The Relationship between Strategic Flexibility and Core Competences and its effect on the Banking Performance: An Exploratory Study of the opinions of a Sample of managers in a number of Private Commercial Banks in Iraq

A dissertation

Submitted to the Council of the College of Administration & Economics ,Karbala University ,in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor Philosophy in Business Administration

By

Bashar Abbas H. AL- Himyari

Under the Supervision of

DR. assistant prof        Akram AL- Yasiry
DR. prof                        Awwad  AL- Kaledy

   This Study Intended to determine the The Relationship between Strategic Flexibility and Core Competences and its effect on the Banking Performance .Therefore, It  Depended Upon the dimensions of Strategic Flexibility which are (Preemptive Manoeuvers ,  Exploitative Manoeuvers , Protective Manoeuvers ,  Corrective Manoeuvers ) and the dimensions of Core Competences that are (Shared Vision , Organizational Learning , Manufacturing & Developing New Services , Integrative Dimension ) as Independent  Variables . Also this study depend the Dimensions of  Banking Performance which are (Financial Perspective , Customer  Perspective , Internal Business Perspective , Learning & Growth Perspective) as Dependent Variable.                                                                                                

     This Study took place in the Iraqi  Private Commercial banks included a sample of (5) banks with a number of the sample (100) employees occupying advanced administrative positions. Also ,the Current Study adopted the Standard of the average size of deposits for a time series is made up of five years in the selection of the banks of the sample from among the listed banks in the Iraqi market for Securities . as well as ,the researcher prepared a questionnaire for measuring variables of the study .             This study started from intellectual dilemma which present intellectual frameworks and many Classifications for approaches of Strategic Flexibility and Core Competences and as it ,is still under debate and dialogue among researcher because of the novelty of the two approaches .from  other side ,the field problem of the study epitomized in the weakness of the attention of mentioned banks in adoption of clear Strategic Frameworks that can depend upon in developing Strategic Alternatives for dealing with the Changes of the Competitive Environment on the Local and International level  Hence ,the Study Attempt to Achieve a Set of Goals , and the Most Prominent of these as following :                                                                   

1-To Clarify the Controversy Surrounding  the Intellectual concepts of Strategic Flexibility ,Core Competences  , and Banking Performance , In order to reduce the State of Inference Within the Existing Concepts of the Study Variables and Distinguish them from other related Intellectual Frameworks .                                

2- Determine the nature of the Strategic Options Which is used by banks that are representing the study sample To Confront The Environment Changes.                       

The Study Found a set of conclusions and the most important of these as following:               

The Statistical results showed that Strategic Flexibility& Core Competences together   has a strong and positive impact on the banking performance .                                 

    The Study Formulated a set of recommendations and the most important of these                       are the following:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Iraqi Private Commercial Banks Should enter foreign and arab markets through opening independent branches or obsession a proportion of the shares of the banks in question. And the need to get the material, human, and technological resources that are important for introducing the banking services which provide high customer value in term of Quality and Cost of mentioned Services.