The Concept of Strategic Fit

Matching an organization's strategy and structure to explain firm performance is one of the fundamental insights in strategic management literature. Successful organizations achieve strategic fit and support their strategy with appropriate structures and processes, while less successful firms typically exhibit poorer fit. Hence, firms will strive for the ideal fit to reach highest performance and outperform those that do not. However, recent developments raise the question if the concept still works today. To answer that question, this study analyzes the concept of strategic fit and examines the different research streams. In order to reach this goal, the empirical literature is classified according to different perspectives and domains of fit and the empirical findings are aggregated and evaluated. Based on the analysis of 105 identified studies publicized between 1962 and 2010, different research streams are highlighted and it is suggested that the performance implications of strategic fit are still valid today.

1;Abstract;3 2;Table of contents;5 3;Table of figures;7 4;Table of abbreviations;8 5;1 Introduction;9 5.1;1.1 Research problem and objectives;9 5.2;1.2 Course of investigation;10 6;2 The concept of strategic fit;11 6.1;2.1 Fundamentals: strategic fit and the contingency theory of organizations;11 6.2;2.2 Research overview;12 6.2.1;2.2.1 Early contributions: Chandler, Rumelt, and Miles and Snow;13 6.2.2;2.2.2 Further advancements and consolidation: Porter, Miller, and Venkatraman;16 6.2.3;2.2.3 Critique, reception, and recent development: Miller, Galunic and Eisenhardt, and others;17 6.3;2.3 Recapitulating evaluation;20 7;3 Examination of empirical studies;25 7.1;3.1 The categorization scheme;25 7.2;3.2 Classification of the identified research;31 7.2.1;3.2.1 Fit as moderation;34 7.2.2;3.2.2 Fit as mediation;37 7.2.3;3.2.3 Fit as profile deviation;37 7.2.4;3.2.4 Fit as matching;41 7.2.5;3.2.5 Fit as covariation;44 7.2.6;3.2.6 Fit as gestalts;45 7.3;3.3 Recapitulating evaluation;47 8;4 Conclusion;49 8.1;4.1 Summary;49 8.2;4.2 Implications for further research;51 9;Table of annexes;53 10;Annexes;54 11;Bibliography;68