TOPIC 1 – STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION
Question 1 - Comment on the importance of strategy implementation as a component of the strategic management process.
(5) [A1-Jun13]
1. The importance of strategy implementation in strategic management process is more about creating change that is timely and
appropriate.
2. Organisations could in the past make incremental changes to keep pace, but change is increasingly revolutionary and disruptive.
3. Organisations have to deal with products being made obsolete in a very short space of time, and products have shorter life
cycles. Moreover even if they are the leading competitor the disruption may come not from the competitors in the same industry,
but from organisations in other industries that have a business model that is unexpected.
4. Overall strategic change that is not managed well will have little value if plans are not implemented timely.
5. As plans themselves may be obsolete by the time a strategic plan is implemented.
Explain what strategy implementation entails. (5) [A1-Nov12 + A1-Nov10 + A1-Jun09]
1. Strategic implementation is the process that turns strategic plans into a series of actions tasks and ensures that these tasks are
executed in such a way that the objectives of the strategic plan are achieved.
2. It entails the communication, interpretation, adoption and enactment of strategic plans.
3. It is the phase in which management aligns strategic leadership, organisational culture, organisational structures, reward
systems, policies and resource allocation with the chosen strategy.
4. It involves taking management form thinking to actually doing.
5. It involves management developing short term objective and policies.
6. It is the most important phase in the strategic management process.
Question 2 - Discuss five (5) reasons why strategy implementation in an organisation might fail. (5)
[A1-Nov13 + A1-Jun12 + B1.1-Jun09]
1. Vision barrier:
a. The workforce does not understand the vision and strategy.
b. Vision may be poorly conveyed and lower levels of management may not understand their role in the execution of the
organisation’s strategy.
2. Management barrier:
a. Management teams may be too focused on solving short-term problems and not enough time is spent on strategic
issues.
3. Resource barrier:
a. Organisations do not link their resource allocation plans or budgets to the chosen strategy.
4. People barrier:
a. Managers have not linked rewards to strategy, which creates no incentives to change activities to align with the
organisation’s strategic plan.
5. Other reasons why strategy implementation fail may include:
a. Inadequate resources.
b. Poorly communicated strategy.
c. Implementation actions are not clearly defined.
d. Unclear accountability for implementation actions and initiatives.
e. The existence of organisational silos and a culture that resists change.
f. Inadequate performance targets.
g. Inadequate rewards.
h. Poor leadership.
,Question 3 - Differentiate between strategic planning and strategy implementation. (5) [A1-Jun14 + B1.1-Nov11]
Question 4 - Explain the different types of strategic change and the issues involved. (10) [B2.1-Nov12 + A1-Nov11]
1. The four types of strategic change that can be identified are:
a. Adaptation is a form of change in which the current organisational setting can facilitate the incremental change that has
to happen in order for the organisation to achieve its desired goals.
b. Reconstruction is a form of change in which the current organisational setting can handle a change that involves a
sudden alteration in market conditions.
c. Evolution is a form of change that involves fundamental changes in the way the organisation deals with a situation and
can happen over a period of time. The organisation has to become a learning organisation in this regard to manage the
change.
d. Revolution also involves fundamental changes as a result of sudden and fast changing conditions, whereby the
organisation has to implement a new strategy very fast.
4. Some of the strategic issues that must be managed and taken into consideration are::
a. Time: How quickly is change needed; does the organisation have the time to change?
b. Scope: What is the scope of change needed: If dramatic revolutionary or a moderate change is needed?
c. Diversity: What is the level of homogeneity or heterogeneous can hamper in the organisation change?
d. Capacity: Does the organisation have the capacity in terms of the resources needed to change?
e. Readiness: Are the employees ready to change such as resistance?
f. Capability: Do the organisation’s employees and managers have the capabilities to implement change?
, Question 5 - Comment on the strategic change process. (7)
1. Managing strategic change involves a process.
2. Clarity about what changes are necessary is an obvious starting point for such a process.
3. Such a process entails:
a. Identifying the areas of change – when a gap is identified between the desired performance of the organisation and its
actual performance. Once the need has been determined, the source of the problem must be identified through
environmental analysis.
b. Managing resistance to change – change disrupts normality – employees and managers resist change because of fear,
uncertainty, and lack of interest or different personal ambitions. Resistance to change is an obstacle to the successful
strategy implementation process. Various strategies exist to overcome resistance to change.
c. Power and influence – this stage involves persuading organisational members to support the change. An appropriate
organisational culture will support the desired changes in strategy. Managers must have the necessary power to
implement the decisions that will bring about change. Managers need to use their power to influence people and to bring
about the necessary change.
d. The learning organisation – entails the ability to think continually about the strategy and to create synergy by sharing
knowledge and ideas, and by generating actions that will contribute positively to the whole organisation. This deals with
continuous learning.
Question 6 - Explain why corporate governance is important in strategy implementation. (5) [A2-Jun12 + A2-Nov10 + B1.2-Jun09]
1. In the context of strategy implementation, corporate governance is the responsibility of the Board of Directors to oversee the
implementation of strategy.
2. The King reports on corporate governance and the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) is examples of corporate
governance guidelines/frameworks.
3. Some reasons for its importance (there may be additional reasons, but these are some of the main reasons why corporate
governance is important in strategy implementation):
a. It focuses on sustainability.
b. It ensures that adequate controls are in place.
c. It promotes high ethical standards.
d. It makes sure that reward systems are reasonable and beneficial to the organisation.
e. It aims at reducing the risk of failure.
4. Good corporate governance and corporate citizenship are equally important in strategic planning and implementation. The board
of directors is responsible to ensure that management implements chosen strategies and monitors that implementation.
5. Strategy implementation should take issues such as social responsibility, environmental responsibility, stakeholder engagement
and sustainability into account.
Question 1 - Comment on the importance of strategy implementation as a component of the strategic management process.
(5) [A1-Jun13]
1. The importance of strategy implementation in strategic management process is more about creating change that is timely and
appropriate.
2. Organisations could in the past make incremental changes to keep pace, but change is increasingly revolutionary and disruptive.
3. Organisations have to deal with products being made obsolete in a very short space of time, and products have shorter life
cycles. Moreover even if they are the leading competitor the disruption may come not from the competitors in the same industry,
but from organisations in other industries that have a business model that is unexpected.
4. Overall strategic change that is not managed well will have little value if plans are not implemented timely.
5. As plans themselves may be obsolete by the time a strategic plan is implemented.
Explain what strategy implementation entails. (5) [A1-Nov12 + A1-Nov10 + A1-Jun09]
1. Strategic implementation is the process that turns strategic plans into a series of actions tasks and ensures that these tasks are
executed in such a way that the objectives of the strategic plan are achieved.
2. It entails the communication, interpretation, adoption and enactment of strategic plans.
3. It is the phase in which management aligns strategic leadership, organisational culture, organisational structures, reward
systems, policies and resource allocation with the chosen strategy.
4. It involves taking management form thinking to actually doing.
5. It involves management developing short term objective and policies.
6. It is the most important phase in the strategic management process.
Question 2 - Discuss five (5) reasons why strategy implementation in an organisation might fail. (5)
[A1-Nov13 + A1-Jun12 + B1.1-Jun09]
1. Vision barrier:
a. The workforce does not understand the vision and strategy.
b. Vision may be poorly conveyed and lower levels of management may not understand their role in the execution of the
organisation’s strategy.
2. Management barrier:
a. Management teams may be too focused on solving short-term problems and not enough time is spent on strategic
issues.
3. Resource barrier:
a. Organisations do not link their resource allocation plans or budgets to the chosen strategy.
4. People barrier:
a. Managers have not linked rewards to strategy, which creates no incentives to change activities to align with the
organisation’s strategic plan.
5. Other reasons why strategy implementation fail may include:
a. Inadequate resources.
b. Poorly communicated strategy.
c. Implementation actions are not clearly defined.
d. Unclear accountability for implementation actions and initiatives.
e. The existence of organisational silos and a culture that resists change.
f. Inadequate performance targets.
g. Inadequate rewards.
h. Poor leadership.
,Question 3 - Differentiate between strategic planning and strategy implementation. (5) [A1-Jun14 + B1.1-Nov11]
Question 4 - Explain the different types of strategic change and the issues involved. (10) [B2.1-Nov12 + A1-Nov11]
1. The four types of strategic change that can be identified are:
a. Adaptation is a form of change in which the current organisational setting can facilitate the incremental change that has
to happen in order for the organisation to achieve its desired goals.
b. Reconstruction is a form of change in which the current organisational setting can handle a change that involves a
sudden alteration in market conditions.
c. Evolution is a form of change that involves fundamental changes in the way the organisation deals with a situation and
can happen over a period of time. The organisation has to become a learning organisation in this regard to manage the
change.
d. Revolution also involves fundamental changes as a result of sudden and fast changing conditions, whereby the
organisation has to implement a new strategy very fast.
4. Some of the strategic issues that must be managed and taken into consideration are::
a. Time: How quickly is change needed; does the organisation have the time to change?
b. Scope: What is the scope of change needed: If dramatic revolutionary or a moderate change is needed?
c. Diversity: What is the level of homogeneity or heterogeneous can hamper in the organisation change?
d. Capacity: Does the organisation have the capacity in terms of the resources needed to change?
e. Readiness: Are the employees ready to change such as resistance?
f. Capability: Do the organisation’s employees and managers have the capabilities to implement change?
, Question 5 - Comment on the strategic change process. (7)
1. Managing strategic change involves a process.
2. Clarity about what changes are necessary is an obvious starting point for such a process.
3. Such a process entails:
a. Identifying the areas of change – when a gap is identified between the desired performance of the organisation and its
actual performance. Once the need has been determined, the source of the problem must be identified through
environmental analysis.
b. Managing resistance to change – change disrupts normality – employees and managers resist change because of fear,
uncertainty, and lack of interest or different personal ambitions. Resistance to change is an obstacle to the successful
strategy implementation process. Various strategies exist to overcome resistance to change.
c. Power and influence – this stage involves persuading organisational members to support the change. An appropriate
organisational culture will support the desired changes in strategy. Managers must have the necessary power to
implement the decisions that will bring about change. Managers need to use their power to influence people and to bring
about the necessary change.
d. The learning organisation – entails the ability to think continually about the strategy and to create synergy by sharing
knowledge and ideas, and by generating actions that will contribute positively to the whole organisation. This deals with
continuous learning.
Question 6 - Explain why corporate governance is important in strategy implementation. (5) [A2-Jun12 + A2-Nov10 + B1.2-Jun09]
1. In the context of strategy implementation, corporate governance is the responsibility of the Board of Directors to oversee the
implementation of strategy.
2. The King reports on corporate governance and the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) is examples of corporate
governance guidelines/frameworks.
3. Some reasons for its importance (there may be additional reasons, but these are some of the main reasons why corporate
governance is important in strategy implementation):
a. It focuses on sustainability.
b. It ensures that adequate controls are in place.
c. It promotes high ethical standards.
d. It makes sure that reward systems are reasonable and beneficial to the organisation.
e. It aims at reducing the risk of failure.
4. Good corporate governance and corporate citizenship are equally important in strategic planning and implementation. The board
of directors is responsible to ensure that management implements chosen strategies and monitors that implementation.
5. Strategy implementation should take issues such as social responsibility, environmental responsibility, stakeholder engagement
and sustainability into account.
