Approches To Strategic Change

Strategic change views the renovation of a business, not only the way the firm works but also do way all system is organized, while operational changes only are important to prevent the business to fail.

Mintzberg (1998) has offered five definitions of strategy: as a plan, a ploy, a pattern, a position and a perspective.

Whittington (2001:2) equates four ways to lead to strategy: a classical, an evolutionary, a processual and a systemic model.

The classic approach is basically a traditional view of strategy, where the strategic plans are drawn up by the senior managers to be implemented by others. The evolutionary approach is the answer of senior managers to the market, don't giving much importance to the process of planning. The processual approach has the rationality of the strategic planning as base but plans towards an increase in market guided by compromises imposed by the cultural interests. Last, systemic approach is supported by both the system classical organized and the social requests.

To make a strategy change successfully it is needed to look after each step in the change process and, at the same time, not forget the importance of the overall process of change.

What is difficult is to decide what to do first to get the quicker and more appropriate beginning of strategic change.

The paradox of revolutionary and evolutionary change says that to a fundamentally transformation the organization needs to cut with the past and also recognize the value of continuity on past experiences, investments and loyalties. In that way we can say that revolutionary change is when strategic and evolutionary change is operational.

When thinking if the strategic plans are planned or emergent we can find differences. On one hand, the transition from the previously plan to the new one is soft, well thought in advance. On the other hand emergent models of change are abrupt because they are not planned and they lead with several variables at the same time. They are seen as renewing change more than old matters just modify. It is needed an open-mind to understand and adapt to a no stop changing conditions.

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