Strategic Management

Module -II
Prof. Shubham Aggarwal
Lloyd Business School

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A Guided Tour Through the Wilds of
Strategic Management.

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Strategy formation as a process of informal design, especially
one of conception

The Design School:

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 The Design School: Root Dimensions
Source Selznick, 1957; Andrews, 1965

Base Discipline None

Champions Case Study Teachers at Harvard

Intended Message Fit

Realized Message Think (strategy making as case study)

Homilies “Look before You Leap”

Key Words Congruence/fit, distinctive competencies, SWOT,

competitive advantage, formulation, implementation

Animal Metaphor Spider

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 The Planning School:

Strategy making as a detached and

systematic process of formal
planning

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The Planning School: Root Dimensions
Source Ansoff 1965
Base Discipline Engineering, Urban Planning, Systems Theory,
Cybernetics
Champions Professional Managers, MBAs, Staff Experts,
Consultants, Government Controllers
Intended Message Formalize

Realized Message Program (rather than formulate)

Homilies “A Stitch in Time Saves Nine”

Key Words Programming, Budgeting, Scheduling, Scenarios

Animal Metaphor Squirrel

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Strategy formation as an analytical process of selection of
positionsin the economicmarketplace
The Positioning School:

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 The Positioning School: Root Dimensions
Source Purdue Univ. (Schendel, Hatten); Porter, 1980, 1985

Base Discipline Economics (industrial organization), military history

Champions Like Planning School, especially analytical staff

people. Consulting „boutiques‟, military writers.
Intended Message Analyze

Realized Message Calculate (rather than Create or Commit)

Homilies “Nothing but the facts, Sir”

Key Words Generic strategy, strategic group, competitive analysis,

portfolio, experience curve
Animal Metaphor Water Buffalo

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The Entrepreneurial School:

Strategy formation as a visionary

process by the great leader

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 The Entrepreneurial School: Root
Dimensions
Source Schumpeter 1950, Cole, 1959

Base Discipline None (early writings came from economists)

Champions Popular business press, small business people

everywhere, romantic individualists
Intended Message Envision

Realized Message Centralize (then hope)

Homilies “Take us to your leader”

Key Words Bold Stroke, Vision, Insight

Animal Metaphor Wolf

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The Cognitive School:

Strategy formation as a mental

process

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 The Cognitive School: Root Dimensions
Source Simon, 1947, 1957; March & Simon, 1958

Base Discipline Psychology (cognitive)

Champions Information system specialists, philosophical purists

with a psychological bent
Intended Message Frame

Realized Message Imagine

Homilies “I‟ll see it when I believe it”

Key Words Map, Frame, Concept, Perception, Interpretation,

Bounded Rationality, Cognitive Style
Animal Metaphor Owl

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Strategy formation as an emergent process in small steps as
an organisation adapts or learns
The Learning School:

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 The Learning School: Root
Dimensions
Source Lindblom „59, Cyert & March „63, Weick
„69, Quinn ‟80,Prahlad & Hamel „90
Base Discipline Chaos theory in mathematics

Champions People inclined to experimentation,

ambiguity, adaptability
Intended Message Learn

Realized Message Play (rather than pursue)

Homilies “If at first you don‟tsucceed, try, try again”

Key Words Incrementalism, emergent strategy, sense

making, venturing, Core competence
Animal Metaphor Monkey
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 The Power School:

Strategy formation as a process of

negotiation

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The Power School: Root Dimensions
Source Allison ‟71,Pfeffer & Salancik ‟78,Astley „84
Base Discipline Political Science
Champions People who like power, politics, and conspiracy
Intended Message Grab
Realized Message Hoard (rather than share)
Homilies “Look out for Number One”
Key Words Bargaining, coalition, stakeholders, network,
alliance
Animal Metaphor Lion

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 The Cultural School:

Strategy formation as collective and

co-operative process

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 The Cultural School: Root
Dimensions
Source No obvious Source
Base Discipline Anthropology
Champions People inclined to the social, the spiritual, the
collective
Intended Message Coalesce
Realized Message Perpetuate (rather than change)
Homilies “An apple never falls far from the tree”
Key Words Values, beliefs, myths, culture, ideology,
symbolism
Animal Metaphor Owl

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Strategy formation as a reactive process to counteract the
pressures imposed on organisations
The Environmental School:

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 The Environmental School: Root
Dimensions
Source Hannan & Freeman ‟77,Pugh et al ‟60s
Base Discipline Biology, Political Sociology
Champions Population ecologists, organization theorists
Intended Message Cope
Realized Message Capitulate (rather than confront)
Homilies “It all depends”
Key Words Adaptation, evolution, contingency, selection,
niche
Animal Metaphor Ostrich

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The Configuration School:

Strategy formation as a process of

transformation

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 The Configuration School: Root
Dimensions
Source Chandler ‟62,McGill gr.‟70s, Miles & Snow„78
Base Discipline History
Champions Aggregators in general, change-agents
Intended Message Integrate and Transform
Realized Message Lump & revolutionize (than nuance and adapt).
Homilies “For everything there is a season”
Key Words Configuration, period, stage, life cycle,
turnaround, revitalization, transformation
Animal Metaphor Chameleon

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Plan, Pattern, Position,Perspective Ploy

Five Psof Strategy

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 Strategy as intended Plan
.
A direction, a guide or course of action into the
future.
A path to get from here tothere.
Deliberate strategies.
Looking ahead.

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Strategy as Realised Pattern:

A consistency in behaviour over time.

Looking at past behaviour.
Deliberate plus emergent strategies
Formed as well as formulated

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 Strategy as Position
 Locating particular products in particular
 markets.

 Looking down to a spot and looking

out to internal marketplace.

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 Strategy as a Perspective
Organisation’s fundamental way of doing things.
“Theory of the business” (Drucker,1970)

Looking in the organisation and up to thegrand

vision of the enterprise.

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Strategy as a Ploy
Manoeuvre intended to outwit
an opponent or competitor.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of
Having a Strategy

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 Strategy sets direction
• Advantage: Charts the course to sail
cohesively

• Disadvantage: Serve as a set of blinders to

hide potential dangers.

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 Strategy focuses effort
• Advantage: Promotes co-ordination of activity
and prevents chaos.

• Disadvantage: “Groupthink” arises.

No peripheral vision open to other
possibilities.

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 Strategy defines organisation
• Advantage: Provides meaning, plus a
convenient way to comprehend what the
organisation does.

• Disadvantage: Stereotyping. Defining too

sharply and too simply misses rich complexity
of the system.

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 Strategy provides consistency
• Advantage: Reduces ambiguity and provides
order.

• Disadvantage: Simplification that distorts

reality. Hinders creativity that thrives on
inconsistency

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ThankYou School Children for
visiting the Strategy Zoo

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