.

Source:Mintzberg(1998:18)

References

DeWittandMeyer,(2004),Strategy:Process,Content,Context,Third Edition,ThomsonLearning. Hardyetal(2000)Discourseasastrategicresource,Human Relations,Vol.53,No.9.p1229. Harrison,FandPelletier,M(1997),Managerialattitudestowards strategicdecisions:maximizingversussatisficingoutcomes, ManagementDecision,Vol.35,Issue5,pp358364. Harrison,FandPelletier,M(2000),Levelsofstrategicdecision success,ManagementDecision,Vol.38,Issue2,pp107117. Johnson,ScholesandWhittington(2008),ExploringCorporate Strategy,8th Edition,FTPH.(ch11andCommentarypg30) Mintzberg,Hetal(1998)TheStrategySafari,PrenticeHall Whittington,R(2001),Whatisstrategy anddoesitmatter?,2nd Edition,Thomson(handoutinschemeofwork)