Strategic management in

public organisations
Strategies that public organisations
pursue

• Wechsler and Backoff strategy patterns

– Developmental strategy
– Transformational strategy
– Protective strategy
– Political strategy
A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Strategies to increase budgets

– Focus on clientele
– Build confidence among ‘guardians’
– Bargaining and haggling ( e.g.
Treasury & public managers)
A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Strategic stance
– Broad way of maintaining or improving
performance
– Enduring
– Rarely change substantially in short
term
• Strategic action
– Steps taken to operationalise stance
– Likely change in short term
 A framework to study strategies in
public organisations
• Typology of strategies
– Defenders – focus on narrow product range,
try to protect market by increasing efficiency
(e.g. LTA)
– Prospectors – innovative & seek new
markets ( Ministry of Trade)
– Reactors – respond to change imposed by
their environment (e.g. Health Department)
– Analysers – combine defender &
prospectors
A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Defenders
– Narrow product range focus
– Cautious and efficient
– Doesn’t change markets but may
modify services and internal/external
organisation to better defend market
A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Prospectors
– Innovative and proactive
– Looks for new markets
– Rapidly responds to environment
changes
– Embraces change but may not be
efficient
A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Reactors
– Does not change markets, products or
services of own volition
– Lacks internal resources and capabilities
to be defender or prospector
– More suitable to public sector where
adjustments can be made to suit
changing needs of the environment
A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Analysers
– Defends their markets
– Remains open to new markets and
innovative ideas
– Combines strategies of defender and
prospector
 A framework to study strategies in
public organisations

• Types of strategic actions

1. Changes to markets – e.g. FEA
2. Changes to services- Education
3. Revenue seeking – e.g. Hospitals
4. Changes to internal – e.g. PWD
5. Changes to external organisation –
e.g. NCSMED