Modelling of Strategic Analysis in Strategic Management

Abstract

The concept of strategic analysis is understood and defined differently by various authors as well as it is differently positioned in the process of strategic management. Nevertheless, certain logic can be envisaged. In many cases, their conceptions are indirectly related to the context in which they were introduced. The authors who described general principles of strategic management perceived strategic analysis in one way, those who analysed strategic management of small and mediumsized enterprises perceived it in another way and still different perception was held by the authors who analysed strategic planning. Enterprises are very diverse in their possibilities and interests. Some have one employee and are established in the same building where the owner lives; others are multinational companies with tens of thousands of employees and managing property worth billions in several countries. It is obvious that such a situation calls for diversification of strategic analysis in the context of strategic management. Then the question is what the key principles of diversification are, i.e. what determines the choice of strategic analysis model. This article compares various authors’ notions of strategic analysis, highlights their essential differences and suggests an operating concept of strategic analysis in the process of strategic management. The suggested operating process of strategic management was analysed using an opinion and attitude questionnaire. The questionnaire was used to study opinions and attitudes of the managers of organizations of various sizes and activity areas. To achieve statistical significance, the portion of SME managers was reduced to 91 percent, although it comprises 99.7 percent in Lithuania at the moment. In this way the sample of large organizations’ managers was created and strategic analysis in SMEs became comparable to strategic analysis in large organizations. Validity and reliability of answers was assessed using psychometric statistics and answer consistency analysis. The rates of psychometric quality obtained are fairly high or at least tolerable. The structure of the questionnaire and the obtained rates of psychometric quality enabled cluster analysis of the strategic analysis process. Opinions and attitudes of the surveyed managers were classified according to 9-3 cluster models. The developed cluster model was interpreted qualitatively, considering the notional cohesion of cluster components and their rating position. Qualitative interpretations obtained using cluster model were associated with the operating model of strategic management process in a subsequent stage of the research. In this way changeable and unchangeable stages of strategic analysis were envisaged. The findings of the research made it possible to identify the essential differences of strategic analysis related to the size of organization and enabled to draw a hypothetical conclusion about possible differences related to the nature of organizational activity. The developed model of strategic management process not only brings better understanding of strategic analysis, but also enables managers to make decisions on what and to what extent it should be analysed when performing strategic analysis. Moreover, this model makes it possible to partially explain why there has been no consensus on the issues of strategic management process sameness so far.