What is Strategy

Question 1

strategy and structure of organizations

Answer 1

Chandler 1962
structure follows strategy: as enterprise grows (geographically, functionally, internationally) it requires new structures

Question 2

what is strategy?

Answer 2

Barney 2001

strategy is a firm’s theory about how to compete successfully (which can be a competitive advantage)

Question 3

What are Emergent strategies?

Answer 3

Barney 2001
Emergent strategies: the ability to adapt strategy can be a competitive advantage on its own without the firms adopting the second mover approach to strategy

Question 4

SWOT:

Answer 4

Barney 2001

Strengths weaknesses opportunities threats

Question 5

5 P’s:

Answer 5

Mintzberg 1995

perspective, pattern, position, plan, ploy

Question 6

Critique of Mintzberg

Answer 6

Whittington 2004
Mintzberg’s dismissal of formal strategy and hiding behind emergent strategy isnt useful to put it into practice .. strategy now takes into account people and societal spheres

Question 7

Strategy Approaches:

Answer 7

Whittington 2000

1. Classical - plan to achieve goal of profits;
2. evolutionary - markets determine the strategy and profit, not planning;
3. processualists - organizationas and people are messy from which strategies slowly emerge;
4. systemic - strategy links depend on social systems and we should plan within socialogical contexts

Question 8

Halo effect in strategy

Answer 8

Rosenzweig 2007 & Denrell 2005
when a company is performing well, it is often presumed strategy is smart and leaders are great and the opposite when bad, but there are also external factors

Question 9

Halo effect

Answer 9

Thorndike 1920

making specific inferences from general impressions

Question 10

critique of high performance

Answer 10

Denrell 2005

high performance often means high risk and can signall incompetence

Question 11

how long do differences in performance last?

Answer 11

Denrell 2005

vanish after 3-4 years

Question 12

are market share gains long or short term?

Answer 12

Kohli et al 2006

each market has a number of stable market share levels, and market share gains are short term

Question 13

Strategic formulation walks on two feet: one deliberate one emergent

Answer 13

Mintzberg and Waters 1985

Strategic formulation walks on two feet: one deliberate one emergent

Question 14

deliberate v emergent definitions

Answer 14

Mintzberg and Waters 1985; Grant 1998
Strategy can be intended (deliberate) and planned or emergent or based on stretegic learning from complex processes and the environment

Question 15

Mintzberg’s agreement with two feet:

Answer 15

Mintzberg 1990

strategy is based on internal capabilities and external factors

Question 16

shift focus from ROI and mkt share to…

Answer 16

Jackobson &; Aaker (1985)

culture, quality, productivity to achieve profitability

Question 17

Rule of 10%

Answer 17

Wesley 1997
impossible to find any single bariable that accounts for more than 10% of the variation in business performance (even ROI & MKt share)