...get more out of life. The company constantly enhancing company’s brands to deliver more intense, rewarding product experiences. It invests nearly €1 billion every year in cutting-edge research and development, and has five laboratories around the world that explore new thinking and techniques to help develop its products. (www.unilever.com) Oxfam: Oxfam GB is a leading international NGO with a worldwide reputation for excellence in the delivery of aid and development work. Its purpose is to work with others to overcome poverty and suffering. Oxfam GB is a member of Oxfam International. 14 organisations with over 3,000 partners is around 100 countries working under Oxfam International. Building on its mission, values, and beliefs, the Strategic Plan has been developed to cover its work over the next three years. Its aim in the Plan is to increase its impact. The intention...
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...Strategic Management & Business Policy Week Two Assignment: Starbucks From its humble beginning to multi-billion dollar corporation, Starbucks has had its fair share of ups and downs. Many of which can be associated with the constant changes in public demand. By utilizing the SWOT, the company was able to not only tackle each of the obstacles it in countered, it managed to strengthen organization and stay ahead of the competition. SWOT is an acronym that stands for a company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analysis. This analysis tool is used by the strategic business unit (SBU) to identify the company’s internal strengthens and weaknesses, as well as external opportunity or threats the company may encounter in the future (Marcus 2011). Companies use their strength to take advantage of the market and use it to increase their net earnings. By identifying weaknesses within the company, SBU is able to allocate resources to the under performing areas to improve productivity and income. Opportunities can sometimes be confused as threats, as there is usually some form of risk involved. This type of cautious business practice can hinder a company from reaching its full potential; it might also cause the firm to go out of business. In its infancy Starbucks was already ahead of its competition, created by three men with a passion for fine coffee and tea, the business offered the public a chance to experience coffee at its finest. At the time most coffee had...
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...The Board of Directors for ABC Complete Kitchens, Inc. has one more requirement for you before they are ready to turn operations over to the executive team. The board members would like your input regarding leadership of the new plant and the strategic environment in which the plant will operate. They have requested that you prepare a detailed description and discussion of the strategic environment, internally and externally, that will help formulate an overall strategic plan for the new manufacturing plant. For this assignment, your requirement is to research and create a presentation that describes and discusses the strategic environment of the new manufacturing plant using a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis process. Your analysis should consider not just the new start-up plant, but also the manufacturing industry as a whole. Be sure to include citations for quotations and paraphrases with references in APA format and style. Make sure your presentation follows good PowerPoint design principles (e.g., readable font, uses one template, one-inch borders around the slides) and contains transitions, builds, and animation when appropriate. The last slide(s) in the presentation should be the list of references you used for the assignment in APA format. For this assignment, you do not need to use outside resources and references for the PowerPoint presentation. All the information you need for this assignment is included within the custom-published...
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...Running head: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS TOOLS Strategic Management Analysis Tools XXXXXXXXX XXXXXXX xxxxxxxx Abstract The number of strategic management analysis tools have increased dramatically in the last twenty years. This increase could be a result of a growing demand to meet the new demands this new global market. This literature review aims to outline these articles and findings by concentrating on the strategic management research tools and describing the tools that are the most useful for managers to use. Keywords: tools, strategic analysis, strategic management, strategic planning. Strategic Management Analysis Tools Brief History In recent decades, strategic management research has become so complex and expensive that managers have found it difficult to utilize it effectively. Increasing competition across all industries combined with the ever changing variables such as the economic realities of an expanding global community, have created this market for strategic market analysis tools. Hence, as a method to support managers needs to meet stockholders expectations, a number of tools and methods have been created. Essentially, the problem is there are so many strategic management analysis tools choosing the right one is challenging. Research on strategic analysis is not abundant, despite the numerous reviews on the subject matter. It should be noted that all of the authors of existing reviews state that strategic analysis is the premise...
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...INTRODUCTION TO STRATEGIC MANAGENT 1.0 Introduction This chapter introduces the concept of strategic management and provides an overview of strategic management. This chapter is divided into six sections. The first section explains the evolution of the strategic management concept. This is followed by the second section on definition of strategic management. The third section describes the context in which strategic management takes place. This is followed by the fourth section which covers the scope of strategic management. The fifth section shows some of the benefits of strategic management for organizations. Finally the sixth section describes the process of strategic management. Upon the completion of this chapter you should be able to: 1. understand the concept of strategic management 2. know the brief history of the strategic management concept 3. understand the definition of strategic management 4. know the context in which strategic management occurs 5. comprehend the scope of strategic management 6. describe the benefit of strategic management 7. know the strategic management process 1.1 Introduction to the Strategic Management Concept Strategic management is a concept that originated from the military field. The concept of strategic management was first applied in ancient battles. The period around 500 B.C. saw numerous battles that took place Greece and China. The early written record on strategic management can be traced back during this warring...
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...banking industry in addition to competition in market is getting intense day by day. The management is required to optimally deploy its resources for enhancing profitability and growth of business. The need of minimizing to vulnerability of depending on single market is also crucial and required business expansion in different regions. It is therefore necessary for the management of the bank to strategically utilize its limited resources so that the growth of the bank can be maintained in the competitive environment. The role of management practices is crucial in ensuring the business growth but necessary to be aligned with the rapidly changing behavior of market. It was highlighted by Charles Hill & Dr. Jones (2007; pp. 335) that management enhances its skills for exploring new business opportunities and deploys its resources to fulfil the needs of market. In this regard the strategy of business is also required to be appropriate so that it can enable the management to attain its goals. These measures particularly enhance the management skills through which the influence of market environment on operations can be ascertained. It is therefore crucial for the management to adopt appropriate strategy because it helps in strategically managing the operations of bank. Through strategic management practices the growth of bank can be instigated in the market. In this project, strategic management practices of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are explored. 2. Research Questions ...
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...Strategy and Planning What is Strategy? The term ‘strategy’ proliferates in discussions of business. The term ‘strategy’ is derived from the Greek word ‘stratēgia’, which means the “art of the troop leader”: a plan, course of action, or a set of decisions creating a pattern or a common link. All the successful business enterprises today constantly take in new information about their markets, customers, and operating environments. Then, management uses that knowledge and data to shape new strategic directions, to reorganise how they respond to marketplace demands, and to ensure that their views regarding all aspects of the business are fresh and viable. Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long-term, which achieves advantage for the organisation through its configuration of resources within a challenging environment to meet the needs of markets and to fulfil stakeholder expectations. What is the difference between Tactics and Strategy? Strategy differs from tactics. Tactics are schemes for specific manoeuvres, whereas strategy is the overall plan for deploying resources to establish a favourable position. An organisation’s strategy consists of the combination of competitive moves and business approaches that managers employ to please customers and achieve organisational objectives. Strategy is a plan or course of action denoting a pattern which evolves a direction for the organisation. It relates to pursuing those activities which move an...
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...GRADUATE BUSINESS SCHOOL FACULTY OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT MGT 790 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT Course Outline 2011 Course Prescription Strategic Management is the process and practice of managerial decision making and implementation that seeks to create and maintain competitive advantage. In essence it determines the long term performance of a business and as such is the role of the senior executive members to refine but the responsibility of all to roll out. Included in the process is comprehensive environmental scanning, strategy formulation (strategic planning), strategy implementation, and monitoring. Students in this course will review how the strategic decision makers within an organisation first identify, define and analyse commercial problems and then develop practical and ethical solutions. It provides a practical guide for, and an initial experience in, strategy formulation and strategic management. Class time will be largely spent in lecture, discussion, case studies and experiential exercises. Students will learn from the theoretical literature, instructor, case studies, videos, research presentations, and from each other. The course materials explain and describe the different aspects, challenges, and stages of strategic management simply and clearly. Goals of the Course To examine and understand the nature and role of strategy, strategic management and strategic leadership within an organization. Learning Outcomes 1. To develop skills...
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...I. INTRODUCTION STYRATEGIC MANAGEMENT: DEAD OR IN DEMAND AS NEVER BEFORE A lot of companies are striving hard to get a place in business. A number of those that started die along the way due to lack of proper strategy. Yes, I do believe that organizations with proper strategy implemented and managed stand a better chance and have better competitive advantage over their counterparts. Strategic management is used by organizations to analyze and learn from their internal and external environment. It is about going forward (where to from here) It is about establishing a strategic direction. It is about establishing a strategic direction Strategic management is also about implementing strategies that would satisfy customers. The nature of strategy, which needs to be managed, is formulated around the 5 Ps (Louw and Venter 2010:15) Plan, pattern, position, perspective and ploy. As a plan, strategy has been viewed as something that an organization has, and strategy as a perspective viewed as something that people do. Strategy is influenced by extra organizational practices and inter-organizational practices. Therefore there is a reciprocal relationship between intra and extra organizational strategic activities. - Strategy as a plan: Provides overall direction and course of action. As a plan, strategy formulation is a formal process. This approach ahs been criticized for being a rational, top-down approach, hoever research shows that formal planning contributes...
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...Strategic Management Process MGT/498 Abstract The primary components of the strategic management process are strategic planning and strategic execution. The strategic management process is an important factor to the success of an organization. Components to consider are the planning and execution of the strategy. Wal-Mart is trying to increase their sales by reinventing how they do business and building on the Internet side of the business. Strategic Management Process Organizations begin because someone had an idea and wanted to share it with the world. However, an organization cannot be successful based on the ideal alone. Some planning must take place to establish the internal and external components of the organization. In other words, policies on how the company will operate, procedures on how the product is developed, and how to reach the customer base is imperative prior to starting a business. This is when strategic management is most effective. According to Wheelen and Hunger (2008), strategic management is “a set of managerial decisions and actions that determines the long-run performance of a corporation” (p.5). The purpose of the paper is to explain the primary components of a strategic management process, indicate why a strategic management process is needed, and examine a strategic management process of Wal-Mart. Primary components of strategic management Strategic planning and strategic execution are the primary components of strategic management...
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...1.0 WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT? Strategic management consists of the analyses, decisions and actions an organization undertakes in order to create and sustain competitive advantages. The strategic management process is made up of four elements: situation analysis, strategy formulation, strategy implementation, and strategy evaluation. These elements are steps that are performed, in order, when developing a new strategic management plan. Situation Analysis The situation analysis provides the information necessary to create a company mission statement. Situation analysis involves "scanning and evaluating the organizational context, the external environment, and the organizational environment" (Coulter, 2005). This analysis can be performed using several techniques. Observation and communication are two very effective methods. To begin this process, organizations should observe the internal company environment. This includes employee interaction with other employees, employee interaction with management, manager interaction with other managers, and management interaction with shareholders. In addition, discussions, interviews, and surveys can be used to analyse the internal environment. Organizations also need to analyse the external environment. This would include customers, suppliers, creditors, and competitors. Several questions can be asked which may help analyse the external environment. It examines the company’s relationship with its customers and...
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...CHAPTER 1 The Nature of Strategic Management True/False Introduction 1. The underpinnings of strategic management hinge on managers gaining an understanding of competitors, markets, prices, suppliers, distributors, governments, creditors, shareholders and customers worldwide. Ans: T Page: 4 2. Although the Internet has increased in popularity, it has actually led to increases in company expenses. Ans: F Page 4 3. Consumer e-commerce is five times greater than business-to-business e-commerce. Ans: F Page 4 What Is Strategic Management? 4. Optimizing for tomorrow the trends of today is the purpose of strategic management. Ans: F Page: 5 5. Even though useful, strategic planning has been cast aside by corporate America since the early 1990s. Ans: F Page: 5 Resource allocation is included in strategy-formulation activities. Ans: T Page: 5 6. The terms strategic management and strategy implementation are synonymous. Ans: F Page: 5 7. A vision statement is, in essence, a company’s game plan. Ans: F Page: 5 8. Strategy implementation is often considered to be the most difficult stage in the strategic-management process because it requires personal discipline, commitment and sacrifice. Ans: T Page: 6 9. The final stage in strategic management is strategy implementation. ...
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...Running head: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS PAPER Strategic Management Process Paper University of Phoenix Strategic Management Process Paper “Change has a considerable psychological impact on the human mind. To the fearful it is threatening because it means that things may get worse. To the hopeful it’s encouraging because things may get better. To the hopeful it is inspiring because things may get better. To the confident it is inspiring because the challenge exists to make things better” (Whitney, 2011). In this day and age businesses are faced with great challenges one in particular is becoming a profitable organization. In order for businesses to combat these challenges they must take risks and utilize strategic management to determine which direction the company will move. This paper will attempt to discuss the primary components of strategic management and why it is used in a company. Next a company will be researched and the strategic management process will be identified. Environmental scanning is the first step in the strategic management model (Wheelen and Hunger, 2010). This process involves looking at internal and external variables that have an impact on a business. The environmental scanning process identifies strategic factors. Businesses use many tools to identify this information, the most common being the strengths, weakness, opportunities, trends and threats (SWOTT) analysis. This helps to identify the factors that can play a significant...
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...Strategy is a diverse term that is differently perceived by different people. However, here we are concerned with its meaning in relation to the higher management of organizations. Strategy may be defined as the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieve advantage in a changing environment its configuration of resources and competences as to fulfil the expectations of the stakeholders. For any plan to be successful, it is crucial to use the tool of effective management. Strategic management would be the right term to use here. Under the phenomenon of strategic management, organizations try to procure benefits by amalgamating realistic plans and meaningful actions. Strategic management is a phenomenon that can be classified into three elements. These are strategic position, strategic choices, and strategy implementation. Strategic position is central to the strategic management according to which any business entity must evaluate its position in relation to macro and micro environment. Macro environment includes the political, economic, social, technological, legal, and ecological factors. Obviously, a business organization cannot be immune to all these factors. A continuous change in the intensity of these factors means that their impact on the business will keep changing. Decisions are, therefore, should be taken by keeping in view these factors. Factors of micro environment also need consideration for assessing the capability of your organization...
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...intellectual and physical labor ability which can contribute to the entire economic and social development. The focus of human resource management (HRM) is on managing people within the employer-employee relationship. Specifically, it involves the productive use of people in achieving the organization’s strategic business objectives and the satisfaction of individual employee needs. (Stone, 2010) The Strategic Human Resource Management focuses in the linking of all human resource activities with the organisation’s strategic objectives. (Stone, 2010) It was first developed in the late 1980s and then it has an impressively development in the following 20 years. This idea has been discussed and researched intensively, European, American and Japanese business management practices proved that it has competitive advantage to approach a long-term strategic for sustainable development. Compared to traditional Human Resource Management, Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) is positioned to support corporate strategic role and functions of human resource management. This assessment is to discuss the idea of Strategic Human Resource Management and the roles that a Human Resource manager will need to undertake. It is aimed to develop a comprehensive understanding of the study of Human Resource Management. Thompson and Strickland define strategic management as “the process whereby managers establish an organisation’s long-term direction, set specific performance objective, develop strategies...
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