Abstract: Research in corporate governance has predominantly focused on issues of board composition and structure and how these are associated with organizational performance. More recent studies however highlight the need for more processual and behavioral research on the role and practice of the board, as a key decision-making body. Following a strategy-as-practice view that places actors and their practices at the heart of strategic management this research explores the relationship between executive and non-executive teams within a board of directors of a large European service organization. Drawing from in-depth interviews and non-participant observation of company board meetings, this research contributes to the corporate governance literature with nuanced, processual and empirically grounded evidence on how boards work and the role of group dynamics in shaping strategy.

Abstract: The business environment in emerging markets has been mainly characterized by an absence of efficient institutions such as capital and labor markets. This multi-level study investigates how foreign organizational models - venture capital funds and accelerator programs - explore "spaces of opportunity" within the institutional fabric and contribute to institutional change in Kenya. By actively engaging with Kenyan entrepreneurs, investors morph into carriers of global management knowledge. These knowledge transfer processes instigate sense making, editing and the adoption of global ideas to local particularities, thereby transforming the behavior and shared meaning systems of market participants. A qualitative research design opens up the black box of investor-entrepreneur interaction processes and provides insights into the mechanisms that link micro activities to field level dynamics and macro-institutional impact.

Abstract: We move towards a new economic reality for financial institutions, emerging from one of the most difficult economic environments since the Great Depression, an environment that has created dramatic changes to the financial landscape. In this reality, attention to strategic decision-making and planning in banks is needed more than ever (Daruvala et al., 2012). This study focuses on the question of whether banks’ strategic planning and forecasting instruments are still valuable in today’s complex financial systems. Drawing on complexity theories, we, first, argue that traditional or existing methods of strategic planning are not appropriate for capturing and dealing with the dynamic complexity of the financial system; and, second, contribute to the design and development of improved planning and forecasting methods in this context.

Abstract: Emergency management (EM) in the oil and gas industry is of strategic importance to organizations as it can have impact on people’s lives and organizational reputation. This developmental paper proposes a conceptual framework for understanding organizational EM strategies by considering the micro-level activity of emergency response and responders in shaping strategy at the macro-level. The practices of key organizational responders during emergencies are strategic because they draw on strategic plans and are crucial to strategic outcomes. However, these key participants may not have formal strategy roles. It is argued that an understanding of whether and how their practices are incorporated into practices that shape strategy may situate them closer to the centre of strategizing activities; from outsiders to insiders.

Abstract: In this study we set out to explore, how the strategic practice of corporate branding emerges in a dynamic client-consultant interaction. Our empirical research is based on a longitudinal, ethnographic case study in an industrial, transnational company. Based on our analysis we identified three characteristics of the emerging practice of corporate branding; it was episodic, outside-in focused and alignment driven. We offer two contributions based on our study. First, our study provides a dynamic perspective on strategy practice and shows how the strategic practice of corporate branding emerges in the client-consultant interaction. Second, our results provide empirical evidence to the nascent critical approach to corporate branding by showing how the alignment-based models on corporate branding have limited possibilities of influencing the organizational identity.

Abstract: We elaborate the concept of ‘practical coping’ (Chia & Holt, 2006) as it occurs within strategy work to incorporate both dwelling modes and deliberate modes of strategizing during strategic decision making processes. We analyse practical coping within strategic episodes in the context of a reinsurance company and trace the negotiation of a retrocession cover from the initial meetings until the final signing. With this analysis we aim at contributing to a better understanding of strategy making as a result of both emergent and deliberate actions. We use the notion of practical coping to explore the origins of strategy emergence and to extend the study of strategically relevant processes and activities beyond a focus on top managers or other actors and processes specifically labelled strategic.