Patrick Regnér

Strategy as practice (SAP) research has made great progress focusing on practice, praxis, or practitioners’ settings where strategy prevails, but less is known about how strategy emerges at the very origins where it is still non-existent and only imminent. The purpose of this paper is to advance insights into strategy origins by exploring and examining what antecedents regarding activities, actors and sensemaking are involved in the integration of sustainability into strategy. The fashion and apparel industry serves as a suitable setting as sustainability strategy development is imminent but neither strategy activities nor their context, including practices, actors, cognitions, etc. or outcomes are predetermined. Drawing on an inductive qualitative multiple-case pilot study, we reveal an intricate interrelationship between the doings and thinkings of strategy. We develop a framework showing two alternative strategizing sensemaking logics – the orienteering logic and the exploring logic – and their underlying mechanisms of sustainability initiative development. First, we contribute by providing a nuanced understanding of the interactive mechanisms between sensemaking and activity and thus add insights into the action side of action-meaning cycles in sensemaking and how people generate meanings based on actions and engagements. Second, moving beyond the prior interpretivist and cognitivist emphasis we unveil how ‘things’ become strategic and how diverse strands of activities and actors rely on strategic intent and limited or no intent with implications for strategy outcome. Third, we contribute to recent dialogues on how strategy research remains relevant considering global grand challenges.

When multinational firms enter new markets, they have to choose how to manage the formal and informal local rules that can vary greatly. Local institutions and rules matter, and there are clear risks for top executives at headquarters who don’t take them seriously. But constantly adapting to local practices could jeopardize a company’s ability to integrate operations across markets. A study of five globally successful Scandinavian companies identified six tactics that firms can use to address local rules while maintaining competitive advantage: Avoid, alter, adapt, imitate, influence, and innovate.

Fundamentals of Strategy builds on the established strengths of Exploring Strategy, proven over twelve best-selling editions. It is a concise and easy-to-follow introduction to the core issues and techniques of strategy. The sixth edition reflects contemporary strategic issues with increased emphasis on business ecosystems, platforms, purpose and implementation. Each chapter includes a diverse range of international examples from across sectors and industries including start-ups, non-profits, and multinationals.

The unique attributes of the internal and external contexts of multinational corporations (MNCs) make effective management of organizational change not only a necessity but also a challenge for these firms. The key to success lies in ensuring that the content, context, and process of change efforts are aligned and coherent. In this chapter, we will review each of these change dimensions with a particular focus on the specific issues and concerns faced by MNCs.