Strategic profiling

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this exploratory research paper is to present a strategic profiling managerial framework that enables businesses to show visually the level of internal strategic fit in their organisation. Using this framework, service operations managers are able to understand the level of fit that exists, how it is created and identify actions for improving it.Design/methodology/approachCase‐based research was conducted in eight service organisations to investigate their level of internal fit and the corresponding characteristics of their market, operating strategy and service delivery system. Based on these findings, a strategic profiling framework was developed.FindingsThe strategic profiling framework allows a service organisation to compare the characteristics of its market, operating strategy and service delivery system and determine the level of internal strategic fit. This enables it to see more clearly where conflicts exist and to start to understand the steps required to improve the level of fit in its organisation.Research limitations/implicationsThe research used the Heskett strategic service vision and Hill's order‐winner and qualifier technique to investigate the level of internal fit. It looked at how they can be applied and the insights they reveal rather than whether the elements they contain are correct. The research focused on developing and presenting a method of visualizing internal fit, rather than investigating the link between fit and performance. The strategic profiling framework developed needs to be tested on a wider sample of organisations to see whether high‐fit profiles have high performance and whether the insights it reveals are true for other businesses.Practical implicationsService organisations can use the strategic profiling framework to understand their level of internal strategic fit, and why it exists, in order to understand how to improve it.Originality/valueThe strategic profiling framework presented in this paper starts to address the gap in the literature around research into the field of internal strategic fit. It also meets the need for more management tools to help businesses develop strategies and understand the level of fit they create.

Analysis of the internal strategic alignment of the production strategy: case study in an auto parts company of the municipality of Sorocaba/SP

“…From this perspective the misalignment can Figure 2. Example of alignment to the production strategy -products and markets (adapted from Hill & Brown, 2007). be measured by the Euclidean distance between the ideal profile and the decisions made.…”

“…In this sense, Hill & Brown (2007) also adapted the tool for their application in service companies allowing, thus, the organization to know its level of internal alignment. Also, they determined a scoring scale that would be possible to measure the internal alignment.…”

“…Also, they determined a scoring scale that would be possible to measure the internal alignment. For this, two works already existent in the literature were combined in the Hill & Brown (2007) technique: Hill (1989) about the qualifying criteria and request winners and Heskett (1986) on the strategic vision of service.…”

“…From this perspective, the present work intends to analyze, through a case study, the internal alignment of the production strategy in two market segments of a large auto parts company in the city of Sorocaba/SP. The analysis will be based on the works of Hill (1989), Hill & Brown (2007) and Hill & Cuthberson (2011). The central objective is to identify the level of internal strategic alignment of organizations by increasing their work by investigating the relationship between internal strategic alignment level and organizational performance.…”

Process of value co-creation and its impact on innovation strategy in service companies

“…Por otra parte, para la dirección estratégica, la adaptación entre la estrategia y el entorno tiene implicaciones positivas en los resultados empresariales (Lo, 2013). Se considera que el rendimiento de una empresa se deteriora cuando los recursos estratégicos de la organización no están alineados con su entorno (Hill & Brown, 2007). En definitiva, según la teoría de la organización y la dirección estratégica, la adaptación de la innovación a factores del contexto interno y externo permitirá a la empresa obtener ventaja competitiva y mejorar sus resultados.…”