Abstract:
Strategy implementation (SI) is a noteworthy struggle for managers and organisations
owing mainly to the difficulties experienced by professionals when putting strategy into
action; and attaining the envisioned outcomes. To heighten this challenge, there is no
integrated research field on SI which makes academic contributions arduous. This does
not even consider the uncertain environment created by the COVID pandemic. The
primary line of inquiry for this research paper was around the impact of nudging as a
behavioural mechanism for SI, although this was explored through a more general
inquiry into ‘organisational conditions’, ‘managerial agency as a component of SI’ and
‘materiality pertaining to SI’. This is important for various reasons, one of which includes
the need to steadily connect traditional concepts in business and innovation.
The researcher followed a qualitative approach to explore the research topic. The sample
consisted of middle-level managers and higher from multinational enterprises (MNEs)
who had direct experience of SI tools and practises. The data was collected by using
semi-structured interviews and in turn analysed by means of frequency and thematic
analysis.
Interestingly, the impact of nudging as a behavioural mechanism for SI did not feature
dominantly but the reasons for this are clear and linked to future research opportunities.
The findings explored through the three themes above do support existing research for
the most part. There was a tentative claim made around a possible contribution in
regards to innovation which is believed to have altered in the past period – now a reactive
approach versus a conscious choice. Future research opportunities include comparisons
between small and big business environments, comparisons between developing and
developed environments, resilience ratings linked to geographical location, awareness
level of using behavioural mechanisms, and business life cycle considerations.
