Organizational analysis of an Albanian food company using the life-cycle Adizes model: the application of a classic model in the context of an emerging economy

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to analyze a successful Albanian business using a business life-cycle model, namely that of Ichack Adizes. (Adizes 2004) The business life approach was used because it relates different practices to the existing internal level of development of a specific firm; as such it provides the framework for examining the central question of what allows a firm to survive and prosper in a given environment. In order to meet this aim we broke it down to three research questions related to life-cycle stage identification, internal cohesion and implication analysis. The research methodology adopted to answer the above questions was qualitative, interviewing the owner/manager on the basis of an engineered version of the Adizes methodology developed by the Japanese consultancy IIOSS. As a conclusion to this research, our proposal for the company is to try as much as possible to utilize the elements of Prime identified in the entities of task, information and reward in order to gradually train its employees to be ready and willing to take on the responsibilities accompanying the delegation of power, in order to move from the Go-Go stage to Adolescence. We also advise the company not to modify immediately its structure entity, because our concern is that structure without the accurate employees, may produce distorted results for the Gastronome. A number of limitations are identified both regarding the IIOSS questionnaire and the Adizes methodology and further research and conceptual refinement of both is recommended.