Top executive audits: strategic reviews of operational activities

摘要

Purpose – The paper explores the involvement of top management in strategic reviews of the organization's operational activities (known as top executive audits or TEAs). These are discussed in relation to strategy process and business excellence. Design/methodology/approach – The case of Nissan South Africa (NSA) is used to illustrate their importance and their relation to hoshin kanri (policy deployment) practice. Findings – The paper argues that TEAs are a very important and integrative aspect of the holistic management of the organization. TEAs are also crucial to hoshin kanri and facilitate operational effectiveness. Originality/value – The paper suggests that strategic reviews, such as TEAs, are best operated when integrated together as an organization-wide managed system of review.