Upfrontbestpractice Bringing SWOT into focusGeorge Panagiotou suggests an improvement on a long-standing strategic planning tool.

PurposeThe concept of strategic groups is a central theme in the field of strategic management, and over time it has been used by a considerable body of theoretical and empirical literature to examine different aspects of competitive strategy. However, to date, there has been little systematic investigation that examines aspects associated with competitive benchmarking and the impact and effect that this has on strategy development. Thus despite the level of knowledge that has been accumulated over the years regarding the dynamics of competitive landscapes, our understanding of the impact and effect of this particular matter on decision making is limited. More importantly, studies that have addressed the topic are either theoretical alone in contents or have only used secondary data. Equally, these studies have approached the subject mostly from an impersonal mathematical perspective and practitioners' views on the issue have been overlooked. This paper aims to address these weaknesses in the literature. In doing so, it seeks to place attention on the individual, which has been overlooked by previous examinations.Design/methodology/approachThe research is cross‐sectional and it is based on primary methodology, having employed qualitative techniques for analysis. It involves face‐to‐face semi‐structured interviews combined with the repertory grid technique. The industry investigated is the UK mainstream leisure foreign package holidays. The sample size is near to the sampling frame of the research and the investigation took place between March and August 2003.FindingsIt was found that managers of firms from the same strategic group consider their group as a reference point in their decision‐making process and as a result of their benchmarking observations they adjust their firms' competitive strategies to reflect their group's strategic behaviour. It was also found that firms of the same strategic group are more likely to respond to market conditions and events in a similar manner.Originality/valueThis paper examined issues associated with benchmarking, in the context of strategic groups, having employed primary qualitative research strategies in order to add “fresh” data on a topic that so far has merely been investigated quantitatively through secondary sources alone. As such, it has initiated a much needed contents dimension on the topic to complement the activity and process‐oriented only studies in the area. The research not only tested earlier propositions in order to accumulate more evidence in the field and enable better generalisations on the subject but it has also expanded current theories in the area.

Purpose -The structure-conduct-performance (SCP) paradigm was devised over half a century ago in an effort to contextualise and explain industry dynamics. However, the framework suffers from a number of shortcomings and, consequently, it has been criticised over the years. Yet, despite its weaknesses, it has survived its criticisms and is still used in industrial organisations (IOs) for the purposes of competitive analysis. In time, the framework has also been adopted by strategic management, and in the area of strategic groups it holds a prominent position in the literature. This study aims to address this issue. Design/methodology/approach -The study is cross-sectional and is based on primary research. It involves face-to-face semi-structured interviews and the sample size is near to the sampling frame of the research. Findings -The paper develops a cognitive dimension and, based on the findings of primary research, extends the framework in a manner that provides a better insight into competitive dynamics. Originality/value -This article views the SCP paradigm from a strategic perspective and discusses its limitations.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -In the field of strategic management, the majority of studies analyse competitive environments from an economic standpoint, based on the implicit notion that business environments are formal and objective. As such, the human element is assumed and the role that managers play in creating and changing competitive environments is neglected. However, given that people take business decisions and drive organisations, to ignore such an important dimension of the competitive landscape is a considerable limitation to developing more holistic understandings about competitive landscapes. This study examines how managers perceive competitive terrains and discusses the impact of managerial cognitions on decision-making, competitive strategies and industry dynamics. Design/methodology/approach -The research is cross-sectional and based on primary research. It involves semi-structured face-to-face interviews with the sample size near to the sampling frame of the research. The industry examined is the mainstream UK foreign package holidays industry and the investigation occurred between March and August 2003. Findings -It was found that managers view industries and competitors subjectively and that the social construction of competitive environments as well as the process of competitive enactment both influence managerial perceptions of competition. Consequently, similarities about competitive challenges are formed. Subsequently, such perceptions affect strategic decisions on competitive strategies and resource allocation. As a result, these actions affect industry dynamics and contribute to the evolution of the industry. Originality/value The study investigates an industry that has not been previously examined in the context of either strategic groups or from a cognitive perspective. Consequently, it provides fresh findings in the field to enable greater generalisation of results since cognition represents only a minor portion of the body of literature in the wider area of strategic management.

PurposeProposes a radical alternative to SWOT analysis. Without rejecting the value of that venerable framework, it re‐focuses it in such a way as to enhance intelligence gathering and improve strategic marketing planning in practice.Design/methodology/approachAfter a thorough review of the relevant literature and a balanced critique of the SWOT framework, a composite “telescopic observations strategic framework” is built step‐by‐step by integrating available conceptual frameworks and models in new relationships.FindingsThe new framework is described, explained, and illustrated by a hypothetical application. It is noted that it has been applied in real‐world practice since its initial formulation in 1999 and throughout its subsequent continuous development.Practical implicationsThe authors believe that their framework can generate a more comprehensive output and a better focussed strategic direction than other available tools in the field, but do not claim it as a once‐only panacea. Users are enjoined to commit to a dynamic yet structured programme of continuous situational monitoring, organisational learning, and strategy reformulation, at regular intervals. Thereby, the new framework will double as a performance measurement and control instrument.Originality/valueThis paper offers an entirely original proposal for general and specific marketing strategy formulation to practising intelligence gatherers and planners and their academic advisors.