Belief systems and business strategy in a privatized kibbutz factory

This study examined the strategic management choices that were the basis of the strategic business model of a particular privatized kibbutz factory. The study analyzed the nature and evolution of the factory’s business strategy and discussed how management utilized belief-control systems to implement change. Case study methodology identified three distinct belief-control periods as the kibbutz factory shifted from the original pure socialist tradition to capitalism. Yet, unlike in many other privatized kibbutz factories, top management integrated original socialist values with capitalist norms. Findings showed the gradual evolution of the factory strategic-business model into a hybrid structure that combined the logic of both community and economics. The modifications allowed the business the factory to survive and flourish.