Paper Topic:

Crafting Strategy

Mintzberg 's Crafting Strategy : Position and Approach

on Strategizing and Whittington 's Four Schools of Strategy Henry Mintzberg 's "Crafting Strategies " is based on conclusions from decades of research that tracked 11 organizations through important moves they made in the observed period . Patterns were marked and lumped as strategies , graphically showing distinct periods of stability flux , or global change (Mintzberg :75

His thesis : strategizing is more of "crafting a strategy "-- a potter shaping clay aware of her past experience and her future prospects as she performs her craft . In contrast

, the popular notion of bosses rationally and precisely plotting "strategy " in corporate meetings is an inaccurate depiction of strategizing-- and therefore misguides those who adhere to this notion uncritically

The article only seems to tilt towards an "emergent " approach to strategy . The author argues that a key to managing strategy is the ability to detect emerging patterns and to help them take shape . A manager 's job is not merely to see ahead but to detect patterns and get involved when the time is ripe (Mintzberg :74 ,75

But Mintzberg also clarifies that all strategy making walks on two feet : deliberate and emergent ' Purely deliberate precludes learning and purely emergent has no control . Neither approach makes sense , which explains why strategy means emergent and deliberate behavior (69

Mintzberg 's theory therefore also aptly captures the ideal mix of the four archetypes of Richard Whittington 's classical , evolutionary systemic , and processual schools of strategy . These archetypes are in fact meant as conceptual reference points , set up in descriptive archetypal quadrants that are not necessarily exclusive of each other

In his interpretive article , William Sheridan aptly applied Whittington 's conceptual framework . His summary of Whittington is this : that strategic thinking requires conceptual space in which there is room for different policies , tactics , and intelligence gathering . Within each strategic space , the four archetypal quadrants each stand up for different assumptions , goals , methods , and perspectives . Sheridan translated the four quadrants into their "operational core " as behavioral , institutional , societal , and cognitive

He said strategic thinking now means anticipating and preparing for implications and consequences of present actions . Whether acting alone (classical , on behalf of another (evolutionary , or as adviser (processual , or as societal leader (systemic , strategic thinking (considers ) the interests of all stakeholders "to protect systemic integrity (Sheridan : full article

Sheridan then intertwined Whittington and Mintzberg : The craft of strategy consists in identifying the mix of appropriate policies deploying them as needed , and staying alert to the prospect that changing circumstances will require changing the mixture

Citing Mintzberg , within the context of Whittington 's four schools of strategy , Sheridan summed up that strategy is not predominantly rational modeling nor formal planning , but rather an informed overview , of which the key factor is the "breadth of strategic thinking "-- - also labeled as "wisdom " in Crafting Strategy (Mintszberg : 69

Mintzberg 's theory captured the four archetypes of Richard Whittington 's classical , evolutionary , systemic , and processual schools of strategy-- archetypes that characterized the potter as a craftman...

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