...There are two main perspectives on strategy formation. One is formalism and planning which is known as deliberate strategy, and there other is emergence and incrementalism. The argument of this paradox is should managers formulate a deliberate strategy via a structured planning system and ‘think before they do’, or should managers opt for an incremental approach to strategy and experiment, explore and experience. Strategy deals with the future although the future is unknown, and managers may wish to prepare for the future, but they must be flexible in order to be prepared for unpredictable events. This essay will look at to what extent can a strategy be planned (deliberate), and to what extent can a strategy be emergent and flexible. Deliberate This process is very formal and action/planning oriented and the organisation is in control of the strategy process from step 1 until the end. This view can be seen as a very rational and militaristic procedure. A deliberate strategy Is where the collective vision, goals or intentions of a firm is articulated as broadly and in a much detail as possible, and communicated to the employees within the firm in order to realise an outcome. Employees are the ones who will be responsible for implementing these goals which is why they are included. Deliberate underpins logic – strategy creation is based on ‘think before action’ Uses tools – many analytical tools have been developed such as * Porters value chain * Five forces ...
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...Planning strategy was once predominant in the 1960s and 1970s. Although it faltered in the 1980s and 1990s, it still continues to be a significant influence today. While the fact that many industries continued to experience turbulent was the main reason of the fall of planning strategy, it also accounted for the rise of the emergent strategy. Entrepreneurial organizations increasingly rely on emergent strategy development rather than formal planning processes (Fletcher & Harris, 2002). This literature review will attempt to discuss the debate over the prescriptive and emergent approaches for developing strategy followed by the main strengths and weaknesses of the article. The article uses experiences of a craftsman and a potter to develop an argument that the crafting image better captures the process by which effective strategies come to be than the formal planning (Mintzberg, 1987). Mintzberg stresses a strategy is actualized through the processes of learning, negotiation, and proposes that the distinction between planning and implementation is untenable (Mintzberg, 1990). “Openness of emergent strategy enables management to act before everything is fully understood-to respond to an evolving reality rather than having to focus on a stable fantasy.” (Mintzberg, Waters 1985). Emergent strategy is therefore described as a trial and error approach which allows amendments, rather than one fix objective, as in prescriptive strategy (Downs et al 2003). Mintzberg thus believes...
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...implement the policies and plans, projects and programs. A balanced scorecard is often used to evaluate the overall performance of the business and its progress towards objectives. Recent studies and leading management theorists have advocated that strategy needs to start with stakeholders expectations and use a modified balanced scorecard which includes all stakeholders. "Strategic management is an on-going process that evaluates and controls the business and the industries in which the company is involved; assesses its competitors and sets goals and strategies to meet all existing and potential competitors; and then reassesses each strategy annually or quarterly [i.e. regularly] to determine how it has been implemented and whether it has succeeded or needs replacement by a new strategy to meet changed circumstances, new technology, new competitors, a new economic environment., or a new social, financial, or political environment." Strategic Management can also be defined as "the identification of the purpose of the organisation and the plans and actions to achieve the purpose. It is that set of managerial decisions and actions that determine the long term performance of a business enterprise. It involves formulating and implementing strategies that will help in aligning the organization and its environment to achieve organisational goals." As the...
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...Crafting strategy Henry Mintzberg (1987) Introduction There are many discussions surrounding the theoretical strategies within business environments, each with its own strong points can have the power to be known as the “best approach”. Over time each strategy is stressed upon establishing why it has superiority over the other. The debated topic is Crafting strategy written by Henry Mintzberg (1987a) which discusses and amplifies its core activity that of learning through small theories and concepts. The article will also analysis the nature of the emergent strategy known as crafting strategy, with focus also on its counterpart deliberate strategy. Finally a conclusion will be given with the strengths and weaknesses of the crafting strategy. The debate According to Idenburg (1993a) there are no grounds for arguments between that of deliberate strategy and emergent strategy as their outlooks into the organisation are different. The essence of Henry Mintzberg assertion lies within the learning spectrum while that of deliberate strategy is within planning (Idenburg, 1993b). Importantly Lynch (2003a) acknowledges that there is no appropriate context in which the emergent strategy lies. According to Idenburg (1993c) the learning process approach states that it is impossible to predict the future yet in Ansoff‘s (1991a) critic study of Henry Mintzberg assertion, Mintzberg is quoted saying that “managers need to be sure and cannot act before they are sure” for this reason...
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...(Definition of Strategy) "Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long-term: which achieves advantage for the organisation through its configuration of resources within a challenging environment, to meet the needs of markets and to fulfil stakeholder expectations.” (Johnson and Scholes) Mintzberg starts off by identifying that there are differences in strategy, some are ‘intended’ and others ‘realised’. He states that this diagram allows the distinction of deliberate and emergent strategy to be identified. (Definition of Deliberate) It follows a calculated formula, where they set a goal, define a set of steps to reach that goal and then methodically act on each step, formulated by central leadership. This is a conscious and rational process that involves assessment of market structure, competitive analysis and detailed market research to determine specific customer needs, so much so it is a ‘surprise free situation’. (Definition of Emergent) On the other hand, an emergent strategy is a pattern of actions that develops over time in an organization in the absence (or despite) a specific set of goals. The extent to which change can be differentiated depends on whether a company chooses to implement developmental, transactional or transformational change (Ackerman 1997) As Mintzberg says, it is unlikely for a firm to be operating a ‘purely emergent’ or ‘purely deliberate’ strategy. Firms lie in between the two, which could be seen as the...
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...Mintzberg’s (1987) strategy distinctions between planning strategy and crafting strategy. Planning strategies being those which are internally defined and implemented, similar to that of a blueprint (Findley, 1988). Crafting strategy is a continuous form of strategy which incorporates the learning process into the decision making. From this it is important to recognise the definition of strategy according to Mintzberg who bases his assumptions on “a pattern in a stream of decisions” (Mintzberg & Waters, 1985, p. 259). Mintzberg (1987) had found that “an organisation can have a pattern without knowing it, let alone making it explicit”. The article ‘Crafting strategy’ by Mintzberg (1988) represents the argument that strategy is deductive and not inductive, strategist recognise patterns and do not plan. To find a company strategy you can look at the interplay of the environment as well as the leadership and organisation of the company, Action leads to change and innovation, this in turn leads to strategy. Mintzberg (1987) sets out to compare the lone work of a potter to that of an organisation. Using this potter as a metaphor Mintzberg aims to demonstrate that both face the same strategic issues of being able to know their own capabilities well enough in order to formulate a ‘strategic direction’ through crafting. To integrate the article into the wider debate of Strategy we must look at the two key schools of thought, that of deliberate strategy (planning) and emergent strategy (crafting)...
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...which strategy comes to be defined. The first strategy-making process is conscious and analytical, involving assessments of market structure, competitive strengths and weaknesses, the nature of customer needs, and the drivers of market growth. Strategy in this process typically is formulated in a project with a discrete beginning and end. Top-tier management consultants often manage these projects. The result of this process is an intended or deliberate strategy. The second strategy making process has been termed emergent strategy. It is the cumulative effect of day-to-day prioritization decisions made by middle managers, engineers, salespeople and financial staff – decisions that are made “despite, or in the absence of, intentions. In fact, managers typically do not frame these decisions as strategic at all, at the time they are being made; they have a decidedly tactical character. Intended and Emergent strategy: An Intended strategy is the strategy that an organization hopes to execute. Intended strategies are usually described in detail within an organization’s strategic plan. An Emergent strategy is an unplanned strategy that arises in response to unexpected opportunities and challenges. Emergent strategy is a set of actions, or behavior, consistent over time, “a realized pattern [that] was not expressly intended” in the original planning of strategy. When a deliberate strategy is realized, the result matches the intended course of action. An emergent strategy develops...
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...Honda A and Honda B (2 cases) * Which of the two descriptions seem closer to reality of the Honda’s successful expansion in USA? The two accounts of how Honda entered into the US market are very different; The Boston Consulting groups (BCG) report clearly shows a deliberate approach to Hondas strategy in penetrating the US motor cycle market. The report documented by Richard Pascale shows a clearly defined emergent strategy. The following study is to better understand the Key differences between these two accounts of Honda's entry into the US motorcycle market. The BCG report was requested by the British government to investigate why the UK motorcycle industry in the USA had declined since 1960. The report identified two main factors that led to the UK motorcycle industry dissolving in the US. 1. Market share loss. 2. Poor Manufacturing, technological and distribution techniques. The BCG report states that Hondas success in the US market was because of a clearly defined deliberate strategy. Hondas great success in its home country (Japan) had given Honda a highly competitive cost position to peruse other international markets. The increasing demand of Honda products in Japan led Honda to decrease the cost of out-put while increasing the level of out-put; Honda used this competitive advantage it penetrate the US market and gain a relatively high market share. The BCG report states that Honda entered the US and identified small bikes as their target market, this account...
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...Djeba Augustine DELIBERATE AND EMERGING STRATEGIES Deliberate strategy is a strategy realised as intended while emergent strategy is said to be patterns of consistence realised despite, or in the absence of intentions. “ A strategy is said to be perfectly deliberate if the realised is formed exactly as intended. A strategy is perfectly emergent if there is order in the absence of intentions ”. ( Mintzberg & Waters, 1985). TYPES OF STRATEGY 1. Branding 2. Diversification and specialization 3. Acquisitions and mergers 4. Competitive strategies e.t.c. BRANDING Branding as a segmentation strategy is based on the idea that a brand name is part of the process of giving tangibility to what is essentially intangible, providing “shorthand” method of establishing a particular property’s quality by giving the customer important information about its product and service, sight unseen. (Brucks, Zeithaml and Naylor -2000 ) In this regard, the brand’s value is based on potential guest’s awareness of the brand, their perception of its quality and overall customer satisfaction...
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...A Critical Review Of Crafting Strategy - Henry Mintzberg Table Of Contents Introduction ............................................................................................. 2 Wider Debate Of Strategy .................................................................. 2 Placing The Article In The Wider Debate.................................... 4 Strengths & Weaknesses of the article......................................... 4 Conclusion................................................................................................. 6 References................................................................................................. 7 1 Introduction This essay will critically evaluate the article “Crafting Strategy “ written by Henry Mintzberg. The essay will evaluate the difference between deliberate and emergent strategies and will compare the article against wider debate about processes of strategy. Strengths and weaknesses of the article will be critically reviewed by comparing with previous academic journals and conclusions will be made upon findings. Wider Debate Of Strategy Mintzberg (1984, pp. 69) argues that “strategies can form as well as be formulated” he believes they can emerge due to an ever changing environment” In contrast Porter (1987) takes a more deliberate strategy approach he believes there are 3 types of strategies, low cost, differentiated or focus. “Strategy is the creation of a unique and valuable position involving a different...
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...‘Crafting Strategy’ by Henry Mintzberg Strategy is a topic that receives a considerable amount of focus in both business schools and industry throughout the world (Knight and Mueller, 2004). A key debate in the field strategy is how exactly strategy is formulated. In ‘Crafting Strategy’ Mintzberg (1987) examines the distinctions between planning strategy and crafting strategy. This literature review will discuss Mintzberg’s argument and approach in the wider debate of strategy, followed by an analysis of the articles strengths and weaknesses. The position of the article in the wider debate about processes of strategy Whittington (2001) categorised strategy in to four principle approaches; Classical, evolutionary, processual and systematic. Mintzberg challenged traditional classical planning on a number of levels; Classicalist believed that the world was stable enough that strategist could accurately forecast through a rational process of deliberate calculation and analysis and that they are best created by senior management away from the operating environment (Whittington, 2001). Prescriptive strategic management literature indicates there is “a correlation between organizational performance and strategic planning, although empirical evidence is less than conclusive in this respect (Glaister and Falshaw, 1999; McKiernan and Morris, 1994; Pearce II et al., 1987; Rigby, 2001),” (Gunn and Williams, 2007, p206). Mintzberg believes that the term ‘planning strategy’ causes people...
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...Chapter 01 What Is Strategy and Why Is It Important? Multiple Choice Questions 1. | Managers in all types of businesses must address the central strategic question A. | Where are we now? | B. | Where do we want to go from here? | C. | How are we going to get there? | D. | When will we know we are there? | E. | All of these | | 2. | A company's strategy consists of A. | actions to develop a more appealing business model than rivals. | B. | plans involving alignment of organizational activities and strategic objectives. | C. | offensive and defensive moves to generate revenues and increase profit margins. | D. | competitive moves and approaches that managers have developed to grow the business, attract and please customers, conduct operations, and achieve targeted objectives. | E. | its strategic vision, its strategic objectives, and its strategic intent. | | 3. | The competitive moves and business approaches a company's management is using to grow the business, compete successfully, attract and please customers, conduct operations, respond to changing economic and market conditions, and achieve organizational objectives is referred to as its A. | strategy. | B. | mission statement. | C. | strategic intent. | D. | business model. | E. | strategic vision. | | 4. | A company's strategy is most accurately defined as A. | management's approaches to building revenues, controlling costs, and...
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...be given followed by its theoretical underpinnings and its main strengths and weaknesses respectively. A conclusion will be drawn on the article’s contribution to the field of business strategy. The article’s position falls in between Whittington’s classical and processual approaches. On one hand, Mintzberg challenged the traditional classical planning and progressed towards the processual approach through identifying three fundamental fallacies. Firstly, classicalists held conventional wisdom that the world was sufficiently stable that today’s planning could forecast and fit market changes (Whittington, 2001). However, Mintzberg (1994:110) took the fresh view that the prediction of discontinuities was “virtually impossible” through questioning Ansoff’s “extraordinary statement”. Hogarth and Makridakis (1981) strengthened that longterm prediction was notoriously imprecise. If Wilbur Wight had anticipated the prevalence of airplanes nowadays, he would not have said “not within a thousand years will man ever fly” in 1901 (Coffey, 1983 cited in Whittington, 2001). Therefore, Mintzberg favoured the processual approach that strategic planning should be evolving to adapt to complexities in an unpredictable world (Burnes, 1996). Secondly, the classical school believed that strategies are best created at one remove from the...
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...“Crafting Strategy” (Mintzberg, 1987) Positioning in the Field of Strategy “…I believe the problem often lies one step beyond, in the distinction we make between formulation and implementation, the common assumption that thought must be independent of (and precede) action.” (Mintzberg, 1987) The above quotation, taken from Henry Mintzberg’s “Crafting Strategy”, concisely outlines one of the most prominent debates in the field of strategy over the last fifty years. Although the field is heavily fragmented - a feature highlighted by Mintzberg’ et al.’s “Ten Schools of Thought” model (1998) – it can be reduced into the two key approaches implicit above: the prescriptive, or Planning School, and the descriptive, or Learning School. The prescriptive approach describes strategy formation as a deliberate, conscious process of thought that comes prior to implementation. Most authors from this school define strategy as the establishment of a company’s future position [see, for example, Andrews, 1965; Ansoff, 1965, Byers, 1985; Chandler, 1962], illustrating how planning is a cornerstone of the prescriptive approach to strategic management. Serving as a juxtaposition, the descriptive approach suggests that strategies will emerge through the process of trial-and-error and that intention need not precede action. Mintzberg and Waters (1985) argue that the “open, flexible and responsive” nature of emergent strategies is especially important during crises when the environment...
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...In this assignment I am going to look into the Johnson and Johnson group of companies over its last 160 years of their history there has been many events that have rocked the companies stability but each every time they have come back stronger than ever. The Johnson and Johnson brand of companies are very much involved in the medical business but also have a deep history in the consumables industry such as cosmetic products and personal hygiene. For the most part they perceived to be deliberate in their approach to management style meaning that things have to be well planned due to the business activities that they are involved in. The company owns many high tech company’s including Vistaken, Depuy and Ethicon these are all companies that are highly advanced in their respective business. Therefore it has to be deliberate in their strategies as if the one of the group of companies make a mistake there can be severe consequences. However though the company when it ne3eds to be can be emergent to ensure that they seize every available opportunity to ensure that the company continues into the future. In the Depuy Synthes company y for example they plan their production 12 months in advance to ensure that they can keep up with demand of production. Depuy makes orthopaedic products that have to be produced to the highest quality and if there is any flaws they are going to be produced and there is a problem there is going to be a case made towards them for negligence. There is also...
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