Designing a Strategic Warfare Model in Investment Holding Companies

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 PhD., Department of Management, University of Guilan, Guilan, Iran.

2 Associate Prof., Department of Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, University of Guilan, Guilan, Iran.

3 Assistant Prof., Department of Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, University of Guilan, Guilan, Iran.

10.22059/jibm.2025.387788.4897

Abstract

Objective
In recent decades, holding companies have become increasingly prominent in the global economy, operating within highly competitive and rapidly changing business environments. The purpose of this study is to develop a comprehensive strategic warfare model for holding companies to enable them to operate systematically and purposefully within complex and highly dynamic competitive settings. By competing in the marketplace through competitiveness and customer orientation, investment holding companies provide an appropriate platform for the economic and technological growth of their subsidiaries, relying on national capabilities and technology localization. Consequently, the need for a comprehensive and flexible strategic model has become more critical than ever. Such a model enables holding companies to identify and neutralize potential threats while responding dynamically to environmental changes. Accordingly, this study seeks to identify and explain the components of a strategic warfare model for investment holding companies.
 
Methodology
This study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive–analytical in terms of data collection. To address the research problem and develop the proposed model, this study employed a qualitative research approach based on the grounded theory methodology of Strauss and Corbin. The target population consisted of academic experts and senior managers of investment holding companies who possessed both scholarly and practical experience in business warfare, investment holding companies, and marketing strategies. Participants were selected through snowball sampling, and data were collected through semi-structured interviews.
 
Findings
The findings revealed that the strategic warfare model in investment holding companies comprises talent identification, information dominance, artificial intelligence capability, and strategic reserves as causal conditions; market penetration, market leadership, business game, battlefield positioning, and financial warfare as the core phenomenon; psychological warfare, identification of strategic risks, and transformation as contextual conditions; white fear and organizational numbness as intervening conditions; export, business diplomacy, and investment development as strategic actions; and corporate governance, outsourcing, and productivity as consequences. These categories were identified through the Strauss and Corbin grounded theory approach.
 
Conclusion
Due to their complex structures and the diversity of their subsidiary businesses, holding companies currently operate in highly challenging and competitive environments that expose them to numerous threats and opportunities. The strategic warfare model proposed in this study provides a roadmap for managerial decision-making by facilitating the analysis and interpretation of competitive situations and enhancing the ability to anticipate competitors’ reactions. By considering changing market conditions and competitor behavior, the model can help holding companies not only overcome environmental threats but also strengthen their competitive position through the optimal utilization of resources and the identification of emerging opportunities. To create value, holding company managers should devote as much attention to developing their own assets and capabilities as they do to those of their business units. The comprehensive strategic warfare model developed in this study, encompassing causal conditions, the core phenomenon, contextual conditions, intervening conditions, strategies, and consequences, provides an integrated and strategic perspective for investment holding companies.
 

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

 
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Journal of Business Management
Volume 18, Issue 2
2026
Pages 475-503

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