“Caminante, no hay camino, se hace camino al andar”: a study on the construction of meanings in strategy

Authors

  • Fábio Figueiredo Biselli ITM Channel Marketing
  • Maria José Tonelli Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo da Fundação Getulio Vargas (EAESP/FGV)
  • André Luis Silva Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo da Fundação Getulio Vargas (EAESP/FGV)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5585/ijsm.v14i4.2243

Keywords:

Estratégia como prática, Construcionismo social, Sentidos em estratégia.

Abstract

This study suggests the social construcionism approach as useful methodological approach to comprehend strategy as a social practice. For this purpose the results of interviews conducted with owners, business partners and executives are presented regarding the meanings attributed to the practice of strategy in their organizations. The aim was investigate how strategic practitioners build strategic understanding of what strategy is, how it is created in organizations and who are involved in its creation. We develop depth interviews with 23 executives/business owners who work with the strategy in their professional life. Interpreting their linguistic repertoires, through the methodological approach of social constructionism, the results showed a diversity of understandings for the themes “what is strategy” and “how the strategy is created”. The study concluded that the social value of the word strategy was one factor in its spread, especially among small businesses, because the use of the word strategy legitimates the members of an organization to demonstrate that they act as good managers and gives meaning to actions that have always existed in the organizational space.

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Author Biographies

Fábio Figueiredo Biselli, ITM Channel Marketing

Mestre em Administração pela FGV/EAESP.

Maria José Tonelli, Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo da Fundação Getulio Vargas (EAESP/FGV)

Doutora em Psicologia Social pela PUC-SP. Professora titular da FGV/EAESP e coordenadora do Núcleo de Estudos em Organizações e Pessoas (NEOP).

André Luis Silva, Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo da Fundação Getulio Vargas (EAESP/FGV)

Doutor em Administração de Empresas pela FGV/EAESP. Professor da FGV/EAESP e pesquisador do Núcleo de Estudos em Organizações e Pessoas (NEOP).

Published

01.12.2015

How to Cite

Biselli, F. F., Tonelli, M. J., & Silva, A. L. (2015). “Caminante, no hay camino, se hace camino al andar”: a study on the construction of meanings in strategy. Revista Ibero-Americana De Estratégia, 14(4), 07–23. https://doi.org/10.5585/ijsm.v14i4.2243

Issue

Section

Perspectives