CLASSIFYING MANAGERIAL PROBLEMS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF DEFINITIONAL CONTENT*

Problem categories play an important role in the thinking activities of many professionals. Organizational researchers have proposed that managers employ such categories as ‘threat’, ‘opportunity’ and ‘marketing problem’ in their thinking. This paper reports the results of a study of managerial problem categories, based on an analysis of managers’ verbal definitions of a variety of organizational problems. Problem categories previously proposed in the literature were rarely evidenced in these data. However, an iterative, inductive analysis led to the identification of a rich set of managerial problem categories satisfying appropriate criteria.     

STRATEGIC TIME PERIODS AND STRATEGIC GROUPS RESEARCH: CONCEPTS AND AN EMPIRICAL EXAMPLE

This article briefly reviews previous research on strategic groups and focuses upon the influence of time on strategic positioning. This stability approach also motivates research into the dynamics of strategic group shifts. An illustrative example drawn from the drug industry emphasizes the practical application of these concepts. The analytically-derived strategic groupings are then compared with evidence drawn from industry and academic research. Finally, following discussion of the results, some suggestions about integrating the strategic group concept into strategic management research are also made.     

AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF MARKET STRUCTURES

The concept of market structure is at the heart of economic theory. Yet the construct has been largely neglected in marketing. Part of the reason is that it has never been effectively operationalized. In examining the implications of market structure empirical researchers have tended to use single indices for an essentially multidimensional construct. Here we show how markets can be classified objectively using the three key dimensions of structure: market concentration, product differentiation and barriers to entry. The methodology proposed should provide a more reliable base for research into strategic and competitive implications of marketing structure. The purpose of this paper is to develop an operational measure of market structure. The concept of market structure is important both in marketing and economics. Yet empirical work has produced disappointing results.¹Both economists and managers have stressed the need for new definitions and measures if useful generalizations are to be developed and the concept is to provide a valuable basis for government regulation over market competition.     

TOWARDS A COMPREHENSIVE SYSTEM OF STRATEGIC CONTROL*

New strategic initiatives often take several years to execute fully and relatively few succeed. Unfortunately, classical control processes have contributed to this situation because they have been designed as feedback systems that detect problems and deviations from planned results only after they have already occurred, and because the standards to which measurements are compared are assumed to be correct or good. Recent conceptual contributors to the strategic control literature have argued for anticipatory feedforward controls, that recognize a rapidly changing and uncertain external environment. These new systems are designed to operate on a continuous basis, checking and critically evaluating assumptions, strategies, and results. This article adds to these conceptual developments by providing and explicit strategic control component to deal with low probability, high impact threatening events, namely, special alert control. In an effort to make all the latest strategic control components operationally useful, mechanisms, methods, and approaches to their efficient implementation are presented and then summarized in tabular form. An overall strategic control process diagram is provided to act as a guide for future strategic control systems. The result is a more comprehensive and workable system of strategic control.     

IMPLEMENTING STRATEGIC MISSIONS: EFFECTIVE STRATEGIC, STRUCTURAL AND TACTICAL CHOICES

This article describes a study of the impact of strategic mission on the relationships between firm performance and selected strategic, structural, and tactical variables. Moderated regression analysis and subgroup analysis were used to analyse data collected from 91 advanced technology manufacturing companies. Results indicate that firms with build-oriented strategic missions, relative to those with more hold- and harvest-oriented strategic missions, performed better when they: (1) adopted entrepreneurial strategic postures; (2) had organic organization structures; (3) offered relatively low product prices; (4) employed relatively large sales forces; (5) offered relatively generous customer credit; and (6) offered relatively broad product lines. On the other hand, firms with hold- and harvest-oriented strategic missions, relative to those with more build-oriented strategic missions, performed better when they emphasized R&D activity geared toward the development and refinement of existing products. Strategic mission did not moderate the effectiveness of the firms’advertising expenditures or their new product development activity.     

PRIVATISATION AND EFFICIENCY IN THE UK WATER INDUSTRY: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS*

ABSTRACTS The post-privatisation structure of the UK water industry involves the separation of environmental services from other outputs previously produced under an integrated system by the publicly-owned water authorities. This paper examines the extent to which the integrated authorities benefitted from joint production. Estimating a dynamic multi-product cost function from pooled cross-section, time-series quality adjusted data drawn from the accounts of the water authorities for the period 1979/80–1987/88, prior to privatisation, significant elements of joint production are found. Divestiture of the industry, arguably justified on other criteria, implies the loss of substantial areas of cost complimentary.     

A STUDY OF ORGANIZATIONAL 'FRAMEWORK' AND 'PROCESS' MODALITIES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF BUSINESS-LEVEL STRATEGIC DECISIONS*

Organization framework and process are proposed as two modalities for implementing intended business-level strategic decisions. A model is developed in which the components of these two modalities are defined and related to the implementation of low cost and differentiation strategic decisions. The implementation of 57 decisions in integrated circuits, petroleum, and health care firms are used to test the research hypotheses. The findings suggest that implementation in these firms utilized both framework and process structural elements, but that a different implementation gestalt characterized each type of strategic decision. Implications for strategy implementation are discussed.     

IMPORTANT DIMENSIONS OF STRATEGIC ISSUES: SEPARATING THE WHEAT FROM THE CHAFF*

Decision-makers in organizations use dimensions implicitly or explicitly to sort strategic issues. This article compares the dimensions implied by three literatures and dimensions generated by an empirical study. While some similarities are identified, there are striking differences between what the literature assumes and what dimensions decision-makers in the NY/NJ Port Authority use to sort issues. Implications for theories of decision-making and interpretation in organizations are discussed.     

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTROL: AN EVOLUTIONARY PERSPECTIVE*

Much of the literature on organizational control processes has traditionally been based on concepts of cybernetics, power, and authority. This article explores an alternative way of looking at the control phenomenon by introducing the idea of an evolutionary ‘controlling’ cycle. This idea is derived by modifying the basic organizing cycle (enactment, selection, retention) to a hierarchical form, with two distinct components. The model is then applied to understand the basic control modes informing markets, bureaucracies and clans. The article concludes with some comments on the likely future directions of the bureaucratic mode of organizational control.     

AN EMPIRICAL STUDY INTO THE LEARNING TRANSFER PROCESS IN MANAGEMENT TRAINING

Two management technique courses with very specific objectives were compared. Participants completed a series of pre-and post-course questionnaires to establish whether they intended to transfer their training to their work and whether they had in fact done so. A number of characteristics were found to distinguish the learning 'experimentors' from the 'non-experimentors'. More of the experimentors had attended the course on their own initiative, more of them believed the course would be beneficial to them on the job prior to attending it, and a greater proportion had had pre-course discussions with their boss. It was found that transfer attempts were more likely to be successful and beneficial where the boss 'sponsored' the new idea. Organizational factors found to inhibit training transfer included 'overload of work', 'crisis work' and 'failure to convince older workers'. The main facilitating factors were related to the preparedness of the superior to listen to new ideas and allow experimentation with them. The management style and attitudes of the trainee's boss were found to be the single most important factor in management training transfer.     

THE 364 ECONOMISTS AND THE 1981 BUDGET: AN EXAMINATION OF THE EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

Earlier this year we passed the 25th anniversary of the letter to The Times from 364 economists protesting about government economic policy in general and the 1981 Budget in particular. In a recent publication, Stephen Nickell, then a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England, defended the letter. This article contends that Nickell's argument was wrong. This is not merely a matter of historical interest, it is important that the issues are understood if mistakes are not to be made in economic policy in the future.     

HUMAN RESOURCES AS STRATEGIC ASSETS: AN EVOLUTIONARY RESOURCE-BASED THEORY*

The paper proposes an evolutionary approach to strategic human resources. This means that, first of all, truly valuable strategic assets are unlikely to result directly from senior management policies. Rather, what is truly valuable is the ‘social architecture’ that results from ongoing skill formation activities, forms of spontaneous co-operation, the tacit knowledge that accumulates as the unplanned side-effect of intentional corporate behaviour. Thus, corporate prosperity not seldom rests in the social architecture that has emerged slowly and incrementally over time, and may even predate the tenure of current senior management. Given the low visibility of such spontaneous co-operation, it is even more likely to be resistant to easy imitation and therefore a valuable strategic asset.