High level decision making, leadership and business strategy

How well do executive teams in organisations make strategic decisions? Both academic research and observation of events over the last two years indicate that strategic leaders are not very good at making strategic decisions. As we enter a period of economic uncertainty and a changing social environment, the demands on the executive team to get the key strategic decisions right will surely increase. The setting for strategic decisions is characterised by:

  • Immense pressure for operational responses to rapidly changing events
  • High levels of dynamism and unpredictability
  • High complexity and interdependence

In this context, effective strategy arises not out of calm reflection but rather through adaptive emergent responses to unpredictable events. Some businesses will fail when they could have survived, had they made better strategic decisions. Other organisations will be unable to respond effectively to changes in their environment and carry on doing what they've always done, being left behind by those who are quicker to respond to new demands and more adept at managing key risks. This research area examines the way that executive teams in organisations make strategic decisions.

Research centres