Curtin University Homepage
  • Library
  • Help
    • Admin

    espace - Curtin’s institutional repository

    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.
    View Item 
    • espace Home
    • espace
    • Curtin Theses
    • View Item
    • espace Home
    • espace
    • Curtin Theses
    • View Item

    Strategy transformation and change : changing paradigms in Australian Catholic health and aged care

    12141_Ryan J 2001.pdf (2.626Mb)
    Access Status
    Open access
    Authors
    Ryan, John Joseph
    Date
    2001
    Supervisor
    Maragert Nowak
    Alma Whiteley
    Type
    Thesis
    Award
    PhD
    
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    School
    Graduate School of Business
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/1296
    Collection
    • Curtin Theses
    Abstract

    When I was younger I always conceived of a room where all these (strategic) concepts were worked out for the whole, company. Later I didn't find any such room .... The strategy (of the company) may not even exist in the mind of one man. I certainly don't know where it is written down. It is simply transmitted in the series of decisions made (Quinn 1978: 7). How do organisations in the Australian Catholic Health and Aged Care sector transform shared strategic thinking into formulated strategy? This research has investigated strategy formation, which can be defined as the process whereby the insights and thoughts of the key players in Catholic health and aged care are converted into formulated strategies. Specifically, the research analysed a major strategic amalgamation of the health and aged care operations of the Catholic Church in Australia, identified as Integration 2000. The concept of social constructs of meaning for the key actors is the fundamental perspective of this research. This required a constructivist ontology. The epistemology is interpretivist, and set out to provide a description of perceptions of the key actors as they engage in the formation of strategy. Defenders of interpretivism argued that the human sciences aim to understand human action (Schwandt, 2000:191). A qualitative methodology has been used to provide a plausible interpretation of the conversion process commonly referred to as strategy formation.A purposive sample was obtained. The data collection methods included qualitative interviews, attendance as an observer at two of the three day National Conferences of Catholic Health Australia and document analysis (see Chapter Three).A key focus of the research was the identification of planning models used to set the strategic context of organisations in Catholic health. The research showed that the prescriptive design and planning models were not used to plan broad strategy, but to implement strategies already formed by an emergent/learning process which, in Mintzberg et al's (1998) terms, would fit the learning, cultural and environmental schools of thought. Pinpointing a strategy school may not be a particularly fruitful exercise in this particular arena. It assumes that the distinctive act of deciding the future shape and the strategic management context of organisations charged with fulfilling a sacred mission can be classified into one school or another. The research also explored the perceptions of the Integration 2000 process, including the compatibility between the espoused philosophies and values of Catholic health and aged care and the behaviours evidenced during the Integration 2000 process. A diagnostic model was used to perform this evaluation. Rather than uncovering major discrepancies, this revealed some differences and some potential challenges.The espoused philosophies and values of Catholic health and aged care are those of compassion, collaboration, sense of community and, of course, financial viability. Pre-Integration 2000, particularly in health care, theories of organising and practices reflected values of independence and competitiveness, both between and even within religious orders. The findings from post-Integration 2000 suggested that theories of organising and practices were becoming more aligned with the original and continuing values, at the same time as responsibility for sustaining these values was being handed over from religious to lay trusteeship. There are still some outstanding issues before the Integration 2000 process achieves its objectives. The progress to date in bringing together so many components of such a disparate sector attests to the strength of the underlying value systems of Catholic health and aged care.

    Related items

    Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.

    • An examination of the factors critical to the establishment and maintenance of competitive advantage for education services enterprises within international markets.
      Mazzarol, Timothy W. (1997)
      The principal focus of the present study was to examine the factors critical to the development and maintenance of a competitive advantage for education institutions operating in international markets. International ...
    • Burden of disease and benefits of exercise in fixed airway obstruction asthma
      Turner, Sian Elizabeth (2009)
      Background and research questions. The characterization of chronic persistent asthma in an older adult population is not well defined. This is due to the difficulties in separating the diagnosis of asthma from that of ...
    • IT governance structures and their effectiveness in Australian universities
      Hicks, Michael John (2012)
      This thesis advances the understanding of information technology (IT) governance research by considering the question “How do user stakeholders influence the planning and implementation of IT governance?” IT has become ...
    Advanced search

    Browse

    Communities & CollectionsIssue DateAuthorTitleSubjectDocument TypeThis CollectionIssue DateAuthorTitleSubjectDocument Type

    My Account

    Admin

    Statistics

    Most Popular ItemsStatistics by CountryMost Popular Authors

    Follow Curtin

    • 
    • 
    • 
    • 
    • 

    CRICOS Provider Code: 00301JABN: 99 143 842 569TEQSA: PRV12158

    Copyright | Disclaimer | Privacy statement | Accessibility

    Curtin would like to pay respect to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members of our community by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which the Perth campus is located, the Whadjuk people of the Nyungar Nation; and on our Kalgoorlie campus, the Wongutha people of the North-Eastern Goldfields.