Planners' Perceptions of the Strategic Management Process[1]

Abstract

This paper discusses the foundations of the normative model of strategic management and reports the results of empirical research that examined the validity of the model from the perspective of practising planners. It was concluded, on the basis of the responses, that the normative model of strategic management is an accurate representation of what planners believe to be the steps in the process at both the corporate and business-levels. While the steps were all included, there was significant variation among the relative importance of the various steps.

Re‐framing strategic thinking: the research – aims and outcomes

“…Questions 9, 10, and 11 are classical school ideas taken directly from the Ginter et al (1985) structure and are associated with implementation, not with strategy creation. The theoretical implementation process is modernist in concept, although with none of the complications of the modernist balanced scorecard concepts.…”

“…In the CBB system, instead of the linear think-tank approach to the three Ginter et al (1985) questions, the eleven questions in the CBB question set are generated in a critical epistemological fashion from the ideas from several schools of strategic thinking. Issues related to the first four elements of the Ginter et al (1985) structure are resolved by thinking deeply, discussing widely, and providing answers to the set of questions in a non-hierarchical fashion. The questions have been distilled from the strategic management literature of each school and have been justified, both by reference to the literature and through the AR process.…”

A measurement model of strategic planning

“…Typically, the advocates of these perspectives view them as 'either-or' choices. However, the bulk of empirical strategy research, and the views of most practitioners (Ginter et al, 1985) remain more closely aligned with the grand strategy school. So, are these actually competing viewpoints, or simply the two anchors of a single continuum?…”

“…Three hospitals indicated that it was their policy not to respond to mail surveys. This response rate-substantially Pearce andDavid (1987) Wall Street Journal (1994) Trend analysis Boyd and Fulk (1996) Bracker and Pearson (1986) Fahey and Narayanan (1986) Ginter et al (1985) Jain (1984 Kukalis (1991) Preble et al (1988) Ramanujam et al (1986 Competitor analysis Fahey and Narayanan (1986) Bracker and Pearson (1986) Lenz and Engledow (1986) Kukalis (1991) Prescott and Smith (1989) Powell ( Lorange (1979) Lindsay and Rue (1980) Richards (1986) Odom and Boxx (1988) Powell (1992a) Ongoing evaluation Bungay and Goold (1991) Bracker and Pearson (1986) Goold and Quinn (1990) Kukalis (1991) Lorange et al (1986) Ginter et al (1985 higher than the typical 10-12 percent response for mailed surveys to senior executives (Hambrick, Geletkanycz, and Fredrickson, 1993)-helps support the generalizability of our sample to the larger population. Thirty-five of our respondents indicated that they were the senior executive in their hospital, and all respondents were at the officer level.…”

Management: Issues in the management of distance education

“…Planning is not enough; organizations also need to engage in strategic management (Ginter, et al 1985;Ring and Perry 1985) if they are to be effective and forceful in the educational market place. The strategic plan also identifies areas in which the University will minimise investments.…”