The process of strategy change in a state-owned Enterprise operating under crisis : A case study on China Eastern Airlines during Covid-19 pandemic

Abstract: Background: Understanding the process of strategy change offers a unique insight into the functioning of an enterprise. While well-researched in the context of Western private firms, this process has attracted relatively little attention in state-owned Chinese enterprises. A research on this topic is particularly pertinent today, when many Chinese state-owned enterprises have attracted attention of international investors and the Covid-19 pandemic situation has created unprecedented challenges for daily operations of enterprises.  Purpose: In order to understand the process strategy change, this research has focused on the elements of the strategy change process and the role of institutional pressures in it on an example of China Eastern airline: a state-owned listed enterprise in China.  Method: This is a qualitative case study based on 7 semi-structured interviews with the employees of China Eastern Airlines. A thematic analysis is used for analyzation of the primary data. Findings/Conclusion: This research has confirmed the presence of concurrent processes of planned and emergent strategy change processes and the impactful role of normative and coercive pressures in the processes of change. Several deviations from the previous theories of strategy change were detected and attributed to the differences in national and organizational culture. The findings of this research confirm the general similarity of the process of strategy change during and outside crisis and highlight the potential cultural differences in strategy change in Western and Chinese firm.