Strategic Planning and Firm's Competencies: Traditional Approaches and New Perspectives

The traditional strategic model of industrial organization is criticized by the upholders of the theories that regard the resources and competencies of a firm as the source of its competitive advantage. This article presents these new strategic dictates in a critical form, examining the reasons that justify the striking interest being taken by researchers and managers, but also the limits of those principles, some intrinsic others that can be overcome by an integration with tradition. As a consequence, the article presents a framework which attempts to relate the constituent elements that distinguish the two main strategic theories and shows that both must be considered for strategic planning and performance management.