Economic disruption as a strategic accelerator: the increased importance of Strategic Alignment in the post-Covid-strategy

Nobody was prepared for such a health crisis: it was January 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, and within a matter of weeks its effects could be felt the world over. Suddenly, to stave off a complete collapse of the economy, entire industries became dependent on financial state aid. The pandemic represents the first global health crisis experienced by our generation–entailing economic disruption of the global economy and all businesses. Disruption (= drastic destructive change) can result in risks as well as opportunities. Weak business models that had already ignored important developments before the crisis quickly became obsolete, and rapid adaptability and orientation to economic conditions became important for survival. Focusing on new strategic options has therefore become much more urgent and this will remain so. Indeed, Strategic Alignment as a core aspect of strategy execution is now more important than ever. Wasting time, financial and human resources can only be avoided by a close commitment to the adopted strategy. The alignment of the business operation with all its aspects is the research domain for this qualitative study. The research design is based on the Grounded Theory Methodology (GTM), which makes a strategic topic well accessible through iterative research cycles.