Role In Strategy Implementation Research Articles

Making sense of project governance and its role in strategy implementation: a governance-as-practice perspective

PurposeThis paper examines how expert practitioners define project governance and develop a project governance system that enables strategy implementation through projects.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with project governance experts and analyzed the data using thematic analysis. Subsequently, based on the stratified ontology of critical realism, retroductive theoretical triangulation was employed to explain the themes identified using five emergent theoretical perspectives.FindingsBy integrating the themes extracted from the data with the emergent theoretical perspectives, a framework was developed outlining the general process through which practitioners make sense of the concept of project governance, formulate an appropriate project governance system for their respective organizations and manage its evolution over time. Furthermore, a holistic approach to project governance was proposed that spans the entire investment life cycle of projects and enables the implementation of strategy through projects.Practical implicationsThis study attempts to make sense of the diverse interpretations of the concept of project governance adopted by practitioners. It further summarizes valuable insights from expert practitioners for formulating and enacting effective project governance systems.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the governance-as-practice perspective and the growing stream of literature that views projects as investments. The project governance system is positioned as the steward of an organization's investments in projects.

Stem CEOs and firm digitalization

The personal background of a CEO plays a central role in strategy implementation and business transformation. In this study, we examine the effect of a CEO's STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) qualifications on corporate digital transformation. Our findings suggest that firms led by CEOs with a STEM background perform better in digital transformation. A CEO possessing STEM degree are better able to discern the value of R&D investment and innovative output efficiency, which facilitates the process from technological innovation to achievements.

Enhancing project managers’ strategy commitment by leader-leader exchange: The role of psychological empowerment and organizational identification

Projects are considered an important means of implementing strategies in project-based organizations (PBOs). Project managers need to lead projects following organizational strategies in PBOs. As a result, project managers’ commitment to strategy, which reflects their intention to perform strategic behavior, plays an important role in strategy implementation in PBOs. This study examined the role of leader-leader exchange (LLX), psychological empowerment, and organizational identification of project managers in enhancing strategy commitment. Survey data were analyzed with structural equation modeling. The results show that both LLX and psychological empowerment of project managers enhance their strategy commitment. Besides, this study reveals project managers’ psychological motivational mechanisms by investigating the mediating role of psychological empowerment and the moderating role of organizational identification. This study contributes to PBOs strategy implementation literature by extending the enhancers of strategy commitment. It generates useful insights by revealing project managers’ psychological mechanisms between LLX and strategy commitment.

Performance Contracting Aspects and Strategy Implementation in Public Corporations in Kenya

Literature suggests that performance contracting plays a significant role in strategy implementation. Many studies have been done on performance contracting, but none has focused on the effect of performance contracting aspects on implementation of strategy. This study aimed at establishing the effect of performance contracting aspects on strategy implementation in public corporations in Kenya. The study targeted 168 public corporations in Kenya out of which a sample of 117 corporations was studied. The data was collected using questionnaires. Regression analysis was used to determine the effects of performance contracting aspects on strategy implementation. The results revealed that performance contracting aspects that is, performance agreement, evaluation and recognition singly and jointly had a positive eNffect on strategy implementation. The study therefore recommends that public corporations should embrace performance contracting to enhance strategy implementation. The study makes recommendations for further research. Keywords: Performance contracting, Performance agreement, performance evaluation, performance recognition and strategy implementation DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/13-10-02 Publication date: May 31 st 2021

How do technology strategies affect the catch-up progress of high-tech latecomers? Evidence from two Chinese research-institute-transformed telecommunications firms

This paper explores the effects of technology strategies (TSs) on latecomer firms’ catch-up progress. Based on the proposed typology, this work investigates catch-up theories by (1) comparing performance among different TS types and analyzing the causes of these differences and (2) exploring the impact of TS implementation during earlier phases on the firms’ later development. Findings reveal the following trends: (1) a progressive TS is more likely to achieve market success compared to a more radical TS when a firm’s internal capabilities are inadequate and external ecosystem are immature; (2) the implementation of TS in earlier phases substantially influences later TS formation; (3) a self-developing TS is more likely to enhance catch-up performance in the long run compared to a co-developing TS; and (4) organizational transformation plays an essential supporting role in strategy implementation.

Middle Managers' Roles in Developing Dynamic Capabilities in a Turmoil Environment

Middle managers are recognized for their critical role in strategy implementation, while dynamic capabilities are fundamental to adapt to a changing environment. Considering that dynamic capabiliti...

The Constructs of a Business Model Redefined: A Half-Century Journey

Despite its growing popularity, the term business model has not been uniquely defined so far. Within the management science and practice, it has been frequently confused with other popular terms. This article aims to bring clarity into what stands behind the business model concept by providing a review of the most common themes used in defining business model elements. It also discusses the relationship between the concept of a business model, on one hand, and strategy and sustainability, on the other. A few conclusions emerge. First, although there are no generally accepted definitions for either the business model or its building blocks, academics and practitioners agree that a business model is all about value. Second, a business model is not the same as a strategy but it has an important role in strategy implementation. Third, sustainability is found to be a hot topic for business models and has been increasingly used in symbiosis with this concept. Besides being a theoretical contribution to a definition of the business model as an independent concept, the findings may be particularly helpful to managers and business practitioners seeking ways to enable their firms to deal with complex market challenges and gain competitive advantage.

The Effects of Interactions between Management Control Systems and Strategy on Firm Performance: An Empirical Study

1.IntroductionIt is a natural phenomenon for firms to determine a strategy for being successful and, in this manner, to monitor their own operations and activities that they want to realize. The environment of global competition has made firms more effective regarding this issue. Now more than ever, firms should produce with lower costs and more flexibly and should focus on improvement of their operational processes. As a result, firms can make a difference in realizing their strategies compared to their competitors. In an environment of global competition, making a difference means having good management control system (MCS) that is suitable for the strategy (Langfield-Smith, 1997; Simons, 1987).According to research, the presence of a net strategy is necessary but not sufficient. Strategy should be supported with different resources and skills, supportive organizational arrangements and control systems (Hyvonen, 2007:345). MCS can play a key role in strategy implementation by helping to translate organizational strategy into desired behaviours and results, communicating expectations, monitoring progress, providing feedback, and motivating employees through performance-based rewards (Banker, Potter, and Srinivasan, 2000; Chenhall, 2003; Chenhall and Langfield-Smith, 1998; Ittner, Larcker, and Randall, 2003; Kaplan and Norton, 2001).In an environment of intense competition, firms can prefer different strategies for their different conditions. Both a firm's variable structure based on its environment and the obtained results from MCS have great effects on this preference. To achieve goals, MCS should be compatible with the strategy and should be sufficiently effective to provide opportunities to review and revise the strategy. Thus, because of its characteristics, MCS has been at the centre of the process of strategy creation (Gond, Grubnic, Herzig and Moon, 2012: 206). For example, certain information in areas such as the development of production processes, customer satisfaction, new product and service development, product quality, the growth of business and the sustainability of this growth is very important for firms that adopt a differentiation strategy. Therefore, MCS might be more open, flexible and suitable for informal control. In contrast, for firms following a cost leadership strategy, information about cost control, trend monitoring and efficiency is more important than scanning the environment for new opportunities for formal control.There have been many studies related with MCS's. In these studies, the relationships between MCS and variables have been examined, including environmental contexts (Vandenbosch, 1999; Widener, 2007), organizational structure (Chenhall, 2003), competitive factors (O'connor, Munoz and Chan, 2011: 246-266), national culture (Chow, Shields and Wu, 1999:441-461), organizational culture (Bhimani, 2003; Henri, 2006a: 77-103), Corporate Social Responsibility (Arjalies and Julia Mund;2013), learning (Abernethy ve Brownell, 1999; Henri, 2006b: 529-558; Kloot, 1997), professional background (Naranjo-Gil ve Hartmann, 2007: 29-41), unethical behaviour (Pascal Langevin ve Carla Mendoza, 2013), strategy (Hans Bruining, Marcel Bonnet, Mike Wright, 2004; Ralph Kober, Juliana Ng, Byron J. Paul, 2007; Jean-Pascal Gond, Suzana Grubnic, Christian Herzig, Jeremy Moon, 2012; Kumar and Subramaniam,1997), strategy and environment (Sim and Teoh, 1997), strategy and national culture (Bhimani, 2003; Henri, 2006a: 77-103; Tubagus Ismail, Lili Sugeng Wiyantoroa, Meutiab, and Munawar Muchlish, 2012), strategy and external environment (Sofiah Md Auzair, 2011), strategic risks and uncertainties (Widener; 2007), organizational life cycle stage and business strategy (Su, Baird, and Schoch, 2014; Auzair and Smith, 2005), resource sharing and performance (Govindarajan and fisher; 1990), performance and cooperation (Habib Mahama, 2006), and performance and product innovation (Bisbe and Otley, 2004). …

Defining the strategic role of boards and measuring boards' effectiveness in strategy implementation

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to explore the potential role and the measurement of the effectiveness of boards of directors in strategy formulation and implementation – two aspects that have so far been left largely unaddressed by corporate governance research and practice.Design/methodology/approach – Based on insights from strategy process literature, the paper suggests that, by ensuring consistency between resource allocation processes and the firm's intended strategy, boards could fulfil a meaningful role in strategy implementation. The proposed outside‐in analysis of resource allocation decisions is illustrated by a single case study of a major Swiss pharmaceutical company.Findings – The proposed approach enables corporate governance scholars to look at how boards fulfil their role in strategy implementation from a perspective similar to that of financial analysts. It might thus be suited to complement existing methods in empirical corporate governance research.Practical implications – Th...

The strategic impact and implementation of TQM

The aim of this paper is to conduct an inductive grounded theory study into the strategic impact of total quality management (TQM). The strategic importance of TQM has been argued for some considerable time (at least ten years or more). The resulting discourse has led to corporate strategy being considered as inherent in TQM. Despite an acknowledgement of the existence of this relationship, there is a paucity of research which seeks to investigate the key issues involved. A grounded theory research methodology was developed using 19 grounded case studies of organisations which were involved in TQM and which had well‐developed strategic planning processes. First, it was found that there was an inconsistency in TQM terminology, especially in regard to TQM’s integration with the strategic planning process. Second, TQM was only articulated as a means of achieving a target, which has been set at strategic level. Finally, the results indicated that TQM plays a key role in strategy implementation, as distinct from strategic formulation, within the organisations.

Human resource management and business strategy links: an empirical study

Over recent years there has been an increasing interest in the field of human resource management. Currently, the literature encourages the consideration of human resources as strategic factors, not only because they play important role in strategy implementation, also because they are beginning to be reckoned as sources of sustainable competitive advantage. Relationships between human resource management and strategy have been studied from different perspectives. This article focuses on one of them. It examines matches between human resource practices and types of business strategy. The question addressed is: do human resource management practices vary with business strategy? To answer this question, empirical research was developed. Using data collected from 200 Spanish companies, this paper demonstrates significant associations between some human resource practices and business strategy in companies. Reported results support some of the previously established relationships. Implications for future research are discussed.

Aligning managers with strategies: Management development versus selection

Several articles have recently been published stressing the importance of matching managerial talent with organizational strategy. These have generally relied on selection to ‘fit’ the manager to the strategy. This paper proposes the use of management development as an alternate means of achieving manager—strategy alignment. Management development is defined, its role in strategy implementation is discussed, and its benefits and costs are identified. These are contrasted with the costs, benefits and strategic role of selection. It is suggested that choice of alignment method (i.e. management development versus selection) is contingent upon particular strategic, structural, and cultural factors. These contingency relationships are presented as a series of research propositions.