Strategic Management, Systems Thinking, and Modeling

The article identifies strategizing as a core process of strategic management. It contends that strategizing should be more than strategic planning and therefore needs strategic thinking which is systems thinking foremost. Four streams of influence on strategic thinking are discussed based on insights from strategy research. Furthermore, the article concentrates on two aspects of strategizing: strategic consensus and strategic learning. Empirical findings concerning the process of building consensus and the relationship between strategic consensus and organizational performance are reflected. The article highlights the potential of computer simulations for supporting consensus building and strategic learning as well as the usefulness of system dynamics models as aids for strategizing. It contends that the concept of strategy forum together with group model building may be an effective approach to build strong broad-based strategic-thinking capabilities. Finally, the article identifies a need for more evaluative research and proposes action research in the organization.