Strategier är viktiga för företag i dag. Det är viktigt i en föränderlig värld där omvärldsfaktorer förändras och där det är viktigt att ett förtag har kompetens att analysera och utforma aktiviteter att faktiskt ta sig dit de har tänkt. Det är många företag som kämpar med att få igenom sin strategi efter att strategin är formad. Långt ifrån alla lyckas med implementeringen av sin strategi. Hur kommer det sig att så få strategier implementeras? Syftet med denna studie är att titta på hinder och framgångsfaktorer vid strategiimplementering. Hur gör de som faktiskt lyckas genomföra sin strategi. Hur ser framgångsfaktorerna ut och vilka hinder kan uppkomma samt hur kan jag undanröja dessa. Teorin säger att det är viktigt med bra kvalitet på strategin. Strategiformeringen och strategiimplementeringen går inte alltid att skilja processerna från varandra. Under tiden man implementerar är det viktigt att man kontinuerligt utvärderar påverkande faktorer och vid behov uppdaterar och omvärderar beslut och initiativ i själva strategin. Det är viktigt att strategin översätts till konkreta aktiviteter och att det finns en bred förankring och förståelse för de aktiviteter som ska göras. Det är också viktigt med en övergripande strategisk förståelse i företaget. När man kommunicerar sin strategi är det viktigt att man skapar mening med strategin för dem som ska genomföra den. När man kommer till stadiet att implementera är det viktigt med en strategi för hur detta ska gå till. Kommunikation och ledarskap är också två viktiga faktorer som spelar stor roll i implementeringen. Kommunikationen är viktig ur flera aspekter, både att skapa mening, men också att kontinuerligt informera om framdriften i strategin lika väl som eventuella uppdateringar och prioriteringar. Ledarskapet behöver bygga upp ett förtroende där trygghet för de berörda finns med. Det är viktigt att ansvaret för aktiviteter ligger hos ledningen. I denna kvantitativa studie tittar jag på vilka hinder och framgångsfaktorer som har påverkat att ett träföretag i har kommit dit man har gjort i sin strategi. Jag har intervjuat ett antal personer vid deras sågverk. De befinner sig i slutet av sin andra fas utav tre. De har hittat framgångsfaktorer i att ha en bred förankring redan i strategiformeringen för att underlätta förståelse för prioriteringar och hur aktiviteter hänger samman med den övergripande affären. En annan framgångsfaktor är att de valt att kommunicera enkelt och transparent vilket har skapat förtroende i organisationen. Identifierade hinder är egentligen inom samma områden som framgångsfaktorerna. Ett hinder är att den breda förankringen som är gjord på mellanchefsnivå saknas på kollektivanställdas nivå. Ett annat hinder är att tvåvägskommunikation saknas. Detta får konsekvenser för verksamheten men kan också vändas till framgångsfaktorer om de adresseras med aktiviteter. Slutsatserna i denna studie bekräftar mycket det som teorin presenterat. Det som varit en lärdom är att det som är en framgångsfaktor även kan vara ett hinder i en annan del i organisationen eller utifrån ett annat perspektiv.

E-handel ökar kontinuerligt och förändrar detaljhandelskartan oavbrutet som bidragit till att detaljhandeln genomgår ett strukturellt skifte mot e-handel där företag behöver använda sig av nya strategier för att vara framgångsrika. Framförallt möter mikro- och småföretag större utmaningar då de har mindre resurser och är mindre väletablerade på marknaden, där Strategy-as-Practice (S-as-P) ses som ett alternativ till den traditionella forskningen kring strategi då den är mer applicerbar för att förstå strategi i mindre företag. Syftet med studien är genom ett S-as-P perspektiv undersöka skillnader/likheter mellan klädbutikers strategier kring det strukturella skiftet mot e-handel.   Inom S-as-P ligger fokus varför, hur och vad som sker i formulering, planering och implementering av organisationers strategi. Det finns tre olika perspektiv inom S-as-P för att studera ett företags strategi, practitioners, practices och praxis. Studien har baserats på S-as-P genom ett konceptuellt ramverk uppsatt av forskarna vilket innefattar att studera de tre grundpelarna som utgör S-as-P i förhållande till företag inom klädbranschen. Detta för att tolka företagens strategizing och förstå deras strategizing utifrån planerade-, entreprenöriella-, konsensus- och påtvingade strategier.  Studien har genomförts efter en kvalitativ ansats med semistrukturerade intervjuer, där fem företag har intervjuats. Forskningsprocessen har liknat en abduktiv ansats, där det skett en växelverkan mellan teori och empiri med en möjlighet för vidare insamling av empiri och teori tills att en mättnad uppnåtts. Därefter har forskarna analyserat fram klädbutikers strategi och hur det strukturella skiftet mot e-handel har påverkat företagens strategier.  Resultatet visar att strategier är djupt influerade av enskilda individer. I respektive företag som deltagit i studien finns det en tydlig länk mellan varför strategiska handlingar genomförs och den individ som besitter en högre roll. Genomgående visar resultatet att ägaren kommer styra och hantera sitt företag utifrån sitt perspektiv varpå individen som är involverad i samtliga aktiviteter i ett företag kommer prägla företagets strategi.

Forskningsfrågor:   1. Hur utformar och genomför SMF sina digitala strategier i     praktiken?    2. Vilka är de associerade utmaningarna och möjligheter som uppstår i processen? Syfte: Analysera hur SMF i Sverige formulerar och implementerar digitala   strategier för att hantera digital transformation, med fokus på teoretiska insikter från SAP och praktiska rekommendationer för att   stärka deras konkurrenskraft i en dynamisk digital era. Metod: Studien använder en kvalitativ metod med fallstudier av SMF, där data samlades in genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer och observationer. Tematisk analys användes för att utforska de mönster   och teman som uppstår i företagens hantering av digitala strategier. Slutsats: SAP har gett insikt i strategiska beslut och anpassningar, småföretag är flexibla medan medelstora företag är mer strukturerade. De största hindren är begränsade resurser och brist på teknisk expertis, och studien betonar behovet av att balansera strategisk planering med snabb anpassning och extern expertis.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T16:44:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rogerio Torres de Lima.pdf: 1726061 bytes, checksum: 06149ff9f133a33183a46a4fc6609aff (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-09-09 / This dissertation is a multiple case study with exploratory and qualitative characteristics. It s about the process of strategy as a practice in Small and Medium Business (SMB) for creating or developing of innovation in newspaper segment. This study is divided into chapters that are meant to develop practical topics such as strategy, innovation of SMB in order to understand the correlation between the subjects and to analyze the capacity of the sector development. The study presents the rationale and theoretical definitions about strategy as a practice and innovation in the SMB printed newspaper industry. Starting from three units of analysis (three firms) differentiated by their size defined by revenue, interviews are applied with the objective of being able to check the purpose of this work, that is the development of innovation through the use of strategy as a practice. It is observed that in the companies surveyed, this practice is already carried out / Estudo de caso múltiplo com característica exploratória e qualitativa sobre o processo de estratégia como prática em MPME´s que proporcionem a possibilidade de criação ou desenvolvimento de inovação no setor de jornais impressos. Este trabalho é dividido em capítulos que procura desenvolver os temas estratégia como prática, inovação e MPME´s para que se possa entender a correlação entre os temas a fim de verificar a capacidade de desenvolvimento do setor. Para alcançar este objetivo são desenvolvidos capítulos que apresentam a fundamentação e definições teóricas sobre estratégia como prática e inovação, caracterização de MPME´s do setor de jornais impressos. A partir de três unidades de análise diferenciadas por seu porte em função do faturamento, aplica-se entrevistas com a perspectiva de poder visualizar o objetivo de estudo desta dissertação que é o desenvolvimento de inovação a partir de utilização de estratégia prática. Observa-se que nas empresas pesquisadas esta prática é realizada

Submitted by Silvana Teresinha Dornelles Studzinski (sstudzinski) on 2016-10-11T13:53:24Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Maximiliano Raul German Pisso_.pdf: 983423 bytes, checksum: afe9a09e71318234920f31a1b2f2a78a (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-11T13:53:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Maximiliano Raul German Pisso_.pdf: 983423 bytes, checksum: afe9a09e71318234920f31a1b2f2a78a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-03-29 / Nenhuma / O presente trabalho foi realizado com o objetivo de entender as práticas estratégicas de vinícolas nacionais de destaque no mercado brasileiro de vinhos finos desde a perspectiva da Estratégia como Prática. Para realizar a pesquisa, foi desenvolvido um estudo multicaso, no qual foram ouvidos e observados os gestores envolvidos nas atividades estratégicas de três empresas produtoras de vinhos na região da Serra Gaúcha, no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul. Fiel às recomendações dos autores da Estratégia como Prática, buscou-se compreender o quanto as forças do contexto moldam e orientam a predisposição dos atores para uma escolha estratégica determinada. Para realizar a análise, as práticas foram agrupadas em sete grandes dimensões utilizadas para descrever as práticas estratégicas comuns e distintivas de cada uma das empresas. A pesquisa mostra que a diferenciação alcançada só pode ser atribuída a uma combinação de práticas no contexto específico de cada empresa da amostra, e que o peso das habilidades particulares dos proprietários das vinícolas influencia na orientação e na forma em que a estratégia acontece, transferindo as práticas características que as tornam praticamente inimitáveis. O estudo mostra que a posição de destaque das empresas pesquisadas está relacionada a um alinhamento bastante certeiro entre os recursos disponíveis raros e um conjunto de práticas estratégicas escolhidas para explorá-los. Essas escolhas carecem de um planejamento formal e são construídas através do contato diário entre os praticantes, como reações estratégicas a experiências do passado. Cada empresa escolhe as práticas que valorizam seus recursos distintivos, alcançando através deles uma vantagem competitiva. Neste sentido, os resultados deste trabalho são animadores. A pesquisa revelou que as empresas da amostra conquistaram essas vantagens através de recursos e escolhas estratégicas bem distintas, concluindo-se que existem muitos caminhos para alcançar uma performance superior no mercado. O estudo desses caminhos desde a perspectiva da Estratégia como Prática oferece uma descrição muito rica e detalhada das atividades dos praticantes no dia a dia empresarial das vinícolas, podendo servir de exemplo e inspiração a outras empresas do setor que tenham interesse em implantar estratégias de diferenciação no mercado de vinhos finos brasileiros. / This study intends to understand the strategic practices of leading national wineries in the Brazilian wine market from the perspective of Strategy as Practice. To conduct the survey, we developed a multi-case study in three wineries companies located at the Serra Gaúcha region, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where the managers involved in strategic activities were interviewed and observed. Faithful to the recommendations of Strategy as Practice authors, this work sought to understand how context’s forces shape and guide the disposition of actors for a particular strategic choice. To perform the analysis, the practices were grouped into seven major dimensions used to describe the common and distinctive strategic practices of each of the companies in the sample. This research shows that differentiation must be attributed to a combination of practices in the specific context of each company, and the weight of the particular skills of the wineries owners influences the orientation and the way the strategy takes place, transferring characteristics to practices that make them virtually unique. The study shows that the prominent position of the companies surveyed is related to a very accurate alignment of the available resources, and a set of strategic practices chosen to exploit them. These choices lack a formal planning and are constructed through daily contact among practitioners as strategic reactions to past experiences. Each company chooses practices that value their distinctive resources, reaching through them a competitive advantage. In this sense, the results of this study are encouraging. The survey revealed that the sampled companies have reached a prominent position in the market through very different resources and strategic choices, concluding that there are many ways to achieve superior performances in the market. The study of these paths from the Strategy as Practice perspective offers a rich and detailed description of the activities of practitioners in the day to day winery business, which may be used as an example and inspiration to others in the industry interested in implementing differentiation strategies in Brazilian wine market.

This dissertation investigates the role of information technology (IT) in organizational strategy. Specifically, it examines how organizations can persist in turbulent competitive landscapes characterized by IT innovations. Underlying premises for this dissertation are that: (1) ubiquitous IT implies constant disruptions from digital innovation, (2) IT and practice are becoming fused, and (3) organizational strategies are dynamically linked with practice, i.e. they are reciprocally related through what organizations do rather than have. To investigate such IT strategizing processes, I outline a conceptual framework for analyzing how organizations can generate digital capability, i.e. a collection of routines for strategizing by leveraging digital assets to create differential value. Digital assets here refer to the complement of available resources and competencies for IT design and implementation. Based on the notion of dynamic capability and evolutionary theory, this framework emphasizes the importance of sensing, seizing and transforming abilities for generating digital capability. As organizational practices are becoming fused with IT scholars have argued that attempting to disentangle them analytically is futile. In a similar vein, organizational strategy is increasingly reliant on available IT resources for both formulation and execution. In the IS field it is widely acknowledged that IT has both enabling and inhibiting consequences for organizations. Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm and theory on organizational capabilities, the notion of IT capability has been widely used as a conceptual tool for analyzing these dual strategic effects of IT. Considering the explosive advances in computing, network and interaction that have resulted in IT being ubiquitous and deeply embedded in contemporary practices, recent research argues for the need to move beyond the functional view of technology implicit in the IT capability notion. A key aspect to address for such broadening of the perspective is the coevolution of IT and business practices, i.e. who (or what) leads, who or what follows, and whether such a causal distinction is meaningful. Grounded in the outlined conceptual framework, this dissertation examines how organizations can build digital capability to both enable large variation and complexity of feasible competitive actions, and reduce inhibiting effects of IT. The empirical investigation is situated in three distinct domains: boundary spanning IT innovation, transformation of existing IT resources, and hybridization of technology through digitalization of production equipment. These investigations are presented in five research papers. The dissertation contribute to knowledge of IT strategy by: (1) explicating the construct of digital capability, (2) providing a framework for coevolutionary strategizing processes, (3) presenting an empirical illustration of the coevolution of IT and business strategies, and (4) offer specific insights on design and orchestration of processes for digital capability generation.

This research explores how an open strategy approach can be used to manage organisational legitimacy in a pluralistic context, characterised by the competing demands of key stakeholders. Open strategy demonstrates an interest in strategising processes becoming more inclusive and transparent (Hautz et al., 2016). Open strategy work to date has focused on its uses and implications, and how strategic inclusion and transparency are being displayed in different organisational contexts. Much open strategy literature also associates the central purpose of open strategising activity with organisations seeking to manage legitimacy (e.g. Chesbrough and Appleyard, 2007; Whittington et al., 2011; Tavakoli et al., 2017), particularly through ensuring that their actions are desirable in the opinion of key stakeholders (Suchman, 1995). Whilst a small number of studies have explicitly focused on open strategy and legitimacy, these do not go beyond illuminating legitimacy as a potential effect (Gegenhuber and Dobusch, 2017) or outcome (Luedicke et al., 2017). Absent has been research attempting to specifically understand open strategy as a process of legitimation (Uberbacher, 2014), and there remains a need to unpack and elevate the significant potential of open strategy approaches for managing legitimacy further. To address this gap, this research presents an in-depth single case analysis of an organisation undertaking the development of a new four-year strategic plan using an open strategy approach. A number of data collection methods were used, including completion of 30 semi-structured interviews, participant observations, and collection of significant social media and documentation data, to explicate the concepts of open strategy and organisational legitimacy, addressing the question; How does an open strategy approach represent a process of legitimation for managing the competing demands of organisational stakeholders? . A pluralistic context, a UK-based professional body, is the basis for the empirical work. It is acknowledged that interrogating the intricacies of strategising in pluralistic contexts, and the inherent competing demands of stakeholders, might offer new perspectives, and a useful means of expanding the contextual base of practice-based strategy work (Jarzabkowski and Fenton, 2006). However, studies of open strategy in pluralistic contexts remain near non-existent in the literature (Lusiani and Langley, 2013). In the organisational legitimacy literature, there is much discourse on how legitimacy is managed and gained through specific legitimation processes and strategies, and increasingly such a focus has been adopted to recognise how organisations might manage legitimacy demands in contexts defined by plurality, amidst diffuse power and divergent objectives (Denis et al., 2007). In this study, a practice-based activity theory framework is used (Jarzabkowski 2005; Jarzabkowski and Wolf, 2015) to explore legitimacy in relation to organisational direction and priorities, and as a means of redefining the organisation s core goals in an enactment of strategic openness. The work here conceptualises how the case organisation has adopted a plethora of open strategising practices for legitimacy effects (Suddaby et al., 2013), providing a detailed account of how different dynamics of open strategising activity connect to specific forms of legitimation over time. The findings indicate that different open strategy dynamics represent the case organisation switching between distinct approaches to legitimation, as a means of managing the competing legitimacy demands of organisational stakeholders in a flow of activity. Through this narrative, a greater perception of legitimation as a core purpose of open strategy is provided. Overall, this research offers an important contribution by accentuating the principal relevance of organisational legitimacy in open strategising, particularly through elevating legitimacy beyond being understood as an effect or outcome in open strategy work. Further, this more explicitly brings open strategy into close alignment with the organisational legitimacy literature and its theoretical conceptions (Lawrence et al., 2009; Suddaby et al., 2013), which is imperative for understanding the potential importance of open strategy as a means of legitimation.

Made available in DSpace on 2010-04-20T20:51:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 3 53849.pdf.jpg: 11193 bytes, checksum: 645f5d1da0c447e5ecdf12fa74387810 (MD5) 53849.pdf: 6791303 bytes, checksum: a2f7a4b1c5d4ff078274a57c4df48c28 (MD5) 53849.pdf.txt: 412777 bytes, checksum: 3007da481a46d54b4d4d99501f88e33b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-03-10T00:00:00Z / This work is based on the perspective of strategy as a social practice that has been proposed by Richard Whittington, among others. The purpose of the work was to explore the meanings of strategy inside the organizations, through the investigation of practitioners of strategy, and the meanings they attribute to ‘what is strategy?’, ‘how is it created inside organization?’ and ‘who are the ones involved in this process?’. We’ve conducted 23 semi-structured interviews with executives or company owners. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed in order to extract the understandings the practitioners has about strategy. This work is based on a qualitative methodological approach and has been specially based on Social Construction of Reality by Berger e Luckmann, Sensemaking by Weick and discursive practices by Mary Jane Spink. The results of the research have shown the dispersion of many different concepts and explanations of strategy by the interviewers, and also different meanings in which the term strategy was used. The same diversity could be found on the explanations of the strategy formation process and in the importance and roles attributed to strategy inside the organizations. In a special manner the results prompted instances of sensemaking in the practice of strategy inside the organizations, and references to strategy as a powerful source of meaning. Finally, facing this great dispersion of understandings and a big valorization of strategy, we point some hypothesis to future researches that would explore this great social value attained by strategy. / Esta dissertação de mestrado está inserida dentro de uma abordagem que propõe o estudo da estratégia enquanto uma prática social, defendida por Richard Whittington, dentre outros. Assim nos preocupamos em procurar os sentidos que esta prática social produz dentro das organizações. Desta maneira, o objetivo do trabalho foi investigar os praticantes de estratégia para explorar os entendimentos que eles têm sobre ‘o que é estratégia’, ‘como é criada dentro de sua organização’, e ‘quem são os envolvidos’ na criação da estratégia. Realizamos entrevistas semi-estruturadas com 23 praticantes da estratégia, incluindo donos, sócios de empresas ou executivos contratados. As entrevistas foram transcritas e, a partir disto, foram extraídas informações sobre o entendimento dos praticantes sobre estratégia. Utilizamos uma abordagem metodológica qualitativa, fundamentada nos conceitos de Construção Social da Realidade de Berger e Luckmann, na Construção de Sentido dentro das Organizações de Weick, e as práticas discursivas de Mary Jane Spink. Os resultados apresentaram uma grande diferença de entendimentos dos diversos praticantes tanto para o tema de ‘o que é estratégia’, quanto para ‘como ela é criada’. Nos resultados também exploramos a importância atribuída pelos praticantes ao tema da estratégia, e surgiu a questão da estratégia como um espaço de construção de sentido para a organização. Por fim, frente a esta grande dispersão de entendimentos e a grande valorização da estratégia, deixamos algumas hipóteses para futuras pesquisas que mirem o entendimento da grande valorização social atingida pela estratégia.

This thesis investigates roadmapping in the context of its application to strategic early-stage innovation planning. It is concerned with providing an understanding of how uncertainty and risk are manifested in roadmapping in this application, and with developing and testing a roadmapping process that supports appropriate treatment of uncertainty and risk. Roadmapping is an approach to early-stage innovation planning, which is strategic in nature. It is seeing increasing application in practice and receiving growing attention in management literature. There has, however, been a noticeable lack of attention to uncertainty and risk in roadmapping theory and practice (and generally in strategic planning and at innovation’s early-stages). This is despite the awareness that uncertainty and risk are fundamental to strategy and innovation (i.e. application domains of roadmapping), and that roadmapping is meant to deliver, as part of its benefits, the identification, resolution and communication of uncertainties and risks. There is very limited theoretical or practical direction on what this entails. It is this gap that the research reported in thesis addresses. The research is divided into two phases. The first phase explains the manifestations and mechanisms of uncertainty and risk in roadmapping. It also introduces ‘risk-aware roadmapping’, a concept of roadmapping that includes a conscious and explicit effort to address uncertainty and risk, and points out what the process would entail in terms of necessary steps and procedures. The research here is designed using mixed methods (a combination of experience surveys, archival analysis, and case studies). The second phase provides a practical risk-aware roadmapping process. This practical process is developed based on the results of the first phase, and is designed according to procedural action research. This thesis contributes to the fields of roadmapping, early-stage innovation and organisational sensemaking. It is found that factors related to the content, process and nature of roadmapping interact to influence the perception and treatment of uncertainty and risk. Characteristics of organisational sensemaking as theorised by Weick (1995) are explored in the light of the findings and challenged. Aspects of early-stage innovation including the generation and selection of innovation ideas are explored in the context of uncertainty and risk and important paradoxes and constraints at innovation’s early-stages.

Background: Digital technologies are increasingly transforming traditional businesses, and their pervasive impact is leading to a radical restructuring of entire industries. While the significance of generating competitive advantages for businesses utilizing big data analytics is recognized, there is still a lack of consensus of big data analytics influencing strategic decision-making in organisations. As big data and big data analytics become increasingly common, understanding the factors influencing decision-making quality becomes of paramount importance for businesses. Purpose: This thesis investigates how big data and big data analytics affect the operational strategic decision-making processes in enterprises through the theoretical lens of the strategy-as-practice framework. Method: The study follows an abductive research approach by testing a theory (i.e., strategy-aspractice) through the use of a qualitative research design. A single case study of IKEA was conducted to generate the primary data for this thesis. Sampling is carried out internally at IKEA by first identifying the heads of the different departments within the data analysis and from there applying the snowball sampling technique, to increase the number of interviewees and to ensure the collection of enough data for coding. Findings: The findings show that big data analytics has a decisive influence on practitioners. At IKEA, data analysts have become an integral part of the operational strategic decision-making processes and discussions are driven by data and rigor rather than by gut and intuition. In terms of practices, it became apparent that big data analytics has led to a more performance-oriented use of strategic tools and enabling IKEA to make strategic decisions in real-time, which not only increases agility but also mitigates the risk of wrong decisions.