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PurposeThe main purpose of this article is to promote further systematic inquiry into the field of strategic foresight. It carefully aims to re‐examine the notion of environmental uncertainty, the main theoretical approaches advanced by literature on strategy to cope with uncertainty, and foresight activities in corporate organizations.Design/methodology/approachThis article is theoretical in nature. However, its insights are significantly based on empirical analysis: the author has been involved in the past ten years in in‐depth investigation of foresight practices in several international firms of different industries.FindingsSeveral important issues and research questions on strategic foresight have remained largely unresolved from both an academic and managerial perspective. This paper outlines such questions.Originality/valueThe contribution of this paper is twofold. First, it links the work on strategic foresight to a wide range of related literature streams, thus revealing new connections and issues to be explored. Second, it develops a research agenda that may inspire further theoretical and empirical work on the nature and effects of strategic foresight efforts.

AbstractTo create a competitive advantage and generate superior performance, firms must first identify rivals. However, there is little understanding of how perceived environmental uncertainty affects competitor identification, why some firms are better at identifying domestic versus foreign rivals, or how competitor identification is related to firm performance. In this paper we theorize that perceived environmental uncertainty is an important antecedent of competitor identification; it influences how many competitors a firm identifies. Our theory also suggests that different firm characteristics influence domestic/foreign competitor identification and that there is an inverted‐U shaped relationship between under/overidentification of competitors and firm performance. Based on a large sample of Taiwanese firms, we find support for each of these ideas. Our study helps reinforce the importance of competitor identification for firm success. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

ABSTRACTPrevious research on mass customization (MC) has focused on what it is and how it is implemented. In this study we examine when MC is an appropriate strategy for firms to follow by scrutinizing the effects of three environmental uncertainty variables (demand uncertainty, competitive intensity, and supply chain complexity) on the MC–performance relationship. Specifically, we distinguish the direct effect of environmental uncertainty on MC ability and the moderation effect of environmental uncertainty on MC ability's impact on customer satisfaction. We examine six competing hypotheses using data collected from 266 manufacturing plants. Our results show that competitive intensity has a direct positive impact on MC ability. However, demand uncertainty moderates the relationship between MC ability and customer satisfaction, and the direct and positive relationship between MC ability and customer satisfaction holds only when customer demand is highly uncertain. Supply chain complexity neither has a direct relationship with MC, nor moderates the MC–performance relationship. Implications of these research findings are discussed and future research directions are identified.

Most models of the strategy formulation process suggest organization performance is related, to at least some degree, to the ability of top management to accurately assess the external environment and to reach a degree of consensus in this assessment. The research reported here tested these assertions within two distinct industry segments, U.S. producers of corrugated shipping containers and U.S. passenger airlines, andfound very limited support for these relationships. The results suggest that in complex, unstable environments, accuracy and consensus in assessing environmental uncertainty may actually detract from organization performance. Directions for future research are recommended.

PurposeThis study aims to extend ambidexterity theory from the perspective of organisational learning and examine how process ambidexterity, which comprises operational flexibility and operational routine, responds to environmental uncertainty and ultimately reduces organisational risks.Design/methodology/approachThis study tests the hypotheses by analysing 464 annual reports of 115 listed companies in the Chinese agricultural and food industry using content and secondary data analyses. Four case studies are also provided.FindingsThe results show that (1) environmental uncertainty has a positive effect on either operational flexibility or operational routine; (2) both operational flexibility and operational routine have negative effects on organisational risks, supporting the view that process ambidexterity mediates the relationship between environmental uncertainty and organisational risks; and (3) organisational slack plays the role of "double-edged sword" by negatively moderating the effect of environmental uncertainty on operational flexibility and positively moderating the effect of environmental uncertainty on operational routine.Originality/valueIn an uncertain environment, companies are exposed to greater risk. This study contributes to risk management in three ways: first, it extends ambidexterity theory to process management and proposes how process ambidexterity balances operational flexibility and routines. Second, it distinguishes between the different conditions under which flexibility or routines are superior. Third, it explains the mechanisms related to how organisations can resolve environmental uncertainty into risk through process ambidexterity.

This research was conducted in order to determine the effect of budget participation, the budgetary slack, knowing the influence of organizational commitment moderates the effect of budget participation on budgetary slack, knowing the effect of moderating influence of environmental uncertainty budget participation on budgetary slack on the Government of West Sumatra Province. The sample in this study was 105 respondents and was taken by purposive sampling. The data used in this study are primary data, collected by surveying techniques by distributing questionnaires to each echelon III and IV in OPD Government of West Sumatra Province. The analysis technique used is the analysis of partial least square (PLS) based variance.The result of hypothesis analysis showed that budget participation and significant negative effect on the budgetary slack. Organizational commitment positively and significantly as a moderating budget participation on budgetary slack. Environmental uncertainties and significant negative effect as moderating budget participation on budgetary slack

This study relies on the dual model of passion to explore the direct and conditional effect of passion on firm growth. The study proposed persistence and environmental uncertainty as pathways through which passion influences firm growth. The model of firm growth was tested on a sample of 381 small-scale businesses located in Nigeria. The findings suggested that passion is significantly related to firm growth and that persistence partially mediated the link between passion and firm growth. Furthermore, the study failed to establish the conditional effect of environmental uncertainty on the indirect effect of passion on firm growth. The study has established the applicability and relevance of the dual model of passion in the context of entrepreneurship confirming its predictive power in accounting for the variation in firm growth. JEL CLASSIFICATION: L260