Thesis (PhD (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The turbulent and rapidly changing world, including South Africa, has created a society
craving for speed and action. Future leaders, therefore, face incredible pressures to
deliver immediate results, to do more with less and to manage an ever-increasing
personal workload. The pace and urgency of daily demands can make it difficult to be
more than the step ahead into the future. But in a world of changing conditions and
priorities, leaders and individual contributors alike must be able to look beyond the
‘now’ and take a more strategic leadership approach to their work and responsibilities.
Global mega-trends are leading to increasing levels of complexity, dynamism and
uncertainty in the corporate environment. In an uncertain economy, organisations
need effective strategies that will enable them to thrive. Traditional leadership
approaches have been rendered insufficient by the rapid changes in the knowledge
economy. Businesses need to practise systemic innovation in this fast-changing,
knowledge-driven global business landscape in order to remain competitive.
Despite heightened awareness and interest by both scholars and practitioners in the
field of strategic leadership, the subject will always be an emerging field of inquiry.
Furthermore, limited research has thus far been conducted on the impact of strategic
leadership on the operational strategy and performance of business organisations in
South Africa. A review of strategic leadership literature revealed a research gap that
culminated in the following research question: “What is the impact of strategic
leadership on the operational strategy and performance of business organisations in
South Africa”?
To address the research question stated above, a literature review on the impact of
strategic leadership on the operational strategy and performance was conducted, and
an empirical study was executed. The literature review emphasised the three
interrelated strategic leadership constructs of action, coherence and discipline that
explored the relationship between strategic leadership and the organisation’s
operational strategy and performance. In this study, operational strategy includes
strategic orientation as well as the operational excellence of the organisation. The factors which influence strategic orientation were identified as the organisation’s ability
to create and formulate their strategy as well as the discipline of all people in the
organisation to execute the strategy. Operational excellence, was influenced by
product differentiation, cost management and integration.
The literature review also emphasised the influence of adaptive leadership, autonomy,
communication, knowledge, processes and systems, and values on self reported
organisational performance which was directly related to strategic leadership.
To address the research problem, empirical cross-sectional telephone surveys were
conducted. The sample selected for the study was the top 200 listed organisations for
2008, as published in the Financial Mail. The key respondent was the chief executive
officer (CEO), or a member of the executive team. The sample consisted of 200
organisations of which 118 valid responses were received with a response rate of 59
percent. Measurement instruments were adapted, developed and revised where
necessary to ensure the reliability and validity of the data. The collected data were
analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics.
The findings of the study indicated that strategic leadership is directly and indirectly
positively associated with operational strategy and organisational performance. It is
positively associated with strategy orientation as well as operational excellence of
business organisations in South Africa. Furthermore, strategic leadership can also be
related to return on assets (ROA) and earnings per share (EPS). Self reported
performance is also associated with higher organisational performance.
Strategic leadership is unrelated to the size of the organisation, but is more likely to
occur in a turbulent business environment. Product differentiation and cost
management were also directly linked to strategic leadership.
The most important contribution of this study is based on the testing of successful
strategic leadership practices in business organisations in the South African context.
Competition in the 21st century’s global economy will be complex, challenging and filled
with competitive opportunities and threats. This study asserted that effective strategic
leadership practices could help business organisations in South Africa to enhance their performance while competing in turbulent and unpredictable environments.
Measurement instruments have also been developed, which may be used by
executives, consultants and other researchers to measure these phenomena in future. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die turbulente en vinnig veranderende wêreld, Suid-Afrika inkluis, het ‘n gemeenskap
geskep wat gewoond geraak het aan spoed en aksie. Toekomstige leiers is dus
blootgestel aan oneindige druk om dadelik te presteer, resultate te lewer, om meer met
minder te doen en om ‘n vootdurende en toenemende werkslading te bestuur. Die
vinnige pas en dringendheid van daaglikse vereistes kan dit baie moeilik maak om ‘n
stap voor die toekoms te wees. Maar, in die wêreld van veranderende omstandighede
en prioriteite, moet leiers en individue oor die vaardighede en kennis beskik om verby
die ‘huidige’ na die toekoms te kyk en daardeur ‘n meer strategiese
leierskapsbenadering te volg ten opsigte van hulle werk en verantwoordelikhede.
Die impak van globalisering het aanleiding gegee tot verhoogde vlakke van
kompleksiteit, dinamika en onsekerheid in die korporatiewe omgewing. Organisasies
het, veral in ‘n onsekere ekonomie, ‘n effektiewe strategie nodig om te presteer.
Tradisionele leierskapbenaderings is nie meer voldoende in ‘n kundigheidsekonomie
wat vinning besig is om te verander nie. Dit het dus noodsaaklik geword vir leiers in
organisasies om effektiewe stelsels en ander innoverende praktyke te implementeer
om kompeterend te wees in die toekoms.
Nieteenstaande die verhoogde bewustheid en belangstelling van beide studente en
persone wat in die praktyk werksaam is teenoor strategiese leierskap, sal dit altyd
nodig wees om hierdie vakgebied verder te ontwikkel en te bestudeer. Voorts is daar
tot op hede slegs beperkte navorsing gedoen oor die impak van strategiese leierskap
op die operasionele strategie en prestasie van besigheidsorganisasies in Suid-Afrika.
‘n Oorsig van strategiese leierskapliteratuur het getoon dat daar ‘n navorsingsgaping
bestaan wat aanleiding gegee het tot die volgende navorsingsvraag: “Wat is die impak
van strategiese leierskap op die operasionele strategie en prestasie van
besigheidsorganisasies in Suid-Afrika”?
Om die bogenoemde navorsingsvraagstuk aan te spreek, is daar ‘n omvattende
literatuuroorsig asook ‘n volledige empiriese studie gedoen ten opsigte van die impak van strategiese leierskap op die operasionele strategie en prestasie van
besigheidsorganisasies. Die literatuuroorsig het beklemtoon dat die drie
interafhanklike konstrukte van aksie, samehorigheid en dissipline, (wat strategiese
leierskap verteenwoordig), ‘n nou verband het met operasionele strategie en prestasie
in besigheidsorganisasies. In hierdie studie het strategiese oriëntasie van die
organisasie sowel as die vermoë om die strategie uit te voer die beginsel van
operasionele strategie verteenwoordig. Die faktore wat strategiese oriëntasie beïnvloed
het, is geïdentifiseer as die organisasie se vermoë om ‘n strategie te ontwikkel en te
formuleer, asook om die nodige dissipline te handhaaf om die strategie op alle vlakke
suksesvol uit te voer en te implementeer. Operasionele uitnemendheid is beïnvloed
deur produkdifferensiasie en die effektiewe bestuur van kostes.
Die literatuuroorsig het ook die belangrike invloed van adaptiewe leierskap, outonomie,
kommunikasie, kundigheid, effektiewe prosesse en sisteme asook gevestigde waardes
bevestig as aspekte wat ‘n direkte en indirekte impak het op die selfgerapporteerde
prestasies in besigheidsorganisasies, wat ‘n direkte verband getoon het met
strategiese leierskap.
Die navorsingsprobleem is aangespreek deur empiriese kruisseksionele
telefoononderhoude te voer met gelyste besigheidsorganisasies in Suid-Afrika. Die
geselekteerde populasie was die 200 top organisasies vir 2008, soos gepubliseer in
die Financial Mail van 2009. As gevolg van die strategiese aard van die studie, was die
sleutelrespondente die Hoof Uitvoerende Beampte (HUB), of ‘n lid van die uitvoerende
bestuur van die organisasie. Die populasie het bestaan uit al 200 gepubliseerde
organisasies waarvan 118 geldige vraelyste geprosesseer is, met ‘n respondentkoers
van 59 persent. Die meetinstrument is aangepas, ontwikkel en verander waar dit nodig
was om die geldigheid en toepaslikheid van die data te kon verseker. Die versamelde
data is met beskrywende en inferensiële statistiek ontleed.
Die bevindinge van die studie het aangetoon dat strategiese leierskap direk en indirek
positief verbind kan word met operasionele strategie sowel as die self gerapporteerde
prestasie van organisasies. Dit kan ook positief geassosieer word met strategiese
oriëntasie sowel as operasionele uitnemendheid van besigheidsorganisasies in Suid-
Afrika. Voorts kan strategiese leierskap ook verbind word met die opbrengs op bates sowel as die verdienste per aandeel. Selfgerapporteerde prestasie van die
deelnemende organisasies kon ook direk verbind word tot verbeterde prestasie van
hierdie organisasies.
Daar is egter ook bevind dat strategiese leierskap geen verband het met die grootte
van die organisasie nie, maar is wel geneig om ‘n positiewe impak te hê op die
prestasie van organisasies in ‘n turbulente besigheidsomgewing. Produk- differensiasie
en die effektiewe bestuur van kostes kan ook direk geassosieer word met effektiewe
strategiese leierskap.
Die belangrikste bydrae van hierdie studie is gebaseer op die toetsing van suksesvolle
strategiese leierskapspraktyke in besigheidsorganisasies in die Suid-Afrikaanse
konteks. Kompetisie in die 21ste eeu in ‘n globale ekonomie gaan kompleks en
uitdagend wees, gevul met kompeterende geleenthede en bedreigings. Hierdie studie
het empiries bevestig, dat effektiewe strategiese leierskapspraktyke besighede in Suid-
Afrika kan help om uitnemend te presteer asook om winsgewendheid te verhoog,
alhoewel hulle deel is van ‘n turbulente en onvoorspelbare omgewing.
Meetinstrumente is ook ontwikkel wat deur uitvoerende beamptes, konsultante en
ander navorsers gebruik kan word om hierdie verskynsels in die toekoms te kan meet.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/5187 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Serfontein, Jacob Jacobus |
| Contributors | Hough, Johan, University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Business Management. |
| Publisher | Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en_ZA |
| Detected Language | Unknown |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | University of Stellenbosch |
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