The word "strategy" has been used implicitly in different ways even if it has traditionally been defined in only one. Explicit recognition of multiple definitions can help people to manoeuvre through this difficult field. Mintzberg provides five definitions of strategy:
- Plan
- Ploy
- Pattern
- Position
- Perspective.
Plan
Strategy is a plan - some sort of consciously intended course of action, a guideline (or set of guidelines) to deal with a situation. By this definition strategies have two essential characteristics: they are made in advance of the actions to which they apply, and they are developed consciously and purposefully.
Ploy
As plan, a strategy can be a ploy too, really just a specific manoeuvre intended to outwit an opponent or competitor.
Pattern
If strategies can be intended (whether as general plans or specific ploys), they can also be realised. In other words, defining strategy as plan is not sufficient; we also need a definition that encompasses the resulting behaviour: Strategy is a pattern - specifically, a pattern in a stream of actions. Strategy is consistency in behaviour, whether or not intended. The definitions of strategy as plan and pattern can be quite independent of one another: plans may go unrealised, while patterns may appear without preconception.
Plans are intended strategy, whereas patterns are realised strategy; from this we can distinguish deliberate strategies, where intentions that existed previously were realised, and emergent strategies where patterns developed in the absence of intentions, or despite them.
Position
Strategy is a position - specifically a means of locating an organisation in an "environment". By this definition strategy becomes the mediating force, or "match", between organisation and environment, that is, between the internal and the external context.
Perspective
Strategy is a perspective - its content consisting not just of a chosen position, but of an ingrained way of perceiving the world. Strategy in this respect is to the organisation what personality is to the individual. What is of key importance is that strategy is a perspective shared by members of an organisation, through their intentions and / or by their actions. In effect, when we talk of strategy in this context, we are entering the realm of the collective mind - individuals united by common thinking and / or behaviour.
References
- Henry Mintzberg, California Management Review, Fall 1987
- Henry Mintzberg, "Five Ps for Strategy" in The Strategy Process, pp 12-19, H Mintzberg and JB Quinn eds., 1992, Prentice-Hall International Editions, Englewood Cliffs NJ.
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Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy is a strategy development model that examines five different perspectives (plan, ploy, pattern, position, perspective) to develop a successful business strategy. A sixth perspective has been developed over the years, called Practice, which was created to help businesses execute their strategies.
Contents
- Understanding Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy
- The five perspectives of Mintzberg’s strategy
- The sixth perspective of Mintzberg’s strategy
- Key takeaways
- Connected Business Frameworks
- Related
Understanding Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy
Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy was created by Canadian management scientist Henry Mintzberg.
He recognized that in dynamic business environments, a simplistic approach to strategy development was unlikely to deliver success. The strategy may be reasonably effective one day and then useless the next.
To ensure that a strategy is adaptable and has longevity, it must be multidimensional and consider many perspectives.
The five perspectives of Mintzberg’s strategy
Following is a look at each of the five perspectives that Mintzberg identified as being crucial to success:
- Plan – what course of action will the business take to realize its future goals? Businesses should hold brainstorming sessions to identify goals and determine how they might be achieved. A plan can then be created by using a SWOT or PESTLE analysis. A sound strategic plan is essential because it is the foundation of the four subsequent perspectives.
- Ploy – Mintzberg argues that the strategy should discourage, divert, or influence competitors. For example, a tech company might patent certain inventions to discourage competitor products from entering the market. A business must use strategic ploys to stay one step ahead of the competition. But they should not become so focused on competitors that they lose sight of their own strategy.
- Pattern – the previous two perspectives encourage businesses to look forward. However, recognizing a pattern is about looking to the past and determining what has worked well. A restaurant that is known for its specialty seafood should not try to develop a competitive advantage elsewhere. Rather, it should double down on what it does best. It is also important to note that while plans are intended strategy, patterns are realized strategy and may be unintentional. In some cases, a business will need to seek out emerging patterns in its operations and then develop a strategy for each.
- Position – how does the business want to portray itself in the market? What target audience or niche should it occupy to gain a competitive advantage? What is the USP and how does it relate to brand strength? Porter’s Diamond and Porter’s Five Forces are useful market force analyses.
- Perspective – how does the business perceive the world? What is the “personality” of the business? Perspective should be shared by all members of the organization who are united in common thinking and behavior. For this reason, many equate perspective with culture. For example, a company that has a culture of risk-taking and innovation should base its strategy on highly innovative products and services.
The sixth perspective of Mintzberg’s strategy
While the five perspectives of Mintzberg’s strategy create a multidimensional strategy, some argue that they are too descriptive. That is, they do not offer guidance on how these perspectives might be implemented.
In response, a sixth perspective called Practice was created to help businesses execute their strategies. This can be achieved in several ways:
- Embodying the strategy, or the physical performance of actions that help the business grow. Streaming services such as Netflix and Prime Video embodied their original content strategies by purchasing studios to create new television shows.
- Sensing the strategy through one of the five senses. When Coca-Cola released its Coke Zero Sugar beverage to market, the consumer backlash to the awful taste was immense. It is difficult to imagine that Coca-Cola tasted the drink (or its strategy) before release.
- Keeping the strategy in the present. Many strategies suffer when leaders look too far into the past or conversely, too far into the future. Intel’s strategy of developing future technology led to the company neglecting the present issue of product security. Sony’s focus on past consistency has resulted in repeated mistakes in the Spiderman franchises and in three generations of PlayStation. In both examples, the strategy was based on the intangibility of the past and future. Strategies that are instead based on the reality of the present save businesses from becoming distracted.
Key takeaways
- Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy is a strategy development framework that incorporates five key perspectives.
- Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy argues that one-dimensional strategies are unreliable from one day to the next because they do not adapt to dynamic markets.
- Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy sometimes includes a sixth perspective: practice. Practice enables a business to implement an effective strategic plan by remaining present and undistracted.
Connected Business Frameworks
Ansoff Matrix
GE McKinsey Model
Porter’s Five Forces
McKinsey 7-S Model
Porter’s Generic Strategies
Cost Leadership
Porter’s Value Chain Model
Porter’s Diamond Model
SWOT Analysis
PESTEL Analysis
Blue Ocean Strategy
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- Porter’s Five Forces
- Aida Model
- Growth Matrix
- Digital Strategy Matrix
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Read Next: BCG Matrix, GE McKinsey Matrix.
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More Strategy Tools: Porter’s Five Forces, PESTEL Analysis, SWOT, Porter’s Diamond Model, Ansoff, Technology Adoption Curve, TOWS, SOAR, Balanced Scorecard, OKR, Agile Methodology, Value Proposition, VTDF Framework.
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