Influence of Context on Strategic Flexibility – A Critical Review

Abstract

This paper critically reviews the strategic flexibility literature, with laying emphasis on its dimensions and role of context. Because of strategic flexibility being identified as a black box with its various definitions and dimensions, and pervasiveness of contextual variables contributing to strategic flexibility featured within the literature, it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive review to organize the literature to prepare insight for future research. The purpose of this literature review is: first, to critically review the strategic flexibility literature to highlight the underlying dimensions and; secondly to identify the conditions or context for its performance, which can be used for future theory development. Strategic action flexibility and resource reconfiguring flexibility are found as the main dimensions of strategic flexibility. The Context found to influence on strategic flexibility is divided to two types including external context of environmental dynamism, and internal context of modular reconfigurable structure design.