Strategic Management Thought

Modeling the Formation of Competitive Strategy in the New Media Industry Using Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba`i University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Phd student of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba`i University, Tehran, Iran.

3 Professor, Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran.

4 Associate Professor, Department of Public Administration, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba’i, Tehran, Iran.

10.30497/smt.2025.248400.3664

Abstract

The increasing number and diversity of actors and strategic challenges, such as technological innovation and digitalization, make traditional top-down strategy formulation ineffective in the media industry. Instead, an emergent model is needed to understand the development of competitive strategies. This study aims to refine a model that introduces and prioritizes components of competitive strategy formation among new media industry and employs a mixed-methods approach. In the first phase, data were collected through content analysis of library related resources. Then, the second phase involved quantitatively validating the qualitative findings using the Delphi method and then prioritization using interpretive structural modeling (ISM).

The findings highlight three core dimensions—context, content, and process—in strategy formation, encompassing fourteen prioritized components which are proposed in four priority levels:

First: Audience engagement, change leadership, rapid adaptation to challenges, innovation culture, application of new technologies, use of data and algorithms, and exploitation of dynamic capabilities.

Second: Networked thinking, transparency in mission, and organizational willpower.

Third: Platform-based approach, government rules and policies.

Fourth: User awareness and satisfaction, alongside audience preferences and media consumption patterns.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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Strategic Management Thought
Volume 18, Issue 4 - Serial Number 42
January 2025
Pages 1-42
  • Receive Date: 31 May 2025
  • Revise Date: 12 July 2025
  • Accept Date: 14 July 2025