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Article
Publication date: 6 November 2009

Martin Reeves and Michael S. Deimler

The purpose of this paper is to outline a range of short‐ to medium‐term recession‐specific strategies designed to drive growth and ensure that a company survives this downturn

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to outline a range of short‐ to medium‐term recession‐specific strategies designed to drive growth and ensure that a company survives this downturn and emerges from it competitively advantaged.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper examines recession‐specific strategies designed to drive growth and ensure that a company survives.

Findings

Even after the eventual economic recovery, heightened uncertainty and volatility will remain permanent features of the business environment. As a result, resilience – the ongoing ability to anticipate and adapt to critical strategic shifts – will become an increasingly important driver of future competitive advantage. Given the likelihood that the strategic environment will remain uncertain even after the recovery, the company must institutionalize the lessons learned during the downturn. And go further to adjust the customer offering and business practices (new services, new features, new pricing models, enter or exit markets, band with other businesses in cooperative relationships).

Practical implications

The consensus is growing among economists, business leaders, and governments that the world is in the midst of a prolonged slowdown of unpredictable duration and that even when the upturn comes, the post‐crisis strategic and operating environment will almost certainly be quite different.

Originality/value

The authors warn that some of the classic strategies for gaining competitive advantage – for instance, focusing on scale – have been losing their power. Senior managers need to heed these warnings when they review their growth and survival plans.

Details

Strategy & Leadership, vol. 37 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1087-8572

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Article
Publication date: 4 July 2008

Nicolas Kachaner and Michael S. Deimler

This paper aims to identify how leading companies are improving their strategy‐development processes to keep up with the transformations in the global competitive environment. The

2813

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to identify how leading companies are improving their strategy‐development processes to keep up with the transformations in the global competitive environment. The value of any reliable strategic foresight executives can wring from their planning systems can be priceless.

Design/methodology/approach

BCG recently studied the strategy‐development processes of leading companies by interviewing more than 100 executives in 20 firms.

Findings

The study found that leading firms are “stretching” their strategy process – along three mutually reinforcing dimensions: stretching time horizons, stretching their thinking, and stretching the engagement process

Practical implications

Numerous examples of innovative best practices are given, for example: turn issues upside down. Instead of asking how to grow the business, ask how to kill it. Instead of feuding over how to increase resources (a typical budgetary debate), ask how to operate with significantly fewer resources, or even without them.

Originality/value

The paper offers many practical ways to foster reliable strategic foresight, innovative thinking and enhanced strategic creativity.

Details

Strategy & Leadership, vol. 36 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1087-8572

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 4 July 2008

Robert M. Randall

381

Abstract

Details

Strategy & Leadership, vol. 36 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1087-8572

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Article
Publication date: 1 January 2009

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.

Design/methodology/approach

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

Findings

Increasingly, leading companies are changing their strategy‐development processes to keep up with the transformations in the global competitive environment. Leading companies have learned to focus on developing great strategists – teams and individuals who are prepared to spot shifts early on, and are agile enough to do what it takes to seize or retain market leadership.

Practical implications

The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.

Originality/value

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy‐to‐digest format.

Details

Strategic Direction, vol. 25 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0258-0543

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 6 November 2009

Catherine Gorrell

100

Abstract

Details

Strategy & Leadership, vol. 37 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1087-8572

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Publication date: 24 January 2022

Eleonora Pantano and Kim Willems

After having drawn lessons from the recent COVID-19 pandemic for retailers in the previous chapters, in this last chapter we provide an outline on retailing over a longer time…

Abstract

After having drawn lessons from the recent COVID-19 pandemic for retailers in the previous chapters, in this last chapter we provide an outline on retailing over a longer time horizon. We start with projections of how the phygitalization trend in retailing will further evolve and what role data plays as a basis for a competitive advantage – on the condition of smart and ethical use. Besides looking at customers (downstream), we address the upstream in the value delivery network, focusing on how to succeed in balancing between efficiency and sustainability in the retail supply chain. Retailers face huge challenges. This chapter contributes to setting the scene for retailers to thrive in the brand-new post-pandemic aftermath.

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Article
Publication date: 10 January 2025

Henry Adobor and Enyonam Canice Kudonoo

This paper presents a unique approach to exploring how organizations can be designed to cope with uncertainty and benefit from unexpected events. Our focus is on antifragility, a…

53

Abstract

Purpose

This paper presents a unique approach to exploring how organizations can be designed to cope with uncertainty and benefit from unexpected events. Our focus is on antifragility, a concept gaining traction in organizational design.

Design/methodology/approach

We adopt a design perspective based on a socio-technical and complex adaptive systems perspective to explore the physical and social elements necessary for creating the landscape and pathways for antifragility. We present a framework that includes human systems and design elements and how these foster self-organization and adaptation.

Findings

Self-organization depends on the context in which it develops. Therefore, designing complex adaptive systems requires developing the landscape and pathways to generate self-organization. The interaction of the social and organizational elements promotes self-organization and antifragility. The design elements of redundancy, loose coupling, modularity and scalability influence the context within which self-organization emerges. Individual and organizational mindfulness, self-management and continuous learning allow for rapid reconfiguration under uncertainty, creating the landscape and pathways for organizations to benefit from unexpected events.

Research limitations/implications

Creating organizations with a focus on deriving benefits, rather than striving to return to the previous state, especially in the face of unforeseen disruptions, represents a fundamental shift in perspective. This contribution is important given the predictions of a world that will increasingly face black swan events. Therefore, preparing organizations for thriving under stress has important implications for theory.

Practical implications

An organization’s ability to create value from stressors is a key advantage. As the goal of any organization is long-term sustainability, those with antifragile capabilities are better positioned for success. Organizations can move beyond mere recovery by using design to create conditions that promote antifragility, as is the case with robustness and resilience. This paper provides a roadmap for organizations to thrive amidst disruptions, offering practical strategies for implementation and equipping the reader with actionable steps to enhance their organization’s adaptability.

Originality/value

Designing organizations to benefit from disruptions represents a significant paradigm shift. The nascent field of understanding how organizations can embody antifragility is of great value. This paper is among the first to offer a design-oriented approach to this concept, adding significant value to the existing body of knowledge. The perspective and insights presented in this research will engage scholars and practitioners in organizational design and management.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 12 January 2015

Haijing Helen de Haan

The purpose of this paper is to critically investigate the discourse on “competitive advantage”, a concept that has been widely applied in the public higher education sector, but…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to critically investigate the discourse on “competitive advantage”, a concept that has been widely applied in the public higher education sector, but rarely defined and conceptualised.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to get some insightful understanding about how “competitive advantage” is actually manifested in the life and activities of public higher education institutions (PHEIs), it is necessary to obtain data about the perceptions held by education practitioners in different sub-sectors and at various job function levels. In total, 73 interviews at 16 Dutch PHEIs were conducted in the period of 2009-2011.

Findings

By studying the diversified meanings, 13 elements were identified in constructing the competitive advantages sought by PHEIs, and, more importantly the significance of each element is rated and ranked. Furthermore, this research discovered that the research universities and universities of applied sciences perceive this concept differently; also, the practitioners holding different job functions gave divergent meanings to this term. The clarification of this container concept “competitive advantage” leads to the conclusion that the business way of defining “competitive advantage” should be critically reviewed and verified in the context of the public higher education sector.

Research limitations/implications

This study used just two parameters for the selection of individual respondents: their job function and the length of their working experience. Further studies that adopt different selection parameters are, therefore, encouraged as offering the potential to further enrich our knowledge about how competitive advantage is perceived and put into practice. It is hoped that the findings from this research offer some guidance in developing a framework for such further studies.

Practical implications

The sectorial differences revealed by this study can help research universities and universities of applied sciences design their competitive strategies more suitable with their specific characteristics. The job function level differences shown by the research findings can help institutions to identify and close the gaps between the central level and faculty level in their strategic planning and implementation.

Originality/value

The clarification of the container concept “competitive advantage” is unique in the current educational management literature, particularly in both qualitative and quantitative ways. The comparisons between two institutional types and two job function levels may help PHEIs to effectively design competitive strategies according to their specific institutional characteristics and by understanding the gaps between the central and faculty level.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 29 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 25 July 2019

Vanaja Menon Vadakepat and Devaki Vadakepat Menon

Many researchers have addressed students as consumers and considered their online searches to choose a university as typical buying behaviour. The myriad features of digital…

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Abstract

Purpose

Many researchers have addressed students as consumers and considered their online searches to choose a university as typical buying behaviour. The myriad features of digital information enable universities to conveniently and quickly reach educational markets at a relatively low cost. Consumers’ market choices can usefully be interpreted in terms of their cultural perceptions. To encourage Web viewers to make repeat visits to, and remain longer on, their websites, it is critical for international universities to understand local and regional viewers’ perceptions and preferences regarding non-text Web messages through the lens of culture. The purpose of the current study is to address the need for, and the challenge presented by, glocalising the text and non-text aspects of university websites by investigating Arab consumers’ perceptions of these websites.

Design/methodology/approach

The sampling frame comprised 200 residents from the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, including 100 high school students and 100 stakeholders, with equal proportions of Arabs and non-Arabs. Illustrations and images were used in the questionnaire to collect respondents’ perceptions about university websites from a cultural perspective.

Findings

This study identifies a need to glocalise the non-text and website messages of international universities that are aiming to penetrate educational markets in the Emirates.

Research limitations/implications

This study clearly identifies the segment that is most receptive to a “glocalised” website communication strategy of international universities: Arab students, aged 16 or above, and educated stakeholders, expect to view academic information on websites, as do viewers everywhere, but prefer this information to reflect the values and traditions of Arab culture.

Originality/value

The increasing inflow of students from the Gulf region to the United Arab Emirates, instead of their usual choice of European or Western educational destinations, has motivated international universities to envisage the Emirates as a location for their campus expansions. An understanding of the approaches of Arab viewers to the websites of international universities through the lens of culture is essential for bridging the literature gaps that currently persist in the area of digital promotion and social marketing.

Details

Journal of Islamic Marketing, vol. 11 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1759-0833

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 7 August 2018

Michael Rachinger, Romana Rauter, Christiana Müller, Wolfgang Vorraber and Eva Schirgi

Increased digitalization has influenced various business activities including companies’ business models (BMs) by enabling various new forms of cooperation between companies and…

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Abstract

Purpose

Increased digitalization has influenced various business activities including companies’ business models (BMs) by enabling various new forms of cooperation between companies and leading to new product and service offerings as well as new forms of company relationships with customers and employees. At the same time, this digitalization has put pressure on companies to reflect on their current strategy and explore new business opportunities systematically and at early stages. While research on digitalization in the context of BMs is now gaining increased attention, a research gap still exists in this field since the number of empirical insights is limited. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

Qualitative empirical data collected from 12 key informants working in two distinctive industries, the media and automotive industries, were collected. An investigation was carried out to examine the differences and similarities among how digitalization influences a company’s value creation, proposition and capture, as well as how firms cope with challenges presented by increased digitalization.

Findings

The findings of the study show that, whilst digitalization is generally considered to be important, the value proposition itself as also the position in the value network determine the perceived available options for business model innovation (BMI) by digitalization. Moreover, the organizational capacities and employee competences were identified as future challenges that will be faced by both industries.

Originality/value

The findings of this study have revealed that representatives of the media and automotive industries perceive both the pressures and opportunities of digitalization regarding BMI; its application and exploitation, however, remain challenging. This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge by providing empirical insights in the context of digitalization and BMI.

Details

Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, vol. 30 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1741-038X

Keywords

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