Synopsis

This is a 3-day program designed to provide business leaders with a comprehensive framework for formulating strategies for their organizations.  The framework is applicable to all types of organizations – commercial, public sector, non-profit – and to all levels within an organization. The framework draws from best-practice concepts, tools and techniques used in major strategy consulting firms as well as the practising strategy community.

 

Learning Outcome

At the end of the program, participants will be able to:

• Gain a clear understanding of what strategy is and is not

• Understand the traditional (SWOT) approach to strategy formulation and its shortcomings

• Learn a new approach to strategy formulation, the issues- based approach, that addresses the shortcomings of the traditional SWOT approach

• Learn how to apply the issues-based approach to different types of organizations – commercial, public sector, non-profit – as well as to different levels within an organization

• Gain a clear understanding of what is mission and vision and how they fit into the strategy process

• Gain an appreciation of the challenges of strategy execution and the key requirements for success in strategy execution

 

Course Outline

What is strategy? An exploration.

The traditional (SWOT) approach to strategic planning and the shortcomings of this approach

A new approach to strategic planning – the issues-based approach

• What is the issues-based approach?  What are its advantages?
• The four key steps in the issues-based approach

Strategy for commercial organizations

• Three levels of strategy – corporate-level, business- unit and functional strategy
• Different questions to answer at each level, what are they? How to answer the questions?
• Applying the issues-based approach to commercial organizations

Strategy for public sector/non-profit organizations

• Different strategic questions to answer from commercial organizations
• How to identify the right questions to answer? How to answer the questions identified?
• Applying the issues-based approach to public sector/ non-profit organizations
  

 

Some key analytical tools and frameworks for strategic analysis and strategy selection

What is mission and vision? How do they fit into the strategy process?

Formulating strategy at the functional (e.g. division or department) level

Organizing the process for strategic planning in an organization – the common pitfalls, some emerging ideas on how to avoid the pitfalls

Strategy execution - just as important as strategy formulation, the key requirements for success in strategy execution