What Do Neoliberalism and the Military Have to Do with Strategic Management?

I'll talk about what the military and neoliberalism have to do with strategic management in this essay. I shall discuss the strategic management similarities between the military and neoliberal organizations like multinational corporations in the first portion of the essay. In order to succeed in the increasingly globalized landscape, I will concentrate on managing both the military and enterprises. The analysis of the role of the military generals and the chief executive officers will be significant in the outlining of the ways the two entities achieve their set goals and objectives in different contexts through proper planning and road maps. In the second section of the essay, I am going to highlight the concept of neoliberalism and its effect on strategic management, as well as growth and profitability of businesses. I will show how the concept of free and open markets, minimal state interventions, and the reduction of labor costs have contributed to thriving of business in the recent neoliberal era.

Section One

Military strategy involves the ideas that are implemented by defense forces in executing plans as well as directing movements and operations that touch on war and security. While the outcome is different, the strategic management approaches adopted by the military is indistinguishable from business strategies adopted by firms in the era of open economy proposed by neoliberalism. One such element is intuition that is based on extensive experience. The military succeeds by analyzing the strengths and the weaknesses of the enemies (Hoskin and Macve, pp. 37-73). As the military plans for war, they gather strategic intelligence about their enemies to be able to conquer them. Similarly, strategic managements in business involve setting of goals and conducting a SWOT analysis to determine the competitors, strengths, and weaknesses, as well as opportunities and threats, to grow the firm (Styhre, pp. 278-300). The military always focuses on advancing their technology to gain a significant benefit. Businesses also focus on the improvement of technical capabilities to maintain and increase their market share (McCabe, pp. 151-175).

Continuous training of the troops and staff is vital in the strategic military management to gain new skills and make them useful. It is also a critical move in business to remain effective and efficient in-service delivery. The analogies of the military have been used to guide companies in strategic management. For instance, the doctrine is used by corporations to manage situational crises. Besides, the achievement of victory in warfare is done through planning that is also essential in fulfilling strategic goals in business (Knights and Morgan, pp. 251-273). While military measures achievement through deterring an attack or seizure of foreign assets, the businesses triumph through getting a large market share or the acquisition of competitors. Therefore, strategic planning and management are essential for their success.

The growth of every business depends on the assessment of their competitive position, as well as on being innovative to navigate in the industry (McCabe, pp. 151-175). The assessment comprises the considerations that the military must make in warfare. Both business and war planning involves the effort of managements to ensure that the goals and objectives set for an individual mission are achieved. It is crucial to diagnose the environmental factors that affect the running of a business and develop a strategy to ensure that they do not remain a hindrance to development (Hoskin and Macve, pp. 37-73). Besides, the achievement of these strategies will involve allocation of resources. Failure of businesses is often attributed to poor planning (Knights and Morgan, p. 273). The managements face the wrath of the shareholders for failing to demonstrate confidence in their activities. The military strategy is deemed to have failed when they do not achieve their goals in an attack or war. Normally, the generals are to blame for poor execution of the plan or the failure of the plan before an assault.

Section Two

Neoliberals as well as political policies have improved market-based activities. Neoliberal stratagems and attitudes restore class power and economic inequality. Moreover, the system has significantly contributed to the aspect of financialization, leading to a rise in management compensation and accumulation of profits. However, over the last few decades, neoliberalism has experienced a shift in policy (Davies, pp. 309-317). The doctrine of neoliberalism makes emphasis on transactions and market-based activities that cherish management as a concept of professionalism and strategic planning that can handle administrative and business (Duménil and Lévy, pp. 71-89).

Neoliberalism is a great concept that is applied in strategic management through the idea with which markets act as symbols of rationality in the distribution of resources. The desire to achieve efficiency and liberty is hindered when there is undesirable government intervention. Neoliberalism is rooted in economic theories and ideologies that promote interplay competition, reduced taxation and public expenditures, trade liberalization, capital mobility and deregulation of labor. The concept of neoliberalism emphasizes an expansion of the open markets to trade, reform taxation to expand the base, reduce deficit spending and broaden the tax base. The concept is applied in strategic management in businesses and governments as one way of improving trade and growing revenue (Hoskin and Macve, pp.37‑73).

The aim of neoliberal policies is an introduction to a laissez-faire approach to economic development. The concept focuses on the measures of risk reduction in management through responsible risk-taking and inequalities (Duménil and Lévy, pp. 71-89). The state should ensure that it creates the right climate for businesses to thrive. The conducive environment includes the protection of the financial institutions and introducing tax reduction policies. When interventions are minimized, there is an increase in the circulation of capital that helps businesses thrive and grow the entire economy. In corporate governance, the neoliberal view emphasizes the value created by the shareholders to reduce the managerial labor costs. Managerial freedom is maximized by neoliberalism (Duménil and Lévy, pp. 71-89). These ideologies are largely applied in strategic managements of firms and businesses. For instance, the chief executive officers consider layoffs to reduce the labor costs as a strategy of decreasing the wage bill and enhancing efficiency. The latter decades of the neoliberal phases of capitalism were characterized by the fact that there was opposition to the interventions of the state and a form of restoration meant to improve the income of the upper class that was the managers (Styhre, p. 278-300). New strategies always translate into organizational actions. Managers enhance elaborate strategic management constructions to ensure the exercise of powers that can lead to growth (Davies, p. 309-317). The aim is to invest in the staff to improve profitability and reduce the cost of operations.

Neoliberalism describes a combination of political and socioeconomic discourse as well as the choice of policies that define an unregulated market (Sewpaul, pp. 462-468). There is a belief that market fundamentalism rather than the intervention of the state promotes progress and economic growth as well as promoting equal distribution of resources (Styhre, pp. 278-300). One of the significant celebrated events of neoliberalism was the opening of the Chinese market that was the emerging superpower in 1978 (Davies, pp. 309‑317). The idea of neoliberalism entrenches managerialism in the operation of businesses and all the spheres of life (Sewpaul, pp. 462-468). It involves the introduction of checks and balances and emphasizing the achievement of goals to enhance efficiency and effectiveness in performance. The ideology is applicable in the strategic management as the focus is to plan on improving performance through effective reconstruction. The interest is profit making.



References

Styhre, A., 2014. The influence of neoliberalism and its absence from management research. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, vol. 22, no. 3 pp. 278-300.

Davies, W., 2014. Neoliberalism: a bibliographic review. Theory, Culture & Society, vol. 31, no. 7-8, pp.309-317.

Duménil, G. and Lévy, D., 2015. Neoliberal managerial capitalism. International Journal of Political Economy, vol. 44, no. 2, pp.71-89.

Hoskin, K. and Macve, R., 1988. The genesis of accountability: the west point connections. Accounting, Organizations and Society, vol. 13, no. 1, pp.37-73.

Knights, D. and Morgan, G., 1991. Corporate strategy, organizations, and subjectivity: a critique. Organization Studies, vol. 12, no. 2, pp.251-273.

McCabe, D., 2009. Strategy-as-power: ambiguity, contradiction and the exercise of power in a uk building society. Organization, vol. 17, no. 2, pp.151-175.

Sewpaul, V., 2015. Neoliberalism. International Encyclopaedia of the Social & Behavioural Sciences, pp.462-468.