Henry Mintzberg challenged the traditional idea that strategy is always the result of formal planning. He argued that what organizations actually do (their realized strategy) is often different from what they intended to do.
He introduced a more flexible, evolutionary view of strategy, involving five key concepts:
🔑 Key Concepts in Mintzberg’s Strategic Process
| Concept | Definition |
|---|---|
| Intended Strategy | The strategy that an organization plans to implement—usually created through formal analysis and planning. |
| Deliberate Strategy | The portion of the intended strategy that is actually implemented successfully. It happens as planned. |
| Unrealized Strategy | The part of the intended strategy that is not implemented, often due to changes in the environment, internal resistance, or poor planning. |
| Emergent Strategy | A strategy that develops over time in response to unexpected opportunities, challenges, or learning—not planned in advance. |
| Realized Strategy | The strategy that the organization actually follows in practice—a combination of deliberate and emergent strategies. |
🔄 How These Concepts Work Together
Mintzberg visualized strategy as a dynamic process, not a straight line from planning to execution.
🧩 Formula:
Realized Strategy = Deliberate Strategy + Emergent Strategy
And since not all plans succeed:
Intended Strategy = Deliberate Strategy + Unrealized Strategy
🧾 Explanation of Each Term with Example
| Term | Example |
|---|---|
| Intended Strategy | A company plans to enter the Chinese market in 2025. |
| Deliberate Strategy | The company enters and establishes retail stores successfully. |
| Unrealized Strategy | Political issues or legal restrictions prevent expansion in China. |
| Emergent Strategy | While expanding, the company unexpectedly finds success in Vietnam, and shifts focus there. |
| Realized Strategy | The company ends up operating successfully in Vietnam (emergent) and China (deliberate) – this is the actual outcome. |
🧠 Why It Matters (Mintzberg’s Key Insight)
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Strategic flexibility is essential – Not everything can or should be planned.
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Leaders must balance planning with adaptability.
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Emergent strategies can be a source of innovation and competitive advantage.
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Success often comes from learning and reacting, not just from sticking to the plan.
🗣️ “Strategy formation walks on two feet, one deliberate, the other emergent.” — Henry Mintzberg