London Metropolitan

Business School

Effective Strategic
Leadership
Key lessons on Effective strategic leadership based on the case studies
from the lectures by 08 01 05 98
 EFFECTIVE STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

Not many organisations are enthusiastic about change. Fear

and instability in already volatile economy is not desirable by any
CEO. Unfortunately, change is inevitable and risks need to be taken
on daily basis. Management is accountable for all significant
decisions and take responsibility for development of business
strategies.
Nowadays, classic knowledge of prolongs the waiting lists. Through
management is not enough to form a communication with managers and
desirable leader. Influencing, motivation, employees he was able to find out that the
decision making, and ethical behaviour NHS lacks hierarchy, scheduling, ‘chain
are few of the attributes of an effective of command’ resulting in poor staff
manager’s potential to express strategic management and structure. This proved
vision and persuade and motivate others to be a key factor in his effective
to its accomplishment. leadership, as he understood management
It is about inventiveness, and staff needs.
perception, and risk. The strategic leader After restructuring the
works in a complex environment management policies and implementing
composed of problems, affects people, his active management, Robinson found a
allocates resources, and holds way to help to save NHS. Only time and
responsibility for the organisation. commitment to the plan will prove that
the change was effective.

LESSON 1:
Organisation’s purpose
Drawing conclusions on the
corporation’s performance by
observing the human and
organisational aspects of the
corporation
The corporation’s ability to fulfil its
purpose is often weakened by poor
management. This could be depicted by
dissatisfying performance results, lack of
focus on the prime tasks and actions, and
confusion among the employees.
When Gerry Robinson, Irish
business ‘Guru’, was sent to reduce the
waiting lists in the NHS, he experienced
all three aspects mentioned above. He
quickly contradicted the fact of NHS not
having enough facilities to provide health
care, pointing out that the specific theatres
are there to be used but are not well
managed and that lowers the output and
LESSON 2:
Organisation’s behaviour in
different markets
Changes and adjustments to the
strategy are needed to achieve success
in different markets - responsibility lies
upon the management
Tesco, one of the most successful
examples of strategic diversification by
UK company, has expanded from
domestic operator to multinational giant
within a decade.
After the market leadership was
established in UK, mainly by
repositioning into all segments of the
market, it committed to an Asian
expansion programme to enter Thailand
and South Korea under Terry Leahy as
CEO. A thorough research has shown
that the best time to enter Asia was when
the economy was unstable, as it was an
‘immediate catalyst’. Tesco entered via
partnerships with Samsung and South EFFECTIVE STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
Korea and CP Group in Thailand. EFFECTIVE STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

networks of smaller stores in USA in

Tesco’s success was determined by its
adaptive reactions to ‘growing pressures
across East Asia for tighter regulation of
the expansion of multinational retailers’
(Lowe, Wrigley, 2011).
Building on successful strategies
used in Asia, Leahy had a vision of a
market opportunity to develop dense
2006. Tesco had to switch from its
effective strategy to outnumber Wal-Mart
and gain competitive advantage. The
strategy was developed to ‘create a
competitive potential of dense networks
of ‘convenience’-focused neighbourhood
stores providing an innovative retail offer’
(Lowe, Wrigley, 2011).

Tesco was able to transform its strategy and

through a variety of features; establishing brand
visibility, maximising development opportunities via
investment, reputational risk, has moved among the
multinational retailers in the elite group.
Though it is hard to determine
LESSON 3: how 3D printing will affect the economics
‘Entrepreneurial’ strategy of manufacturing, nowadays technology
Penetration of the existing market with disrupts everything it touches.
innovative techniques
Taking risks to succeed in toy
market is well known to Small Toy
Manufacturer, a market leader in the
supply of farm animal-toys to schools.
Through a new manufacturing
THERE IS a variety of characteristics that
technology undermining economies of
shape effective strategic leaders. Ability
scale, allowing cheap production of
to modify an existing strategy, willingness
thousand items, a three-dimensional
to risk and adopt change proved to be
printing is an alternative method to
necessary skills leading to success and
manufacturing toys. The company’s main
profit.
competitors are Lego Education and Pink
Moon in its sole UK market.
Technological change carries its
benefits, but drawbacks, too. Critics say
there will be no need for factories and
their workers; therefore it is not profitable
for the low-wage countries.