Thomas Schlenzig

Corporate strategy departments as a collective of strategy professionals need to integrate organizational unit managers in strategy-making through participation. However, research on how they are doing it and how effective such integration efforts are is scarce. Addressing this gap, we propose a measure for integration effectiveness from a unit manager perspective. We identify integration effectiveness as a multidimensional construct consisting of a relational, cognitive, and functional dimension. The way how the strategy department exploits its capabilities along these dimensions leads to four characteristic effectiveness states: seminal, lagging, routine, and rushed. This conceptualization is based on an in-depth case study of a global multibusiness automotive company with empirical evidence from 43 interviews with unit managers and a pilot-test including initial construct validation (EFA).

Value creation through the corporate strategy function (CSF) and its measurement has received little attention in strategic management research. This article should fill this gap by starting to develop the Strategic Impact Measure (SIM). Applying the strategy as practice perspective and drawing on an in depth case study of a global multi-business automotive company (AutoCorp) with empirical evidence of 43 interviews, we find that strategic impact is a collective and multidimensional construct consisting of a relational, cognitive and functional dimension. The extent of these dimensions is reflected in the four strategic impact levels ‘power', ‘rush', ‘poor', and ‘routine'. After having inductively developed the construct strategic impact from the data, we pilot measured the SIM at AutoCorp and validated the results in an exploratory factor analysis. -> nominated for Practical Implications Award

Drawing upon contingency theory, we analyze the antecedents and performance consequences of top management team (TMT) role structure. We argue that environmental dynamism, a firm's diversification degree, and CEO's functional background determine the ratio between functional and divisional TMT members. Further, we hypothesize that the fit between these conditions and TMT role structure improves firm performance. Results from a large-scale sample of S&P 500 firms over a five-year period partially support this contingency perspective in explaining TMT role structure and its performance effects. Specifically, we find that the fit between diversification strategy and TMT role structure is beneficial. The study highlights the importance of TMT structure for understanding how TMTs affect outcomes.

What is balanced growth? This book shows that the definitions and implications of the concept of balanced growth vary significantly among the different disciplines in economic science, but are not exclusive at all. Terms such as sustainability or balanced growth have become buzzwords. In practice, they are often a desirable vision rather than an achievable objective. Why? Doubts may arise about the extent to which such concepts are compatible with a modern market economy. Is balanced growth possible at all? Is it reasonable to accept balanced growth as a norm? Why should a balanced growth path be a desirable strategy to pursue for policymakers, managers, employees, and other societal stakeholders? Empirical evidence suggests that the actual worldwide economic growth is not balanced at all. Meanwhile, ever since the beginning of the financial and economic crisis in 2007 and its accompanying spillover effects, our globalizing world has uncompromisingly shown the flip side of its coin. Its crisis-prone character has intensified the discussion about our economic system's sustainability. Questions related to acceptable sovereign debt levels, suitable trade deficits and surpluses, firms' growth targets, resource management and efficiency have aroused high interest. What is the cause of the observed imbalances? In our opinion, this debate must involve rethinking the qualitative and quantitative dimension of our present understanding of the nature of economic growth. This book accompanies the 9th DocNet Management Symposium of the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland. It contains contributions of the symposium's panel speakers, renowned authors to the field and young researchers. The Ph.D. students' and post-doctoral association DocNet organizes the DocNet Management Symposium on a yearly basis with the goal to foster exchange between academia and practitioners.

In order to fulfill the expectations of shareholders, growth has become an in-evitable imperative for most companies. However, growth is always associated with increased complexity. Additional resources, especially human capital re-sources, are necessary to master this added complexity. Companies can satisfy this demand by either recruiting new employees, or by increasing their current personnel's efficiency. However, in times of extreme talent bench shortfall and rapidly increasing burnout statistics, HR departments are facing serious challenges. Firms may not be able to recruit the necessary talent, may dilute the company's culture and identity through intense recruitment within short periods, or may overload their current personnel quantitatively or qualitatively. This chapter outlines how companies can master these challenges through strategies such as: expanding the recruitment population, becoming a desired employer, recruiting very deliberately, prioritizing tasks and services, and, finally, interlinking strategic human resource management and high performance work systems' activities. By applying these strategies, companies can avoid the risks of excessive growth. Instead, they can capitalize on times of growth, establishing sustainable or balanced growth in order to get ahead of their competitors.

When seeking to realize growth strategies, firms have three choices: internal development, alliances, and mergers & acquisitions. However, how to choose be-tween these growth mechanisms is, however, not well-understood in practice. Managers seldom sufficiently strategically analyze this critical first step in any growth-related decision process. Instead, many managers commonly base their decision on "gut-feel" or simply follow successful traits. This chapter offers a framework to systematically guide managers in their choice of growth mecha-nisms. Four sets of factors should be simultaneously considered to decide on when to make, buy, or ally: the environment, the target, the growth strategy, and company-related factors. By systematically analyzing each growth mechanism's context-specific advantages and disadvantages, firms may avoid mistakes that could not be compensated for in later implementation phases.