Mintzberg (C10 - Environmental)

Question 1

Concept

Answer 1

the environment is the actor, the organisation is passive and reacts to the environment

Question 2

Premise

Answer 2

1. the environment presents itself to the organisation as a set of general forces.
2. the organisation responds to these forces.
3. leadership becomes a passive element for purposes of reading the environment and ensuring proper adaptation.
4. organisations end up clustering together in distinct ecological-type niches.

Question 3

population ecology

Answer 3

fixed carrying capacity of environment.

in rapidly growing industries, capacity is exceeded and firms compete for resources. the less fit organisations are selected out.

in contrast to the positioning school, it is the environment that determines the criteria of fit.

firms make the decision as to how to maximise fit - which resources to deploy and which to reserve for the future.

Question 4

criticisms

Answer 4

it is unrealistic that organisations have no strategic choice - two organisations can exist in the same environments with different strategies.

do environments exist or are they just the perceptions of people.