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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In the new field of strategy-as-practice, the concept of strategy as well as the concept of practice has been revisited. Some scholars have pointed to the need for conceptual clarification in the new field. This research inquires about key dimensions of strategizing, taking into account both 'existing concepts of strategy' implicit in H. Mintzberg's 'schools of strategy formation' and the 'theory of practice 'formulated by sociologist P. Bourdieu. Making use of a process of 'theory translation', it attempts to arrive at an elucidated concept of strategizing.
Keywords: Strategizing, Schools of Strategy Formation, Concepts of Strategy, 'Theory of Practice', Bourdieu
INTRODUCTION
Although the concept of 'practice' is critical in the new field of 'strategy-as-practice', there are substantially different interpretations of its meaning in the literature, with implications as to what constitutes the proper object of inquiry and the associated unit of analysis. The best known 'theory of practice' has been articulated by sociologist P. Bourdieu in several books and articles, including his seminal work The Logic of Practice (Bourdieu 1990). A preliminary review of the literature indicates both that Bourdieu's work has not been studied in depth in the new field and that the aspects that have been cited have been largely misinterpreted.
As a result of the different conceptualizations, there are different perspectives on what constitutes the proper object of inquiry (and associated unit of analysis) in the new field ofstrategy-as-practice'. There are also disagreements as to what distinguishes the new field from already established ones such as the process approach to strategy, the institutional approach, or the resource based view. The recent literature on strategy-as-practice emphasizes the detailed day-to-day managerial behaviors involved in 'strategizing'. Unfortunately, in so doing it misses the forest for the trees and the 'strategic' dimension of strategizing is lost.
The objective of mis research is to provide a preliminary conceptual clarification of the two dimensions of the new field of 'strategy-as-practice': first the concept of 'practice' and second, the 'strategic dimension' of 'practice'. The latter dimension will be emphasized.
In the following sections, the 'existing concepts of strategy' will first be presented. Then, the basic concepts in Bourdieu's 'theory of practice' will be introduced. In a third section, the general process of theory translation will be briefly...