Strategic management is a company-wide process that includes the development of a long-term plan of action that assists an organization in achieving its objectives and fulfilling its company vision.
This course is focused on the steps and stages of preparing and implementing a strategic plan. Although we do not have time in one short course to go through the entire process in detail, by the end of the course you will know what you would need to do, and you will have the tools to develop a plan if you need to participate in the process. The following two readings and PowerPoint presentation are intended to provide you with an overview of the planning process. They also serve as an introduction and overview of the course.
McNamara, C. (2009). Developing your strategic plan. Retrieved on November 6, 2012, from https://www.managementhelp.org/np_progs/sp_mod/str_plan.htm
The strategic planning process. (2007). Retrieved on November 6, 2012, from https://www.quickmba.com/strategy/strategic-planning/
Click on the link for a PowerPoint presentation summarizing Strategic Management by Professor Anastasia M. Luca.
Mission, Vision, Values, and Goals
We will begin by studying the first step of the strategic planning process. This is the step that informs the rest of the process. It is also the step that ensures that all parties to the strategic plan are in agreement as to why the company exists, what the company does, where the company should go, and how it should get there. Those who run an organization should continually be asking the following two questions: “What business are we in?” and “What business should we be in?” Why? Because the answers may not necessarily be the same, in which event the strategic course must be corrected.
Mission statements are explicit statements concerning the reason(s) for an organization’s existence. At the most basic level, mission statements articulate what the company is, why it exists, and what it does. The mission statement sets up the long-term direction of the company, reflects the goals of its major stakeholders (i.e., shareholders, customers, suppliers, and employees), and should be capable of standing the test of time.
The mission statement should be the first consideration for anyone engaged in the strategic planning process, or in decisions which have strategic implications. Any action taken by the organization must be compatible with its expressed mission. Following are several mission statements:
The Elephant Sanctuary: “A natural refuge where sick, old and needy elephants can once again walk the earth in peace and dignity.” This is one powerful statement that evokes emotion and instant attachment to the cause of this organization.