Abstract
This study aimed to determine the internal challenges experienced at a South African bank when it comes to strategy implementation. It is imperative for banks to know the internal challenges that are experienced in the strategy implementation phase, as the South African banking sector plays a crucial role in the local market and the economy.
This study primarily employed semi-structured interviews with 25 employees of a South African bank to collect qualitative data. The data collected from the participants were analysed using Atlas.ti version 23 software.Content analysis was employed to analyse the data presented in the study.
The study findings revealed that some of the internal challenges experienced in the bank result from the exclusion of the input of middle and junior management levels by senior managers when formulating the overall strategy. This leads to a lack of buy-in to the strategy from the middle and lower levels. Lack of communication from the top management team on the new strategy and lack of support from the change management team were also identified as internal challenges to the strategy implementation. This study further answered the secondary objectives by revealing that it is crucial to prevent a ‘brain drain’ for the successful implementation of strategies; therefore, the bank should implement a succession planning programme in advance to avoid key dependency on specific persons to ensure that crucial institutional knowledge is preserved when people depart, go on retirement or migrate to other countries. The study also pointed out the importance for the bank to establish a uniform culture across all its divisions, as this will influence the conduct and motivation of its employees towards the strategy implementation phase. Lastly, the study suggested that middle management should also be involved in the formulation of the overarching bank strategies by senior management.
Keywords: Bank, “brain drain”, decision-making process, failure, junior management, middle management, restructuring, retrenchments, senior management, South Africa, strategy, strategy implementation, the economy, unemployment, uniform culture.