Strategic Management Why Strategic Management involves developing a

Strategic Management

Why Strategic Management involves developing a game plan to guide your company as it strives to accomplish its mission, goals, and objectives, and to keep it on its desired course.

SME business Strategic management Procedure • Use short term planning (1 to 2 years is sufficient) • Be informal • Encourage the participation of your top and loyal employees • Do not begin with setting objectives: you set objectives after you have analysed the business environment, your market positioning, competitive advantage and SWOT • Focus on strategic thinking

Strategic Management Process 1. Develop a clear vision and translate it into a meaningful mission statement 2. Define your core competencies and the market segment 3. Assess your strengths and weaknesses 4. Investigate environment opportunities and threats 5. Identify the key factors for success in the business 6. Analyze the competition 7. Create company goals and objectives 8. Formulate strategic options 9. Translate strategic plan into action plans 10. Establish accurate measures and controls

Vision and Mission Vision • Is based on value • Values are like organizational DNA • Tell people how to act • The picture that leaps into your mind when you close your eyes and dreams about what you want your organization to become. Mission • • What business am I in? Why we are here? Where we are going? • Why an organization is, why it exists

Mission Statement – Some Examples To enable people and businesses throughout the world to realize their full potential To organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful We create the technology to connect the world Shape the future of the internet by creating unprecedented value and opportunity for our customers, employees, investors and ecosystem partners To refresh the world…To inspire moments of optimism and happiness…To create value and make a difference To be Earths most customer–centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavor to offer its customers the lowest possible prices

Vision Statement – Some Examples To make it easy to do business anywhere To be the most competent, profitable and innovative financial organisation in the world To be among the world’s most trusted and successful financial institutions Helping investors help themselves an Africa where payment is a seamless part of everyday life To become the leading Nigerian, technology-driven, global financial institution that provides distinctive rage of financial To be the undisputed leading and dominant financial services institution in Africa

What are your mission and vision statements and do your employees know them?

Create Your Company’s Goals and Objectives 1. Goals: The broad, long range attributes that a business seeks to accomplish; they tend to be general and sometimes even abstract. 2. Objectives: • Specific • Measurable • Attainable • Realistic & Challenging • Timely • Written down

Formulate Your Strategic Options • Strategy: A road map of the tactics and actions an entrepreneur draws up to fulfill the firm’s mission, goals, and objectives • Competitive strategy: a long-term plan of action that a company devises towards achieving a competitive advantage over its competitors after examining the strengths and weaknesses of the competitors and comparing them to its own • Cost Leadership: A strategy in which a company strives to be the lowest-cost producer relative to its competitors in the industry • Differentiation: A strategy in which a company seeks to build customer loyalty by positioning its goods or services in a unique or different fashion • Focus: A strategy in which a company selects one (or more) segments of a market, identifies their special needs, wants, and interest, and offers them a good or service designed to excel in meeting those needs, wants, and interest

What are Competencies? A unique set of capabilities that your company develops in key operational areas that allow it to vault past competitors. Creating your companies’ Core competencies • Customers’ characteristics • Buying our goods • Increase or decrease purchases • Competitors

What is Market Segmentation? Carving up the mass market into smaller, more homogeneous units and then attacking each segment with a specific marking strategy.

What is market Positioning? Influencing customers’ perceptions to create the desired image for the business and its goods and services.

SWOT 1. Assess the company’s strengths and weaknesses 2. Investigate environment opportunities and threats 3. Identify the key factors for success in the business Key success factors: • Market share • Price competitiveness • Financial strength • Product quality • 4. • • Customer loyalty Analyze the competition Competitor analysis Competitive profile matrix