Strategic Management Article

Strategic Management Review, 9(1), 2015 33

Influence of Leadership on Strategic Management _ A Study of Visakhapatnam Information Technology Sector

Mythili Kolluru1

Ibra College of Technology

AbstractThis paper tries to investigate the influence of leadership on strategic with special reference to Visakhapatnam information sector as a case study.KeywordsLeadership, Strategic Management, Information Technology

INTRODUCTIONTechnological revolutions sometimes bring unexpected opportunities for countries. India a

relative laggard among the developing countries in terms of economic growth seems to have found such an opportunity in the information technology revolution as an increasingly favored location for customized software development. Over the past decade, the Indian Information Technology/Business Processing Outsourcing sector has become the country’s premier growth engine, crossing significant milestones in terms of revenue growth, employment generation and value creation, in addition to becoming the global brand ambassador for India.

The changing outlook demands corporations to build greater efficiencies and flexibility within in the service delivery and business models. This brings the researcher to the strategic view point. An understanding of strategic perspective is required for Indian Information Technology com-panies to sustain their growth trajectory in competitive landscape which is constantly challenged with short product life cycle, labor shortage, price/performance rivalry, currency fluctuations, inno-vation based competition and the search for new markets, and to leverage their competitiveness.

This definition of leadership includes the routine acts of supervision, however the essence of leadership is to do with that influential increment which goes beyond routine and taps bases of power beyond those which are organizational relevance. (Ajila and Adegoke, 1998) Any organi-zation no matter how meticulously designed cannot function without acts of leadership because of four inescapable facets of organizational life: (1) necessary incompleteness of organizational design; (2) changing environmental conditions; (3) internal dynamics of the organization; and (4) dimensions of human membership in organizations (Ajila and Adekoya, 2006).

No books, procedures or policies can specify very act and prescribe for every contingency encountered in a complex organization. Such an attempt would only produce an array of instruc-

1Dr. Mythili Kolluru is a PhD in Strategic Management, working as a lecturer at the Business Studies Department of Ibra College of Technology under the Ministry of Man Power in the Sultanate of Oman.


Mythili Kolluru Influence of Leadership on Strategic Management

tions so ponderous that they will be completely ignored for the purpose of transacting business of the organization.

In strategic management responsibility of corporate level decision making rests on the strategic leaders, who are discharged from day to day responsibilities of operational activities. (Stoney, 1998).

LITERATURE REVIEWChandler (1962) was among the first scholars to study strategic management. His book strat-

egy and structure: chapters in the history of industrial enterprise described the development of organ-izations. Noting that structure follows strategy, (Browne, 1994), alluded to the impact that strategies have on internal organization environment. Chandler was influential in stimulating further study.

The book, Corporate Strategy (Ansof, 1965), the influential work on Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors (Porter, 1980), had an influential impact in the field of strategic management. The aim of strategic management is to decide on organizational goals, the means of achieving those goals and ensuring that the organization is sustainable in order to pursue these goals (Browne, 1994; Porter, 1980; Robbins, 2000).

Following (Chandler, 1962), the concern has been predominantly with how a firms organi-zational structure and control system are or might be related to the degree and nature of its products and geographic diversification (Fouraker and Stopford, 1968; Grinyer et al., 1980; Rumelt, 1974; Scott, 1974; Vancil, 1980). Despite the widespread acceptance of strategy’s role in mediating an organization’s interaction with its environment (Andrews, 1971; Ansoff, 1965), the scope for research on strategic management has been carried on by many, there always seems to different dimension to this alluding and fascinating subject.

Although formulating a consistent strategy is a difficult task for any management team, making the strategy work-implementing it throughout the organization is even more difficult task. It is thus not surprising that after a comprehensive strategy has been formulated, significant difficul-ties arise during the subsequent implementation process. The best formulated strategies may fail to produce superior performance for the firm if they are not successfully implemented. On prima facie basis the effectiveness of strategy management is based on the leadership that drives the employees to perform and organizational structure that provides the environment for the employees to perform.

In such a context the absence of in depth research in strategic management as whole and the impact that leadership style has on strategic management might presents itself as a significant research opportunity. Therefore the topic “The influence of leadership on strategic management (A study on Visakhapatnam Information Technology industry)” has been selected. I further sub-stantiate the need for research on this topic with the review of literature.

A recent work examines the phenomenon of strategic leadership of organizations and presents a taxonomy through which it can be studied (Pauk and Sidney, 1998), The taxonomy is developed empirically using data from 27 business cases. Four strategic leadership patterns are identified through facet analysis using the smallest space analysis technique. The research has resulted in a pattern, that is, (a) Entrepreneurial; (b) Bureaucratic; (c) Political; and (d) Professional.



William and Robert (1990) analyze cooperation among interdependent rational individu-als. The author identity’s organizational features, which are crucial in determining, a leader’s abil-ity to initiative and sustain cooperation by structuring the incentives of his followers. The author examines the role of leadership capabilities in collective dilemma. The characteristics of a leader, for an appropriate strategy are observed.

Conger (1991), states that every corporate person understands the necessity of strategic vision and effective leadership. The author understands the importance of leadership on strategy and he further goes to say that there is a critical link between vision and the leader’s ability to powerfully communicate its essence. The author examines these skills and talks about the impor-tance and what the new language skills of leadership will be. The author states that leadership can be broken into two different into two distinct skill categories. The first is defining the purpose in a meaningful way. This is called framing. The second is called rhetorical crafting where the leader’s ability to use symbolic language to give emotional power to the message.

John et al. (2004) have made a significant contribution by extending the understanding and its importance of full range of leadership to strategy planning. The authors have investigated 65 technologies dependent businesses inclusive of large, medium and small. Strategy focused leader-ship (SFL) is a process that uses technology to connect people work and processes and opportuni-ties in an organization to fully utilize available economic social and intellectual capital. The book illustrates a novel qualitative and quantitative research approach to study how an executive first envisions a strategy and then integrates the available resources to implement the strategy.

Heifetz et al. (2001) say Changes in the market, competition and customers around the globe are forcing organizations to clarify their values, develop new strategies and learn new ways of operating. The authors have interviewed manager’s world over and come with 6 princi-ples for leading adaptive work. In short the prevailing notion that leadership consists of having a vision and aligning people with that vision is not true because it treats adaptive situations as technical. But leadership has to take place every day. Leadership as seen in this light requires a learning strategy.

Hsieh (2005) say strategy will not succeed in void and leadership often makes the differ-ence between merely reaching for great opportunities and actually realizing their potential. This article examines the view that strategy even the best one will fail if the organization does not have a leader with the right capabilities at the right level of the organization. The author explains that failure to assess leadership capacity systematically before launching strategic initiatives can create significant gaps with consequences.

The articles from journals, periodicals, magazines, management theories and internet have demonstrated substantially that the domain of strategic management presents itself as an oppor-tunity for research. Also the most sought out sector the Information Technology sector, which has contributed to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country, has also helped reduce the educated unemployment. This sector now faces many hurdles because foreign regulations, global recession, development of alternative competitive markets. The strategic management approach if adopted by companies may provide solutions for survival and foster further development of the Sector. It is the leadership that steer’s the organization during stormy environmental turbulence and maintains balance in the waters of survival and existence. Therefore the topic – “Influence



of leadership on strategic management” has been selected with reference to the Visakhapatnam Information Technology Sector.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVEThe developments in the field of strategic management have been dramatic while the roots

have been in a more applied area often referred to as business policy. The current field of strate-gic management is strongly theory based with substantial empirical research which is electric in nature. The Indian Software Sector represents a case of export led growth in a country with a large domestic market but without a great exporting tradition.

India has achieved this growth by becoming an important part of the global division of labour in software. The sector contribution to the nation’s GDP is also noteworthy and its contri-bution towards employment generation both direct and indirect has helped mitigate the unemploy-ment rate of India.

The current study aims to contribute to the body of research in the field of strategic man-agement by examining the influence of leadership on the process of strategic management in the rapidly changing environment of the Visakhapatnam Information Technology sector.

DESIGN AND METHODSThis is an empirical study where there are more than two variables involved. Therefore the

population is multivariate in nature. In the current study Strategic management is the dependent variable and leadership is the independent variable. Regression analysis is a mathematical measure of the average relationship between two or more variables in terms of the original units of data. Multiple regression analysis is flexible and is appropriate whenever a quantitative variable (the dependent variable or criterion variable) is to be examined in relationship to any other factors expressed as independent or predictor variable. The interrelation between two categorical vari-ables can be tested using multiple regression and analysis of variance. Since this study involves the analysis of the influence of leadership on strategic management process of Information Technol-ogy corporations the statistical tool used for the study are multiple regression analysis and Anova test. The data required for the research was collected through primary and secondary sources of information. The population of Information Technology corporations in Visakhapatnam is 70.

While Roscoe advocates a lower limit of 30, (Chassan, 1979), states that 20–25 subjects would appear to be an absolute minimum for a reasonable probability of detecting a difference in treatment effects. Gay and Diehl (1992), state that generally the number of respondents acceptable for a study depends on the type of research involved, descriptive correlation or experimental. In the case of correctional research at least 30 respondents are required to establish a relationship.

In order to get an accurate representation 50% of the population, that is, 35 corporations were selected. The sample selected was 35 Information Technology corporations.

The evaluation tool selected for the collection of primary data was Questionnaire method. In comparison to other methods the questionnaire method was preferred as it is cost effective and the response is standardized.



Since the population is small in size therefore most appropriate sampling technique would be simple random sampling technique as it is cheap, simple and ensures bias is not introduced. Through this method large number of issues can be addressed in a relatively effective way with the possibility of a high response rate.

RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS(Snow and Hrebiniak, 1980) study on linkages between strategy and distinctive compe-

tence indicated that although organizational strengths in general and financial management were important for all strategies, the importance of strengths in basic engineering, research and develop-ment, production, and applied engineering varied from one strategy type to another. More recently (Hitt et al., 1982) also provided similar evidence in support of a systematic relationship between organizational strategy and the importance of various functions. This study further adds to the wealth of strategic management knowledge by analysis influence of leadership style on strategic management practices adopted by the organization. The organizations for the purpose of the study are Information Technology corporations in the city of Visakhapatnam. The hypotheses framed for the study are as follows:

Hypothesis 1: Leadership does not have a significant influence on strategic management.

SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTSFew decades ago the portrait of India to the world was that of a country beset with pov-

erty, unrestrained population growth and substandard competitiveness. Today due, largely to the dramatic growth in the software industry, India is emerging as a techno savvy manpower, building an impressive Information Technology Sector. The Indian software industry has been a remarkable success story. The Indian Information Technology Sector has played a key role in putting India on the Global map. The Information Technology Sector has contributed significantly towards revenue growth, employment generation and value creation. It has also become the global brand ambassador for India. On an average it has grown 30% per year over the last 20 years. The management of the organization needs to be effective in such a scenario. In addition to a high contribution to country’s GDP and share of exports the industry and employees contribute USD 4.2 billion to the exchequer.

As we can see the economic, corporate, legal and social landscape of the Global environ-ment is hyper dynamic in nature all corporations must craft their growth trajectory strategy cau-tiously. The state of Andhra Pradesh has been steadily contributing 15% to national Information Technology/Information Technology Enabled Services exports.

The employment generated by A.P Information Technology Sector was 251786 in 2009–2010. Visakhapatnam a Tier-2 city of A.P is constantly increasing its attractiveness towards Infor-mation Technology corporations.

Visakhapatnam has registered a growth rate of 35% with exports rising from 372 Cr in 2007–2008 to 502 Cr in 2008–2009 to 786 Cr in 2010–1011.

For Information Technology/Information Technology Enabled Services Corporation of Visakhapatnam to leverage the advantage they have and to mitigate the disadvantages of Tier-2



destinations they need to strategize themselves and create a competitive advantage over their com-petitors. Therefore the need for strategy or strategic management is pivotal for the growth of Visakhapatnam Information Technology Corporations. The current paper studies the Information Technology sector of a Tier-2 city called Visakhapatnam nestled on the coast of Andhra Pradesh. The significance of this study is to understand the influence of leadership on strategic management practices of Information Technology corporations. It is a diligent effort to contribute to the wealth of knowledge of Strategic Management and provide insights on the Information Technology Sec-tor of the city of destiny.

Visakhapatnam is the second largest city in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It is primarily an industrial city apart from being a port city. Visakhapatnam is currently ranked as the second largest urban agglomeration in Andhra Pradesh. Visakhapatnam has experienced high growth in popula-tion and the same trend is expected to continue over the next two decades.

It is projected that by 2021 Visakhapatnam would emerge as one of the major cities in the country. Economic liberalization in the 1990s has brought modest growth to the city, but not as much as it did to Hyderabad. There are around 105 Software corporations who have generated a turnover of approximately 786 Cr and created employment to around 10,644 people in the FY 2009–2010. Visakhapatnam as one of the leading exporting centers was able to make exports worth of 800 Cr. The units have employed 12,500 persons.

According to Mr. Dubey Software Technology Parks of India Senior Joint Director Visakhapatnam has emerged as the eighth biggest center for investment in Information Technol-ogy and Information Technology Enabled Services Sectors. The Information Technology, Business Process Outsourcing and Information Technology Enabled Services units in and around sector Visakhapatnam are expected to generate job opportunities for at least 30,000 persons.

According the (Figure 1), the Visakhapatnam Information Technology sector consists of 105 corporations but only 85 of them are officially registered. Out of those 85 corporations there are 70 Information Technology corporations, 12 Information Technology Enabled Service firms and 3 engineering firms. For accurate and precise conclusions 50% of the 70 Information Technol-ogy corporations were taken as the sample.

An analysis of 35 Information Technology corporations was undertaken with aim to under-stand the various facets of the Information Technology corporations. Questionnaire method was selected for primary data collection. The statistical tool used to analyze the data thus collected is fre-quency tables and the responses were evaluated on a five point scale of no extent to very large extent.

The objective of this chart is to understand the broad classification of the Visakhapatnam Software Sector into Information Technology, Information Technology Enabled Services (includ-ing Business Process Outsourcing, Medical Transcription and animation) and Engineering services.

It can be observed that Visakhapatnam Software Sector consists of total 85. Out of these 85 corporations there are 70 Information Technology companies, 8 Business Process Outsourcing corporations, 4 Medical Transcription firms and 3 Engineering Services firms.

On the basis of ( Figure 2), it can be observed that 82% of the corporations are primarily registered as Information technology corporations, the next highest in the sector are Business Process Outsourcing corporations who constitute 9% of the sector. Considerably small in number are the Medical transcription and Engineering services companies who constitute 5% and 4% respectively.



From the above given data it can be inferred that a majority of the software sector is inclined towards providing Information technology services to the clients. Despite the increase in outsourc-ing and destination cost effectiveness, the city was only able to attract few Business Process Out-sourcing companies to open shop.

It is evident that medical transcription and engineering services are still in the nascent stage and be ranked high in terms of market attractiveness as they are still very few in number.

The objective of the above chart is to understand the registration pattern of the corporations within the Software Sector of Visakhapatnam.

Figure 1Software Units in Visakhapatnam

Source: Compiled by author by interaction with the concerned authorities

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Units

IT ITES Engineering

No of Corporations

454035302520151050

STPIRegistered

Units

EOU Units SEZ Unregistered

Figure 2Classification of Information Technology Corporations



It is observed that there are 20 units registered with Software Technology Parks of India, 25 units as Export Oriented Unit and 40 units are registered with Special Economic Zone. Another aspect that has come to light is that there are still approximately 20 units that are unregistered.

The Software Technology Parks of India authorities are now challenged with the task to identify and channelize these corporations into the mainstream of Visakhapatnam Software Sector.

According to this chart it is evident that 38% of the companies are registered with Special Economic Zone, 24% of the remaining are registered as Export Oriented Organization and 19 % of the firms are registered under Software Technology Parks of India and finally 19% of the corpora-tions in the Visakhapatnam Software Sector are still not registered with any authority.

EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF INFLUENCE OF LEADERSHIP ON STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

Table 1Influence of Leadership on the Perception of Strategy

Model summary

Model R R SquareAdjusted R

SquareStd. error of the

estimate1 0.359a 0.129 0.103 3.7775

a Predictors: (Constant), LEADER

ANOVAb

ModelSum of squares df Mean square F Sig.

1 Regression 69.790 1 69.790 4.891 0.034a

Residual 470.896 33 14.270Total 540.686 34

a Predictors: (Constant), LEADERb Dependent variable: SM1

Coefficientsa

Model

Unstandardized coefficients Standardized coefficients t Sig.

B Std error Beta1 (Constant) 20.179 4.371 4.616 0.000

LEADER 9.691E-02 0.044 0.359 2.212 0.034a Dependent variable: SM1



SM1 = Perception of strategyWe can observe from (Table 1) the linear regression analysis that the predictor leadership

is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.129 and p = 0.034. The regression equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as perception of strategy = 20.179 + 0.0969 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership has a significant influence over the perception of strategy. It can be observed that leadership brings about a variance in the percep-tion of strategy to the extent of 13%.

SM2 = Perception of strategic managementWe can observe from (Table 2) the above regression analysis that the predictor leadership

is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.168 and p = 0.014. The regression equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as perception of strategic management = 19.183

Table 2Influence of Leadership on the Perception of Strategic Management

Model summary



estimate1 0.410a 0.168 0.143 4.7009


ANOVAb

ModelSum of squares df

Mean square F Sig.

1 Regression 147.491 1 147.491 6.674 0.014a

Residual 729.251 33 22.099Total 876.743 34


Coefficientsa

Model

Unstandardized coefficients

Standardized coefficients

t Sig.B Std error Beta1 (Constant) 19.183 5.440 3.526 0.001

LEADER 0.141 0.055 0.410 2.583 0.014a Dependent variable: SM2



+ 0.141 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership has an influence on the perception of strategic management. It can be inferred that there is a variance in strategic manage-ment through leadership to the extent of 17%

SM3 = Strategic management stagesFrom the above (Table 3) linear regression analysis it is observed that the predictor lead-

ership is statistically significantly at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.2175 and p = 0.005. The regression equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented by Strategic management stages = 8.493 + 0.0783 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership has an influ-ence on the stages of strategic management. It is inferred that there is a significant variance in stages strategic management through leadership to the extent of 22%.

Table 3Influence of Leadership on Strategic Management Stages

Model summary



estimate1 0.466a 0.217 0.194 2.2328


ANOVAb


1 Regression 45.660 1 45.660 9.159 0.005a

Residual 164.512 33 4.985Total 210.171 34


Coefficientsa

Model






SM4 = Crafting of strategic statementsFrom the above linear regression analysis it can be observed from (Table 4) that the predic-

tor leadership is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.215 and p = 0.005. The regression equation can be written as Y = a + bX which can be represented as crafting of strategic statements = 13.866 + 0.0201 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership has a significant influence on crafting of strategic statements to the extent of 22%.

SM5 = Strategic decision makersFrom the above (Table 5) regression analysis it is observed that the predictor leadership

is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.147 and p = 0.023. The regres-sion equation can be written as Y = a + bX which can be represented as strategic decision makers

Table 4Influence of Leadership on Crafting of Strategic Statements

Model summary



estimate1 0.463a 0.215 0.191 5.7624


ANOVAb


1 Regression 299.761 1 299.761 9.027 0.005a

Residual 1095.782 33 33.206Total 1395.543 34


Coefficientsa

Model






= 9.020 + 0.0193 × leadership. We reject the hull hypothesis and state that leadership has an influ-ence on the strategic decision makers to the extent of 15%

SM6 = Compatibility of strategic statements and organizations activitiesFrom the above linear regression analysis it is observed that in the (Table 6) the predictor

leadership is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.223 and p = 0.004. The regression equation can be written as Y = a + bX which can be represented as compatibility of strategic statements and organizational activities = 10.162 + 0.0231 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis that leadership has an influence on the compatibility of strategic statements with organizational activities to an extent of 22%.

Table 5Influence of Leadership on Strategic Decision Makers

Model summary



estimate1 0.384a 0.147 0.122 6.9616


ANOVAb


1 Regression 276.563 1 276.563 5.707 0.023a

Residual 1599.323 33 48.464Total 1875.886 34


Coefficientsa

Model






SM7 = Employee comprehension of strategic statementsFrom the above (Table 7) linear regression analysis it can be observed that the predictor lead-

ership is statistically significant at 5% with R2 = 0.237 and P = 0.003. The regression equation can be Y = a + bX which can be represented as employee comprehension of strategic statements = 7.807 + 0.0245 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership has an influence on ability of the employees to comprehend the strategic statements. It can be inferred that leadership exerts an influence of 24% on employee’s ability to comprehend strategic statements.

SM8 = Operational effectiveness of strategic managementThe above linear regression analysis implies from (Table 8) that the predictor leadership is

statistically insignificant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.088 and p = 0.083. The regression

Table 6Influence of Leadership on Compatibility of Strategic Statements & Organizations Activities

Model summary



estimate1 0.473a 0.223 0.200 6.4666


ANOVAb


1 Regression 397.016 1 397.016 9.494 0.004a

Residual 1379.955 33 41.817Total 1776.971 34


Coefficientsa

Model






equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as operational effectiveness of strategic manage-ment = 18.086 + 0.0132 × leadership. We accept the null hypothesis. It can thus be inferred that leadership has no significant influence on the operational effectiveness of strategic management.

SM9 = Support for strategic management issuesFrom the above linear regression analysis it can be observed from (Table 9) that the predictor

variable leadership is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.183 and p = 0.010. The regression equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as support for strategic management issues = 7.869 + 0.0216 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership has a significant influence on the support provided for strategic management issues to an extent of 18%.

Table 7Influence of Leadership on Employee Comprehension of Strategic Statements

Model summary



estimate1 0.487a 0.237 0.214 6.5906


ANOVAb


1 Regression 445.568 1 445.568 10.258 0.003a

Residual 1433.404 33 43.436Total 1878.971 34


Coefficientsa

Model






SM10 = Employee involvement in strategic management processThe above linear regression analysis indicates from (Table 10) that the predictor leadership

is statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.310 and p = 0.001. The regression equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented by the equation employee involvement in strategic management process = 5.553 + 0.0251 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership influences employee involvement in strategic management process to the extent of 31%.

SM11 = Guiding factorsThe above (Table 11) linear regression analysis indicates that the predictor leadership is not

statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.027 and p = 0.342. The regression

Table 8Influence of Leadership on Operational Effectiveness of Strategic Management

Model summary



estimate1 0.297a 0.088 0.061 6.3480


ANOVAb


1 Regression 128.954 1 128.954 3.200 0.083a

Residual 1329.789 33 40.297Total 1458.743 34


Coefficientsa

Model






equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as guiding factors = 28.172 + (−0.043) × leader-ship. We accept the null hypothesis that leadership has no influence on guiding factors.

SM12 = Main obstaclesThe above linear regression analysis indicates from (Table 12) that the predictor leadership

is not statistically significant at 5% level of significance with R2 = 0.008 and p = 0.614. The regres-sion equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as main obstacles = 14.681 + 0.0246 × leader-ship. We accept the null hypothesis that leadership has no influence over the main obstacles. We can further conclude that leadership has less than one percentage of influence over the main obstacles.

Table 9Influence of Leadership on Support for Strategic Management Issues

Model summary



estimate1 0.428a 0.183 0.158 6.8579


ANOVAb


1 Regression 348.154 1 348.154 7.403 0.010a

Residual 1552.018 33 47.031Total 1900.171 34


Coefficientsa

Model






SM13 = Strategic prioritiesThe above linear regression analysis indicates that from (Table 13) the predictor leader-

ship is statistically significant at 5% with R2 = 0.225 and p = 0.004. The regression equation is Y = a + bX which can be represented as strategic priorities = 18.014 + 0.114 × leadership. We reject the null hypothesis and state that leadership influences the strategic priorities of the organization to an extent of 23%.

Model summary



estimate1 0.557a 0.310 0.289 5.6272


Table 10Influence of Leadership on Employee Involvement in Strategic Management Process

ANOVAb


1 Regression 468.925 1 468.925 14.809 0.001a

Residual 1044.961 33 31.665Total 1513.886 34


Coefficientsa

Model






INFERENCE ON THE INFLUENCE OF LEADERSHIP ON STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

• Leadership has a significant influence of 17% over the perception of strategy.• Leadership has an influence of 13% over the understanding and perception of the con-

cept of strategic management.• The various stages of strategic management are influenced to the extent of 22% by the

pattern of leadership.• The process of crafting and formulating the various strategic statements is based on the

leadership of the corporation to the extent of 22%.• Leadership has an influence of 15% on the strategic decision makers.

Table 11Influence of Leadership Selection of Strategic Priorities

Model summary



estimate1 0.166a 0.027 –0.002 3.9582


ANOVAb


1 Regression 14.583 1 14.583 0.931 0.342a

Residual 517.017 33 15.667Total 531.600 34


Coefficientsa

Model



LEADER –4.43E-02 0.046 –0.166 –0.965 0.342a Dependent variable: SM11



Table 12Influence of Leadership on Main Obstacles

Model summary



estimate1 0.088a 0.008 –0.022 4.1743


ANOVAb


1 Regression 4.519 1 4.519 0.259 0.614a

Residual 575.024 33 17.425Total 579.543 34


Coefficientsa

Model




• The compatibility of the strategic statements with the organizational activities is influ-enced by the leadership of the corporation to an extent of 22%.

• Leadership has the ability to influence the employee’s ability to comprehend the strate-gic statements to an extent of 24%.

• The operational effectiveness of strategic management is not influenced by the leader-ship adopted by the corporation.

• Leadership has the ability to provide support for strategic management issues to an extent of 18%.

• Leadership has the power to influence the employees to participate in the process of strategic management to an extent of 31%.

• Leadership does not influence the factors that help to reach organizational objectives.



• Leadership does not have a significant influence over the main obstacles.• Leadership has a significant influence over the strategic priorities to an extent of 23%.

CONCLUSIONThe Information Technology industry has become one of the most robust industries in the

world. Information Technology more than any other sector or economic facet has increased pro-ductivity. It is a key driver of global economic growth. Economies of scale and insatiable demand from both customer and enterprise characterize this industry. Information Technology is visualized as a critical enabler for inclusive growth and transformation.

The Indian Information Technology Sector is poised to become US$ 225 billion industry by 2020. The Indian Information Technology Sector has played a key role in putting India on

Table 13Influence of Leadership on Strategic Priorities

Model summary



estimate1 0.475a 0.225 0.202 3.1632


ANOVAb


1 Regression 95.970 1 95.970 9.591 0.004a

Residual 330.202 33 10.006Total 426.171 34


Coefficientsa

Model






the global map. The sector is estimated to have grown by 19 per in the FY2011, clocking rev-enue of almost US$ 76 billion. The workforce in Indian Information Technology sector will touch 30 million by 2020. Visakhapatnam has the potential to attract the booming Information Technol-ogy, given the balanced mix of social infrastructure, fast growing private and public sector units, talent availability and cost of living, all of which are necessary to fuel the sector’s growth. The Visakhapatnam Information Technology sector should take advantage of the government’s accel-erated economic reforms and be an active part of the 16.8% Information Technology services growth which is driven by the localized strategies of service providers.

Though Visakhapatnam Information Technology sector shows the growth potential, our analysis demonstrates that management style and strategic thinking are not in lieu with interna-tional standards. It is shown that there is moderate understanding of strategic management and its implications. Leadership and organizational structure have a moderate impact on strategic man-agement. Despite the fact that this sector has garnered national and international acclaim it is not showing the adoption of strategic thinking which is imperative for the survival and prosperity of this sector in the global scenario.

Government and local authorities must understand the importance of strategic perspec-tive and ensure its adoption both at a macro and micro level as this will give Indian Information Technology the competitive advantage over its competitors in the international and as well as in the domestic markets. The Visakhapatnam Information Technology Association (VITA) must work with the government both at the state and national level to project Visakhapatnam as the next Information Technology destination. VITA must educate the industry of the importance of strate-gic management and inculcate a culture of strategic thinking among the Visakhapatnam Informa-tion Technology sector. An understanding of strategic perspective is imperative as it gives cutting edge competitive advantage to the organization and increases the attractiveness of the Information Technology sector.

Considering that Visakhapatnam is a strong emerging destination among Tier-2 cities in India it is imperative that the industry here realizes the challenges ahead and addresses them with dynamic leadership and the appropriate organizational canvas for painting its presence in the global Information space. The Information Technology sector faces many challenges in the pathway both at a micro and macro level. India must take initiatives to further the case of this sector and increase revenues and reduce the educated unemployed. Not only at a macro level but the government must promote this sector even at a micro level even amongst the Tier-2 locations of the country. This effort would bring about regional economic balance and overall economic growth.

One such promising state is Andhra Pradesh which accounts for 15% of the nation’s Infor-mation Technology exports. Within the state there are many promising cities like Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, Vijayawada and Tirupati to mention a few. Visakhapatnam with a cosmopolitan popula-tion of over 1.3 million and low operating costs as the ideal Information Technology destination.

The VITA must work with the government to promote the Information Technology into lime light by understanding the strategic perspective as this develops cutting edge competitive distinctiveness to survive in the corporate jungle.

An insight into the pattern of leadership that best suits this sector would also provide direc-tion to help find Visakhapatnam Information Technology a place on the global map.



REFERENCESAnsoff, I. (1965). Corporate strategy. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.Andrews, K. R. (1971). The concept of corporate strategy. Homewood, IL: Dow-Jones-Irwin.Chandler, A. D. (1962). Strategy and structure: Chapters in the history of the American indstrial

enterprise. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Chassan, J. B. (1979). Research design in clinical psychology and psychiatry. New York,

NY: Halsted Press.Conger, A. J. (1991). Inspiring others: The language of leadership. Academy of Management

5(1), 31–45.Fouraker, L. E., and Stopford, J. M. (1968). Organization structure and multinational strategy.

Administrative Science Quarterly 13, 57–70.Gay L. R., and Diehl, P. L. (1992). Research methods for business and management. New York,

NY: Macmillan.Grinyer, P., Al-Bazzaz, S., and Yasai-Ardekani, M. (1980). Strategy, structure, the environment,

and financial performance in 48 United Kingdom companies. Academy of Management Journal 23, 193–220.

Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., and Palia, K. A. (1982). Industrial firms’ grand strategy and functional importance: Moderating effects of technology and uncertainty. Academy of Management Journal 25, 265–298.

Hsieh, T. (2005). Leadership as the starting point of strategy. Mckinsey Quarterly. http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/leading_in_the_21st_century/leadership_as_the_starting_point_of_strategy

Sosik, J. J., Jung, D. I., Berson, Y., Dionne, S. D., and Jaussi, K. S. (2004). The dream weavers: Strategy focused leadership in technology driven organization. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing Inc.

Shrivastava, P., and Nacham, S. A., (1998). Strategic leadership patterns. Strategic Management Journal 10(S1), 51–66.

Porter, M. E. (1980). Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors. New York, NY: Free Press.

Rumelt, R. P. (1974). Strategy, structure, and economic performance. Boston, MA: Harvard University Press.

Snow, C. C., and Hrebiniak, L. G. (1980). Strategy, distinctive competence, and organizational performance. Administrative Science Quarterly 25, 307–335.

Stoney, C. (1998). Lifting the lid on strategic management: A sociological narrative. Electronic Journal of Radical Organization Theory 4(1).

Vancil, R. F. (1980). Decentralization: Managerial ambiguity by design. New York, NY: Financial Executives Research Foundation.

Documents

Strategic Management Article