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562 strategy formulation
own strategies as ways of implementing corporatelevel
strategies. Now, companies are urged to
democratise the process by delegating strategic
planning activity to teams of line and staff
managers from different disciplines �Byrne 1996).
Strategic planning and total quality management
have received increasing attention in recent tourism
studies.
See also: strategic formulation; strategy
marketing
References
Byrne, J.A. �1996) `Strategic planning: it's back',
Business Week, 26 August, 46±51.
strategy formulation
ELIZA CHING-YICK TSE, CHINA
Strategy formulation is the process followed by
tourism and other organisations to develop their
strategic plan. It should be viewed as an iterative
rather than linear process. It begins with the
scanning of the business environment in order to
identify threats and opportunities. This effort is
designed to detect both long-term and short-term
trends affecting the business. This step in the
process is then followed by the creation/evaluation
of the mission statement which defines what
business the firm is, or plans to be, and in what
environmental domain it will compete.
Following the mission statement, the firm
decides on the competitive methods it will chose
in order to take advantage of the opportunities in
its domain environment. The competitive methods
are viewed as the primary value-producing activities
of the business. A close match must be
achieved between the opportunities in the environment
and the competitive methods chosen. Once
completed, the firm will then assess its strengths
and weaknesses to determine if it has the
resources and capabilities to properly implement
and execute the chosen methods. This assessment
will determine whether the firm will be able to
realise the overall strategy it has chosen through its
selection of competitive methods.
Once the firm has identified its strengths and
weaknesses, it is then ready to set long-term and
short-term objectives. Long-term objectives are
considered to be one year or more in the future.
The objectives should be designed so as to enable
the firm to overcome its weaknesses and take full
advantage of its strengths. Each objective should be
tied directly to a particular competitive method or
set of methods. The objective must identify the
physical, financial and human resources necessary
to implement and execute the chosen strategy.
Once the objectives are finalised and approved,
and resources allocated, implementation begins.
This process involves the actual utilisation of
resources for the successful execution of processes
and activities associated with each competitive
method. While implementation is technically not a
direct part of the formulation process, it is the link
to strategy evaluation. Evaluation involves the
assessment of the success of each competitive
method in adding its targeted value to the firm.
Results of this evaluation are used to continually
cycle through the formulation process.
See also: corporate strategy
Further reading
Hofer, C.W. and Schendel, D. �1978) Strategy
Formulation:Analytical Concepts, St Paul, MN: West
Publishing.
Lombardi, D. �1994) `Chain restaurant strategic
planning', Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration
Quarterly 35�3): 38±40.
Reid, R. and Olsen, M.D. �1981) À strategic
planning model for independent food service
operators', Journal of Hospitality Education 6�1): 11±
24.
structuralism
MICHAEL D. OLSEN, USA
Borrowed from linguistics, anthropological structuralism
is a mode of analysis focusing on the
`grammar' of social relations and ideological
formations. Steeped in this tradition, and inspired
by the studies of myth and totemism by Levi-
Strauss and others, the structuralist tradition in