Strategy and the Strategist: How It Matters Who Develops the Strategy

Eric Van den Steen

Management Science, 2018, vol. 64, issue 10, 4533-4551

Abstract: This paper addresses primarily two questions. First, when (and why) should a company’s strategy be developed by its CEO versus by some outside analyst or other insider? Second, how does strategy interact with vision (in the sense of a strong belief about the right course of action)? The paper studies these questions using a functional definition of strategy as “the smallest set of choices to optimally guide other choices.” Among other things, the paper shows that strategy formulation by the CEO leads to both better strategy and better execution, and that a strategist’s vision may improve execution. In the process, the paper also identifies criteria that make a decision strategic and derives explanations why strategies often reflect the background of the strategist.

Keywords: firm strategy; commitment; leadership; strategy process; strategy execution; group decisions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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https://doi.org/10.287/mnsc.2017.2857 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Working Paper: Strategy and the Strategist: How It Matters Who Develops the Strategy (2016)
Working Paper: Strategy and the Strategist: How it Matters Who Develops the Strategy (2013)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:inm:ormnsc:v:64:y:2018:i:10:p:4533-4551

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