Analysing strategic decision-making in an environment with high rates of change : a model for leaders of organisations

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The thesis deals with the context, content (being concepts) and process of modeldevelopment. They are combined to propose a model for analysing strategic decision-makingin an environment characterised by high rates of change.Over the last 230 years, society has been re-categorised from 'agricultural' to 'industrial' and,more recently to 'post-industrial'. Naturally, organisations are part of such society, andstrategy formation, as a process which is located within organisations, can only be discussedwithin the context of the current society. By necessity therefore, the model for analysingstrategic decision-making would seek to reflect on the development of organisationalstrategies in the current environment. This rapidly changing environment is characterised byuncertainty which impacts on organisational decision-making.Chapter 2 describes how the effects of uncertainty influences decisions and outcomes,particularly when considering the decision-maker's ability to manage risks emanating fromthe environment, as well as organisational risks within own work domains. The loosecoupling of cause and effect leads to a conceptual problem when linear rationality is used toframe meaning. Decision-makers experience demand to change such meaning (and structure)based on the reality they are experiencing, presenting them with perceived dichotomies. Inorder to overcome such dichotomies, 'Constructivism', as a methodology, is used to provideform, acknowledging assumptions about behaviour and structure. The assumptions arediscussed using conceptual continuums (presenting the perceived dichotomies), posed as a'framework' intended to assist leaders in dealing with uncertainty. Order, for example, istemporarily established through standards that give an organisation stability. Innovation as aconcept, on the other hand, is associated with the flexibility required to succeed in dynamicenvironments. Strategy formation in this thesis deals with the concepts 'organising','standardising', 'rationalising', 'emergence', 'complexification' and 'innovation' that formpart of such framework.Chapter 3 provides insight to organisational order, which emerges from the interplay between'strategy formation' as a deliberate process, and the emergent and varied organisational andcontextual forces at play over time. The process forms a narrative – and provides some of theorganisational stability. Strategies emerge, as would the institution created by the interplay.The interplay results from continuous interaction between the intentional strategicintervention and its actual interpretation or sensemaking throughout the organisation and itscontext by those - including the leadership - who are operationalising the strategies. Theprocess of strategy formation provides opportunity for self-reflection by the decision-makers(the I), the team members (the We), and the organisation - embodied in the social constructscreated through communication, processes and actions.Chapter 4 connects the individual concepts in an iterative process of strategy formation, usinga morphological approach, to create structure from relationships. This enables the creation ofa normative model, which can be used in the process of analysing strategic decision-makingas a whole, that is, incorporating both the intention and its implementation.The interplay and change of form provide the insight and the impetus for change to theleader's understanding of the schemata employed, the schemata embodied in organisationalstrategy formation, as well as in decision-making.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University