FACULTY OF COMMERCE

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

MASTER OF LEADERSHIP AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE DEGREE 

PROGRAM : Master of Leadership and Corporate Governance

COURSE : MBL 514 Strategic Management

LECTURER : Prof Dandira

YEAR : 2023

GROUP 10
1. KUDANGIRANWA VIMBAI ANASTANCIA B227175A
2. ADVANCE NARE B227761A
3. KUDAKWASHE MADAMOMBE B230325A
4. MURIEL TAFADZWA MAKONI B227235A
5. MASVOSVA TALENT.S B227644A

Most parastatals in Zimbabwe were categorized as having formulated good strategies in

theory but fall significantly short on implementation (Zimbabwe Institute of Management 9 th
Conference 28 September 2010). Based on the above statement outline why strategy
implementation is still a problem in Zimbabwe.
Key words

Strategic plan

It is the systematic, formalized course of action meant to establish company policies and
objectives.

Strategy implementation

It defines the conversion of formulated plans into action in order to obtain organizational
desired outcome. The conversion process involves communication, interpretation, adoption
and enactment of these strategic plans.

Strategy

It is the means or the general plan of action employed by the business organisation to attain
long term set goals and objectives.

Service delivery

It refers to a business framework that supplies services from a provider to a client.

Public sector

It is the portion of the economy composed of all levels of government and government-
controlled enterprises.

Parastatal

It is used to describe a company or organization which is owned by a country's government

and often has some political power.

Introduction

Strategy implementation is the second from last of the strategic management process, which
is the communication, interpretation adoption and enactment of strategic plans by translating
creative thoughts into action through alignment of leadership, organisational culture,
structures, reward systems, resource allocation and portfolio balance with the chosen strategy
package. Strategy implementation process, in strategic management process is, preceded by
strategic analysis and choice, and succeeded by strategy control, evaluation and continuous
improvement. However business organisations are faced with strategy implementation
challenges that include the poor strategy, misaligned organisational structure to strategy, lack
of enough organisational resources, untrained, unskilled and inexperienced work force,
demotivated and uncommitted workforce, poor strategy analysis and wrong findings in
environmental analysis, lack of communication and coordination in organisation, and lack of
communication and coordination in an organisation. Mismanagement, incompetence,
bureaucracy, wastage and pilferage are indicated as the main problems that have made
Zimbabwe state corporations fail to implement strategies in order to achieve the set goals and
objectives. This is mainly attributed to weak corporate governance structures and lack of
effective internal controls

The models or theories that reinforces strategy implementation process are include but not
limited to, environment dependence theory, the balanced score card, result based
management, and the Mckensey’s 7s Model. Failure to adopt any of these models or theories
into practice will result in business organisation including the parastatals fail to implement
formulated strategies.

Environment Dependence Theory

Business organisations depend on the environment for their inputs and outputs. The external
environment of any organisation defines the broad contextual background within which it
operates. The external environment poses threats and opportunities to an organization
therefore understanding the environment can help an organization identify some of the threats
and opportunities it faces. The external environment is beyond the organisation’s control
hence the need of adjusting and adapt to changes in the organisation is of importance. In a
broad sense, environment dependence theory, embodies prior steps to strategy formulation
process which involves environmental scanning and analysis in order to come with a good
strategy. Most parastatals failed in this part, and came up with a poor strategy, poor strategy
analysis as a result of wrong findings in the environmental analysis.

The 2008 economic uncertainty ignited different crises among state business entities in
Zimbabwe and to date many parastatals are struggling and production capacity is low.
Financial, technological, and confrontation crises at National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ)
became prominent following the 2008 economic decline, with seeming less attention and
control being devoted.
The Balanced ScoreCard

It is a performance metric used in strategic management to identify and improve various

internal functions of a business and their resulting external outcomes. This is vital tool used
to implement organisation strategies. It has four aspects that are built to align with the vision
and mission of the business organisation. These four business aspects are shown in the
diagram below, with the vision and mission being at the centre.

4. Financial perspective

3. Customer perspective Vision & Mission 1. Internal process

2. Learning and Growth

1. Internal processes

The internal processes of the business are evaluated by investigating how ell products are
manufactured. Operational management is analysed to track any gaps, delays, bottlenecks,
shortages or wastages. The strategic focus is to ensure that there is a business efficiency to
achieve customer satisfaction. The internal process cover aspects highlighted in Mckensy’s 7s
model that is the structure, skill, strategy, shared vision, systems, staff, and styles. These play
a crucial role in the strategy implementation, and the lack of these vibrant internal controls
there is no strategy implementation to talk about.

2. Learning and growth

These are analysed through investigation of training and knowledge of resources. It handles
how well the information is captured and how effectively employees utilise information to
convert it to competitive advantage over the industry. Human Resource is key to every
business organisation. Vison and mission has to be fully communicated to employees.
Training and development should be the top priority in order for the employees to be
motivated, and contribute immensely in strategy implementation process.

3. Customer perspective

The information is collected to gauge customer satisfaction with quality, price and the
availability of the product or service being the main focus. Customers provide feedback about
their satisfaction with the current product. Customer perspective seeks to answer the question
what do existing and potential customers value form the business organisations products. The
customer perspective seeks to improve revenue of the business organisation through
consumption of quality products and services. Should the product or service become less of
the quality, the business suffers on the financial perspective, and implementation of the
strategy fails.

4. Financial perspective

Data such as sales and expenditure and income are used to understand financial performance.
It seeks to answer the question how to create value for the shareholders. The financial
capacity of the organisation is also questioned. Does it have the financial muscle to carry out
its operations, to satisfy its customer base. If the financial resource is limited, the customer
perspective will not materials, as there is no product or service to talk about. The
implementation of the strategy fails.

The balanced scorecard enhances accountability by each individual person or department, and
in the process bring out the element of transparency in form of performance that is measured
against set standards. It can be used as a motivational tool to motivate employees. It makes
strategies operational by translating them into performance measure and targets.

This prevalent in most parastatals, good strategies are formulated, but the internal functions
are far beyond repair. There is no performance measurement carried out prior strategy
formulation and implementation on the basis of those four perspective of the balanced
scorecard model.

In the Resource- Based view theory states that an organization is regarded as a bundle of
resources, capabilities and competences. The goal of the organization should be to develop
resources, capabilities and competencies that create a strategic fit with the organization’s
environment. Organizations gain a sustained competitive advantage by implementing
strategies that exploit their internal strengths through responding to environmental
opportunities, while neutralizing external threats and mitigating internal weaknesses. It is
through the synergistic combination and integration of resources that competitive advantage
is created. It is agreed that not all organizational resources hold the potential of sustained
competitive advantage.

Result Based Management

It is defined as the orienting of all action and use of resources towards achieving defined and
demonstrable result. It is a tool for monitoring and managing the implementation of strategy
and its primary purpose is to improve efficiency and effectiveness through learning and to
fulfil accountability through performance reporting.

The result based management tool enhances communication between management and
workers, and enhance accountability by employees. It provide quantifiable metrics that
projects measurement of strategy. Its main focus, is on timely achievement of planned goals
unlike other frameworks which stresses on financial aspects. It is very useful for capacity
revaluation and development.

With the bureaucracy that exist in the parastatals, the result based management tool cannot be
easily be applicable. Bereaucracy impedes the successful implementation of the formulated
strategies in the Zimbabwean context. Everything, and every small thing must be approved
by many offices and this can delay the timely achievement of planned goals.

For example, Air Zimbabwe there was need to purchase new planes to replace the ageing
Boeing 700’s. This plan was tagged a top priority to avoid the national airliner losing routes
to rivals. The strategy to purchase new planes was good, the goal to maintain and retain
market share was a critical one. The implementation of this strategy took longer than
anticipated, due to bureaucracy that existed in the Government structures in terms of
approvals of who to buy from, Malaysia, or China, which make to buy, the Boeing or Airbus?
Three Ministries need to approve, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and
Ministry of Transport.
McKensy’s 7s Model

It is tool that analyses the firm’s organisational design by looking at the seven (7) key internal
elements of the business organisation that plays a pivotal role in the implementation of the
strategy. These seven (7) elements are the strategy, structure, systems, shared values, style,
staff, and skills.

The seven (7) elements are illustrated in diagram below:

Strategy

Structure Systems

Shared values
Staff
Style

Skills

Strategy

A strategy helps achieve a competitive advantage and it must be reinforced by a strong vision
and mission. The key aspect in this model is not only identification of a great strategy but
also aligning a great strategy to other six elements of the 7s model so as to achieve
resounding results. This called strategy fit. Parastatals in Zimbabwe, fail completely on
coming up with a good strategy, more often stick to poorly crafted strategy inherited a long
time ago. Tragedy is, when there is misalignment of poorly crafted strategy to other key
elements highlighted in this model. Poor strategy is difficult to be implemented, and it cannot
be aligned to other elements such as skills, staff, style, structure, shared values, and systems.
Example is Cold Storage Commission (CSC), and National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ)
these parastatals are just names with no visible production or service being carried out on the
ground.

Structure

Represents the way the business units units are organised and also includes the information of
who is accountable to who. Organisational structure must be divised in such way that it
supports the strategy implementation. Bureaucratic structures are an impediment to effective
strategy implementation whereas leaner structures facilitate strategy implementation.

Systems

These are processes and procedures of the company that review business daily activity and
how decisions are made. To properly implement strategies, organisational systems should be
changed and crafted in such a way that they facilitate fluid strategy implementation. It has to
be noted that, systems can be impediments or catalyst to successful strategy implementation.

Shared values

These are norms, values and standards that guide employee behaviour and company action
normally when change is about to happen. When new strategy is against shared values, then
its implementation is very difficult. In most cases, strategies are tailor made to support
organisational shared values.

Skills

These are the abilities that firms employees have to undertake or carry out day to day
business operations. These are termed capabilities and competencies of the employees. Skills
affect strategy implementation in the sense that new strategies will require new skills and
expertise to be implemented.

Staff
This refers to the number of employees that an organisation need to support the new strategy.
Some strategies need workers to be hired as some want few workers thereby leading to
retrenchment of workers.

Style

This represents how organisation is managed by top management and this entails how they
interact with the middle and bottom management following the structure of the organisation.
It highlights top management actions they take and symbolic values. Style need to be aligned
with strategy for successful implementation.

In Zimbabwean context, parastatals are ultra vires the McKensy’s 7s model in its entirety.
There clear vsisble of poor strategy formulation which have seen key parastatals like Cold
Storage Commision (CSC) The Zisco Steel, and National Railways of Zimbabwe disappear
in the lime light of business. Poor strategy formulation, chased away staff with competent
skills to other nations through brain drain. The systems without competent staff paralyses any
hope of strategy implementation. The style, speaks volumes in these parastatals. They are not
hired on merit, but by design to pursue and fulfil political agendas.

The challenge with several governance setups is that, processes in institutions are usually
subject to certain interests– often political. However, this tends to bypass the common good,
eventually obstructing the possibilities of realizing equitable social development and
inclusive growth. Also observes that, there is an intrinsic propensity by politicians to sacrifice
the sustainable development long-term approach required to the pressures of the short-term
electoral cycle. Parastatals need to adhere to company procedures and be freed from politics
and corruption.

Deficits in good corporate governance practices have resulted in Zimbabwe having highly
publicized scandals that have shaken state-owned enterprises. While reporting on State
Enterprises and Parastatals (SEPs) to Parliament in 2016, the Auditor-General agreed that
challenges afflicting the public sector entities in the main are corporate governance in nature
(OAGZ, 2016). Strategies in the parastatals are made and some implemented but some of the
resources to be used in achieving he strategic plans are mismanaged by the top management
with reports showing that senior managers and directors are living large while there is poor
service delivery and a deplorable state of employee welfare. When rules and norms of
institutions become adapted to some corrupt methods of operation then corruption itself
becomes systemic whereby agents follow predispositions that are predatory. Zimbabwe’s
predisposition to corrupt innuendoes is not new as history always repeats itself. Those in
senior management reward themselves huge salaries approved by their board members when
service delivery is pitiable and the public feeding on humble pies. Such reports have been
made extensively on the public broadcaster, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC)
and the Public Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS). This has seriously dented the
Zimbabwean corporate governance (ZCG) and there are suggestion that the credibility of the
Zimbabwean government is to assume an accountable and transparent public enterprise
reform meant to enhance an equitable resource distribution that have been derailed by corrupt
government officials. The history of the country of elite predation using public entities has
been punctuated with the desire for gripping social and political power. As a result,
enterprises like the PSMAS, ZBC, Air Zimbabwe, and the Zimbabwe United Passenger
Company (ZUPCO) have been used as institutions of looting or instruments of established
predation. Apparently, all this taking place in the eyes of the Minister responsible and Board
members.

Conclusion

Business organisation achieve overall goals and objective through successful implementation
of good strategy using the any of the suitable relevant strategy implementation models. The
models assist business organisation to navigate through challenges that may hinder strategy
implementation and proffer ways on how to overcome those strategies. In Zimbabwean
context, parastatals it is time they rise above the tide of complacency and move with the
changes in the business environment.

Recommendations

1. Parastatals must adopt a vibrant strategy implementation models that that will act a
guideline.

2. Zimbabwe state corporations must improve their corporate governance structures so as to

enhance effectiveness and efficiency.
3. The Zimbabwean government must select managers with the capacity to act in
accordance with the objectives.

4. The Zimbabwean corporations be exposed to the competitive environment of the open

market economy.

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