Effective strategizing practices in pluralistic settings: The case of Academic Medical Centers

Pluralism in organizations is dramatically and progressively increasing today, which makes it difficult for managers to capture a clear picture of what is really going on at the moment and to make strategic decisions. How strategy is formed and implemented in pluralistic contexts has been substantially underestimated for many years. This article investigates how specific strategy processes are constructed and which practices can be successfully adopted in pluralistic contexts, such as in Academic Medical Centers. We drew from a strategy as practice approach and adopted an ethnographic methodology to conduct the study. This paper demonstrates that some practices (strategy workshops, brutal facts and graphic charts) can reduce the risks of setting the strategy agenda in pluralistic organizations. Implications for managers and scholars are discussed. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.