Strategy, dynamic capabilities and complex science: management rhetoric vs. reality

Abstract

The dynamic capabilities approach (DCA) has dominated strategic analysis in the 1990s. It can offer a compelling explanation of competition, relative corporate performance and strategic decision-making. The strengths of DCA are essentially in its use for historical explanation and its use in strategy formation is limited and possibly erroneous. There is still a need for a theory of strategy that will offer better application and guidance for practitioners. Analogies are drawn from the new science of complexity for identifying and shaping strategic decisions. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd