Organisational culture and leadership influences in a strategic implementation process: A study of a small organisation

The concept of strategic implementation is an area neglected both academically and by managers. However, the process of strategic implementation is where organisations often are experiencing failure. In a process of strategic implementation an organisation is dependent on cooperation from the employees to facilitate the process. However, the level of cooperation may depend on the leadership style with which the organisation operates. In other words, how the leader involve the employees in the process and how he/she influence the organisational culture in regard to the beliefs and values on how to operate may influence the success of the implementation process. This is even more important in a smaller organisation where the leader may have a very dominant role in every aspect of the operation. The leadership style and organisational culture may therefore have an influence on the employees’ resistance and/or commitment to the process of strategic implementation. This thesis addresses this by asking the question: How is strategic implementation influenced by organisational culture and leadership? In order to answer this question an empirical study was conducted. The organisation studied was a smaller organisation that was in a process of implementing a quality system. Data were obtained and converted into a case study. The data were gathered through interviews, questionnaires and internal document analysis, and were analysed both with an emphasis on deductive and inductive approach. The study found that awareness in terms of a number of areas is an important requirement in a process of strategic implementation. These areas include the key concepts within this thesis: leadership, organisational culture and strategic implementation. Specifically, the framework developed signifies the importance of being aware of the leadership style and how it influences the organisational culture. Furthermore, by being aware of the beliefs and values with which the organisation operates, the organisation may come to an awareness of ...