An Integrated Theoretical Framework on Corporate Strategy, Leadership and Firm Performance: A Research Agenda

Abstract

The phenomenon of market competition has progressively caused firms to give remarkable attention to the concepts of corporate strategy and firm performance. In an attempt to understand how corporate strategic managers exploit resources and distinctive competencies for superior firm performance, strategic management scholars have increasingly focused on the area of research that utilizes the postulates of several management theories. Even though corporate strategy may lead to firms gaining competitive advantage and subsequent superior firm performance, previous studies have looked at the direct and simple relationship without exploring the critical moderating effect of leadership as implied by several theoretical postulates that underpin their conceptual relationship. The paper reviews extant theoretical and empirical literature on the concepts of corporate strategy and firm performance and identifies the existing gaps. The paper responds to the identified gaps by proposing an integrated theoretical framework that considers the direct relationship of the concepts while introducing the moderating role of leadership. This paper looks at three theories; resource-based view, upper echelons theory and contingency theory. The paper therefore, develops on the strength of importance to build both theoretical and empirical evidence on the moderating effect of leadership on the relationship between corporate strategy and firm performance.