ABSTRACT
Operations strategy (OS) is a potentially paradoxical idea, that conceptually if not practically (n.b. few firms have explicit OS), forms part of a cluster of strategy elements (marketing, finance, HR strategy, etc.) which, again in theory, should combine to achieving the wider goals and strategies of the business. The overall model of strategy invoked is significant. Adopting a ‘top-down’ model of strategy (cf. planning) implies OS is primarily about alignment and implementation whereas most contemporary scholars draw heavily on Henry Mintzberg’s (OM-friendly) notion of strategy as more than just intended or planned strategy but also emergent “pattern of actions” and “sequence of decisions”. Questions regarding measures and measurement are also profoundly intertwined with considerations of OS. Measures are used as a proxy for operations performance (cost, quality, speed, etc.) but also as (a substitute for?) the OS process.
