In the field of strategy, most research has focused on earlier stages of the strategic management process, namely, analysis and formulation. Research to date has failed to recognize that it is at the implementation stage where the process most often breaks down. A number of disparate approaches to strategic management have emerged in the field, and each of them has different and often contrasting implications for how strategies should be developed and executed. The authors compare and contrast the implications of these approaches regarding how companies can best implement their strategies successfully. The authors review previous strategy implementation research in the strategic management and hospitality management fields from the perspective of five different schools of thought. The article ends by summarizing the key findings of the review and also gives further information about the next stages of a research project into strategy implementation in a sample of international hotel groups.
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