Page 30 - E2 Integrated Workbook STUDENT 2018
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Chapter 2
Strategy Safari
In their 1998 (2008) book Strategy Safari, Mintzberg et al. attempted to define
strategic management, and they identified ten approaches to strategy (schools of
thought).
The schools are split into two main categories; prescriptive and descriptive. The
prescriptive schools attempt to explain how strategy should be formulated, while the
descriptive schools attempt to describe how strategies actually are formed.
3.1 Prescriptive schools
Design school (conception) – Strategy development is a rational process which
seeks to establish a fit between internal capabilities and external possibilities.
Planning school (formal) – Strategy is developed by specialists in the science of
developing strategy using rigorous strategy planning methodologies.
Positioning school (analytical) – Strategy is a combination of defensive and
offensive moves, based on the premise that industry structure drives strategy
position which drives organisational structure.
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