Strategy Implementation, Change and Organisational Design
From formulation to implementation
Implementation translates strategy into structure, systems, style, staff, skills and shared values (the McKinsey 7S framework). The trap: assuming a good strategy implements itself. Exam questions reward recognition that structure follows strategy (Chandler) but also that structure can constrain strategy.
Managing change
Use Lewin (unfreeze–change–refreeze) for planned change, and Kotter's eight steps for large-scale transformation (urgency, coalition, vision, communication, empowerment, short-term wins, consolidation, anchoring). Distinguish incremental from transformational change, and planned from emergent (Mintzberg). A common error is prescribing Kotter for a small process tweak - scale matters.
Resistance and culture
Resistance is rational as well as emotional: people defend competence, status and security. Diagnose sources before choosing tactics (education, participation, negotiation, coercion). Culture (Schein's artefacts, espoused values, basic assumptions) can quietly defeat strategy; the 'cultural web' (rituals, stories, symbols, power structures) is a useful diagnostic.
Organisational design
Know functional, divisional, matrix and network structures, with their trade-offs (specialisation vs responsiveness; matrix creates dual authority and conflict). Span of control, centralisation vs decentralisation and coordination mechanisms are recurring themes.
Worked rule of thumb
For a change question, map stakeholders by power and interest, choose a change approach proportional to scale, and name two concrete short-term wins to build momentum.