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Welcome to this course, which I hope you will enjoy. There are lecture notes and slides plus web activities on these pages to help you think about strategic management issues. Please do not consider the lecture notes as a substitute for wide reading. I am constantly updating this page so keep coming back to it. Please note that you can access a number of other resources on this page, including a MESSAGE BOARD that you must consult weekly. Note that there is a separate set of web links for those following the strategic management unit. I have also produced a study booklet for you to work with. It is in draft form so please do the reading.

The booklet is in 2 formats. Click to download in Adobe PDF (900kb)

(2mb) or as a Winzip file

Study Programme

No.

Topic

Web Activities
How to download electronic journal articles for this unit? Ingenta articles Elselvier Science article

1 2 3

Introduction to strategy

Introducing my Web Pages

Perspectives in Strategy.
Read chapter 1 of the study booklet

An Economists view of strategy Multiple choice questions Strategic Planning at NASA

Can Strategy be applied by Philanthropic organisations? Read the article by Mark Kramer entitled "Strategic confusion"

Ten Steps in Strategic Planning

Read chapter 2 of the study booklet

4 5 6 7

Environmental Analysis
Read chapter 3 of the study booklet

Scenario Planning

Strategy and Regulatory frameworks Case Study on Regulating Lotteries

Read this interesting paper by Oliver Williamson on Law, Economics and Organisation

Core competences
Read chapter 4 of the study booklet

Web Activity on Core Competences

Incentives and agency

Two interesting On-Line primers from John Kay's website:On Profit Related Pay and On Company Law (with Aubrey Silberston)

8 9

Organisational Culture
Read chapter 5 of the study booklet

Game Theory (pdf) Prisoner's Dilemma Game. Slide Show with Streaming Audio links to Windows Media Player.
Read chapter 6 of the study booklet

Multiple choice questions

10

Complexity and the Learning Organisation. Slides and web activities.

Read chapter 7 of the study booklet

The Society of Organisational Learning

11 12

Crisis Management Global issues

Foot and Mouth Disease Reviewing the problems Electronic Reading Lists You can access the reading list for this course by clicking here. Electronic Journal Access

Buy the Textbook On-Line I am recommending the following texts for use on this course.

Johnson G & Scholes K (2001) Exploring Corporate Strategy Text and Cases, 6th ed., Prentice Hall, London. Click here to buy this book from Amazon.co.uk. Those interested in the public sector can purchase Johnson G and Scholes K , editors (2000) Exploring Public Sector Strategy, Financial Times/ Prentice Hall, London. Click here to buy this book from Amazon.co.uk.
(If you buy books from Amazon I will donate the commission received to my chosen charity, The Parkinson's Disease Society.)

You can access the University's eJournals by clicking here. Remember that you can look at the slideshows Plugins Materials on this page are in Adobe PDF, PowerPoint, WinZip and Windows Media Format. If you need these plug-ins click on the graphics below.

Kevin Hinde 1999-2004

What is Strategic Management? In a nutshell, it is goals-oriented management in which the mission and planned achievements of an organization are clearly set out and all management processes are designed and monitored toward reaching the organization's overall goals. Steps that have already been taken to reach the goals of the organization are carefully evaluated to make sure that they have been carried out in the most efficient manner possible and that they were indeed in line with the overall goals as set forth in the mission statement which governs the strategic management process. The Mission Statement Formulating a mission statement for the organization, as well as for any specific project, is the foundation of effective strategic management. The overall mission statement determines the purpose and goals of the organization, and a mission statement for a project sets forth the purpose of the project.

Planning Activities All planned activities need to be analyzed before being put into action, in order to make sure that they are dedicated to the purpose of the organization and the project. Activities that are not within the mission statement or purpose of the project in question need to be shelved or shifted to a future project. Analysis Once a new strategically managed organization or project has been launched, qualitative and quantitative analysis and monitoring must be carried out on a regular basis to make sure that goals are being achieved. If circumstances have changed, activities need to be changed and even curtailed

to make sure that goals are achieved regardless of these specific circumstances. The question that constantly has to be asked during the strategic management process is "Does this fit in with our big picture?" If an activity or process does not fit in with what the company is trying to achieve, whether in general or with a specific project, it needs to be revised or curtailed. Monitoring The overall goal of any management method is results, and the overall goal of strategic management is making sure the results are in line with the goal of the company or project. Constant monitoring of all processes, from management to sales to production, is necessary to make sure that the results which are being achieved indeed meet the goals that they are meant to achieve. Data recorded as part of the monitoring process is used for analysis, and changes are made as necessary.

Making Necessary Changes When strategic management processes are properly implemented, they allow for flexibility. Rather than changing the goal to meet what has been done at any stage of any project, monitoring and analysis of results allows for changes that are necessary to achieve the desired and stated goal of the firm or its project. These changes can include addition of personnel or equipment, technological changes and anything else that is necessary to achieve the desired overall results. What is Strategic Management, really? Strategic management is also about the strategic coordination of efforts. I's communicating with all the stakeholders involved in a project so that they understand and accept its goals. It creates atmosphere for a better teamwork as team members know what they are meant to achieve both as a team and in carrying out their individual roles on that team. If an employee or consultant is not able to work toward the goal in question for whatever reason, or needs retraining or other support, it becomes evident quickly enough and the necessary adjustments to the team can be made. Being able to answer the question "What Is Strategic Management" means being able to set the goals which a firm or project needs to achieve, and making sure that everyone in the organization understands his responsibility toward achieving those goals.

What is Strategic Management? - Related Articles:

Scorecard Articles & White Papers Examples & Success Stories The Nine Steps to Success Performance Measurement

Balanced Scorecard Software Cascading: Creating Alignment Strategic Planning Basics Government Performance FAQs Employment Forum

What is Strategic Planning?

Strategic planning is an organizational management activity that is used to set priorities, focus energy and resources, strengthen operations, ensure that employees and other stakeholders are working toward common goals, establish agreement around intended outcomes/results, and assess and adjust the organization's direction in response to a changing environment. It is a disciplined effort that produces fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide what an organization is, who it serves, what it does, and why it does it, with a focus on the future. Effective strategic planning articulates not only where an organization is going and the actions needed to make progress, but also how it will know if it is successful.

What is a Strategic Plan?

A strategic plan is a document used to communicate with the organization the organizations goals, the actions needed to achieve those goals and all of the other critical elements developed during the planning exercise.

What is Strategic Management?

Strategic management is the comprehensive collection of ongoing activities and processes that organizations use to systematically coordinate and align resources and actions with mission, vision and strategy throughout an organization. Strategic management activities transform the static plan into a system that provides strategic performance feedback to decision making and enables the plan to evolve and grow as requirements and other circumstances change.

What Are the Steps in Strategic Planning & Management?

There are many different frameworks and methodologies for strategic planning and management. While there is no absolute rules regarding the right framework, most follow a similar pattern and have common attributes. Many frameworks cycle through some variation on some very basic phases: 1) analysis or assessment, where an understanding of the current internal and external environments is developed, 2) strategy formulation, where high level strategy is developed and a basic organization level strategic plan is documented 3) strategy execution, where the high level plan is translated into more operational planning and action items, and 4) evaluation or sustainment / management phase, where ongoing refinement and evaluation of performance, culture, communications, data reporting, and other strategic management issues occurs.

What Are the Attributes of a Good Planning Framework?

The Association for Strategic Planning (ASP), a U.S.-based, non-profit professional association dedicated to advancing thought and practice in strategy development and deployment, has developed a Lead-Think-Plan-Act rubric and accompanying Body of Knowledge to capture and disseminate best practice in the field of strategic planning and management. ASP has also developed criteria for assessing strategic planning and management frameworks against the Body of Knowledge. These criteria are used for three primary purposes:

Ensure that the ASP Body of Knowledge is continuously updated to include frameworks that meet these criteria. Maintain a list of qualifying commercial and academic frameworks recommended for study and training, to prepare participants to sit for the three ASP certification examinations. Provide a resource and check list for practitioners as they refine and improve their organizations systems and for consultants as they improve their product and service offerings.

The criteria developed by the ASP are: 1. Uses a Systems Approach that starts with the end in mind. 2. Incorporate Change Management and Leadership Development to effectively transform an organization to high performance. 3. Provide Actionable Performance Information to better inform decision making. 4. Incorporate Assessment-Based Inputs of the external and internal environment, and an understanding of customers and stakeholder needs and expectations. 5. Include Strategic Initiatives to focus attention on the most important performance improvement projects. 6. Offer a Supporting Toolkit, including terminology, concepts, steps, tools, and techniques that are flexible and scalable.

7. Align Strategy and Culture, with a focus on results and the drivers of results. 8. Integrate Existing Organization Systems and Align the Organization Around Strategy. 9. Be Simple to Administer, Clear to Understand and Direct, and Deliver Practical Benefits Over the Long-Term. 10. Incorporate Learning and Feedback, to Promote Continuous Long-term Improvement. There are numerous strategic planning and management frameworks that meet these criteria, such as the Institute's Nine Steps to Success. For more information about the criteria, please visit the ASP website. For more information about strategic planning and management in general or for about how the Institute can help you, please consider our training, certification or consulting services, or contact us directly.

Strategic Management - A Complete Study Guide

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Strategic Management - An Introduction

Strategic Management is all about identification and description of the strategies that managers can carry so as to achieve better performance and a competitive advantage for their organization. An organization is said to have competitive advantage if its profitability is higher than the average profitability for all companies in its industry.
Strategic management can also be defined as a bundle of decisions and acts which a manager undertakes and which decides the result of the firms performance. The manager must have a thorough knowledge and analysis of the general and competitive organizational environment so as to take right decisions. They should conduct a SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats), i.e., they should make best possible utilization of strengths, minimize the organizational weaknesses, make use of arising opportunities from the business environment and shouldnt ignore the threats. Strategic management is nothing but planning for both predictable as well as unfeasible contingencies. It is applicable to both small as well as large organizations as even the smallest organization face competition and, by formulating and implementing appropriate strategies, they can attain sustainable competitive advantage.

Strategic Management is a way in which strategists set the objectives and proceed about attaining them. It deals with making and implementing decisions about future direction of an organization. It helps us to identify the direction in which an organization is moving. Strategic management is a continuous process that evaluates and controls the business and the industries in which an organization is involved; evaluates its competitors and sets goals and strategies to meet all existing and potential competitors; and then reevaluates strategies on a regular basis to determine how it has been implemented and whether it was successful or does it needs replacement. Strategic Management gives a broader perspective to the employees of an organization and they can better understand how their job fits into the entire organizational plan and how it is co-related to other organizational members. It is nothing but the art of managing employees in a manner which maximizes the ability of achieving business objectives. The employees become more trustworthy, more committed and more satisfied as they can co-relate themselves very well with each organizational task. They can understand the reaction of environmental changes on the organization and the probable response of the organization with the help of strategic management. Thus the employees can judge the impact of such changes on their own job and can effectively face the changes. The managers and employees must do appropriate things in appropriate manner. They need to be both effective as well as efficient. One of the major role of strategic management is to incorporate various functional areas of the organization completely, as well as, to ensure these functional areas harmonize and get together well. Another role of strategic management is to keep a continuous eye on the goals and objectives of the organization. Following are the important concepts of Strategic Management:
Strategy - Definition and Features Components of a Strategy Statement Strategic Management Process Environmental Scanning Strategy Formulation Strategy Implementation Strategy Formulation vs Implementation Strategy Evaluation Strategic Decisions

Business Policy BCG Matrix SWOT Analysis Competitor Analysis Porters Five Forces Model Strategic Leadership Corporate Governance Business Ethics Core Competencies

strategic management
Ansoff matrix 7S

Definition

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The systematic analysis of the factors associated with customers and competitors (the external environment) and the organization itself (the internal environment) to provide the basis for maintaining optimum management practices. The objective of strategic managementis to achieve better alignment of corporate policies and strategic priorities.

Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/strategic-management.html#ixzz2eDFmMsoE