The strategic manager has as its responsibility the formulation and Strategy Implementation. However, the success of the strategy depends, to a large extent, on the working environment. A flexible, responsive and innovative internal environment is crucial to the job of the strategy manager. This goes along with the quality of the leadership in the organisation. The leadership of the organisation should take cognisance of the internal company politics. The manager should be able to identify key individuals and a coalition of groups in the company so as to be also to diffuse tensions before the leadership is challenged.
Response and Innovation in Strategy Implementation
Formulation and implementation of strategy are very much the responsibilities of the strategy manager. The task of generating fresh ideas, identifying new opportunities can, certainly, not be accomplished by a single individual. One of the most difficult tasks of strategic leadership is generating dependable and workable fresh ideas from the rank and file, managers and employees alike, and also promoting an entrepreneurial, opportunistic spirit that permits consistent adaptation to the changing conditions.
Certainly, a flexible, responsive and innovative internal environment is tactical in fast-moving high technology industries, in businesses where products have short life cycles and growth depends on new product innovation, in managing widely diversified business portfolios, in industries where successful product differentiation is a key success factor, and in the business where the strategy for being low-cost producer hinges on productivity improvement and continuous cost reduction.
A useful leadership technique is to make extra efforts and pay special attention to nourishing and support people who are willing to champion new ideas, innovations, better services, new products and who are eager for a chance to try to turn their ideas into new divisions, new businesses and even new industries. The presence of a zealous, volunteer champion is essential to any growing business. This is closely followed by market potential and project economy in that order.
Usually, the rule is that the idea of something new or something better either finds a champion or it dies. The champion however, is usually persistent, competitive, tenacious, committed and even more than a bit fanatic about the idea and seeing it through to success, for an organisation to maintain a history of successes, an individual or group has to be encouraged to put forward ideas. People’s imaginations need to be encouraged to “fly in all directions”. Freedom to experiment and informal brainstorming sessions need to be a welcome behaviour.
It is pertinent to note that people with creative ideas and innovations must not be looked upon as disruptive, troublesome or mischief makers. A good manager should be able to promote trials and be willing to tolerate mistakes and failures. Most ideas may not work well, but a good try results in learning even if the idea fails. A strategic manager should demonstrate willingness to use all forms of ad-hoc organisational forms such as task forces and venture teams to support ideas.
It is also essential that the strategic manager ensures that rewards for a successful champion are large and visible. Also, people who champion an unsuccessful idea should be encouraged to try again rather than being punished or side-lined.
Company Politics
In formulating and implementing strategies for any organisation, politics of the company must be considered. In fact, it would naive of any strategy manager to presume that he can effectively formulate and implement strategies without being perceptive about the organisation’s politics and being adept at the political manoeuvrings In the organisation.
Normally, in an organisation, key individuals and groups form coalitions around the direction the organisation should go on a particular issue or issues. Each group may be pressing for the benefits and potentials of its own ideas and vested interests. So issues such as the political objectives that will take precedence and the lines of business portfolio that will be given priority in resources allocation are usually political. However, internal politics should be seen as a factor in building a consensus for the alternative business strategy to employ and also in settling the role and contribution of each functional area in supporting the business strategy.
In strategy implementation, politics plays a vital role. Internal political considerations come in when critical decisions are made and certainly affects the organisational structure, For instance, political considerations set in when decisions are taken on issues such as the areas of responsibility to be reorganised, who heads what unit, who reports to who and who is in control of what resources. Politics are also involved when considering the choice of individuals to fill key positions in the organisation, and which unit of the organisation should be allocated the biggest sources. In many instances, politics considerations lead to the formation of alliances in the organisation.
Alliances are integral part of building an organization-wide support for the strategic plan and in gaining consensus on the various mechanics and dynamics of strategy implementation. Essentially, the manager should have astute political skills which are an asset that can help in orchestrating the strategic process.
An essential ingredient of the company politics is for the strategic manager to be able to understand how the organisation’s power structure works. The manager should be able to identify those who wield enormous power and influence within the organisation and the executive ranks. He should know the groups that are “activists” or “unionists” and the ones that are defenders of the “status quo” and who can help when there is confrontation or a “show down” on key decisions affecting the organisation. He should constantly monitor the direction in which the political winds are blowing on any particular issue. When major decisions are to be made, strategy managers have to be sensitive to the politics of managing coalitions and reaching some consensus on the appropriate way to go.
Sir Alastair Pilkington, chairman of Pilkington Brothers Limited captures this situation very well when he asserted that:
I have never taken a major decision without consulting my colleagues. It would be unimaginable. First, they help me make a better decision in most cases; secondly, if they know about it and agree with it, they will back it, otherwise, they challenge it not openly, but subconsciously.
The strategic politics mainly concerns stimulation of options, nurturing of support for good proposals and killing of the weak ones, then guiding the formation of coalitions on particular issues and trying to achieve consensus and commitment. Thompson Strickland (1997) studied the political tactics that were adopted in nine organisations and came up with the following:
a. Weakly-supported ideas and proposal are allowed to die through
inaction.
b. Additional hurdles or tests are established for strongly supported ideas which the manager considers unacceptable but which are best not supported openly.
c. Keeping a low political profile on unacceptable proposals by
getting subordinate managers to say no.
d. Allowing most negative decisions come from a group consensus that the manager merely confirms thereby reserving ones own
personal vetoes for big issues and crucial moments.
e. Leading the strategy but not dictating it, i.e. giving few orders, announcing few decisions, seeking to probe and clarify until a consensus emerges.
f. Staying alert to the impact of one”s actions and statements, lest a
false signal stimulates proposals and movements in unsalted directions.
g. Ensuring that all major power bases in the organisation have representation in or access to top management.
h. Injecting new faces and new views into consideration of major
changes, to preclude those who are primarily involved from coming to see the world the same way and then acting as
i. systematic screens against other views.
Minimising one”s own political exposure on issues which are highly controversial and in circumstances where opposition from the major centre can trigger a “shootout”.
The politics of strategy implementation is very crucial when an attempt is made to introduce a new strategy against the support enjoyed by the old strategy except in a crisis situation when it is shown that the old strategy is out-of-date.
It is a bad politics to push the new strategy via attacks on the old strategy which can be misconstrued as an attack on those who
formulated it. Besides, the old strategy might have suited the organisation as at that time and some of the people who made the judgment can still be in a position where the support for the new strategy is required and crucial.
To bring the full forces of an organisation behind a strategic plan calls for dealing with the most important centres of potential support and opposition to the new strategic thrusts. The supports of the key people are required while serious oppositions are neutralised where and when necessary.
