• Summary
  • Position of product life cycle: Embryonic, growing, mature, aging.
  • Industry and target market.
  • On what basis does the company compete,
  • Core competency/distinctive competency.
  • Value chain.
  • Mission: Growth
  • Strategic Management Challenges of the 90s
  • Accelerating Rates of Change
  • Increasing Levels of Competition
  • Globalization of Business
  • Technological Change
  • Changing Nature of the Workforce
  • Resource Shortages
  • Transition From an Industrial to Knowledge Society
  • Unstable Market and Economic Conditions
  • Increasing Demands of Constituents
  • Complexity of the Strategic Management Environment
  • Problem Statement: Define strategic problem to resolve.
  • Related Issues
  • Situational Analysis
  • Internal Strengths /Internal Weaknesses
  • Financial
  • Information
  • Marketing
  • Manufacturing/Service (Value Chain)
  • Personnel
  • Corporate
  • Distinctive competency
  • External Opportunities (Market forces)
  • External Threats (Market Forces)
  • Industry Analysis
  • Key Factors for Success (drivers, product differentiation)
  • Attractiveness of Entry (Government Policy, Capital Required)
  • Profitability
  • Technology/Recent Developments
  • Percent Capacity (Production/Capability)
  • Competitor Analysis
  • Threat of New Entrants
  • Intensity of Rivalry
  • Pressure From Substitute Products
  • Bargaining Power of Suppliers
  • Bargaining Power of Buyers
  • Financial Analysis Ratios
  • Liquidity: Current Assets/ Current Liabilities; (Current Assets - Inventory) / Current Liabilities
  • Leverage: Total Debt / Total Assets; TIE (Profit before tax + Interest Charges) / Interest Charges
  • Activity: Sales/Inventory; Receivables/Daily Sales; Sales/fixed assets; Sales/Total Assets
  • Profitability: Net profit after taxes / Sales; Net profit after taxes/ Assets; Net Profit after taxes / net worth
  • Delineation of Alternatives
  • Marketing: Cost Leadership/Differentiation (make product appear unique)/Focus
  • Expansion: Market Penetration, Expansion (Product development); (un)related Diversification/Globalize
  • Learning Efficiencies: Labor Efficiencies/improved methods/Product Redesign (to lower manufacturing costs)/standardize components across products/efficiencies of scale/substitute less expensive components
  • Competitive tactics: Signaling (price, announcements, counterattack, litigation) - Prisoner's Dilemma, exploit industry change
  • Invest/divest SBUs; Horizontal/Forward/Backward Integration (Consider Synergy Effects)
  • Strategic Recommendation
  • Scenario
  • Hedge
  • Scope of Change
  • Suntzu "Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy." "In war, numbers alone confer no advantage."
  • Implementation
  • Levels Functional (value added activities); Business (current tactics); Corporate (Strategic - what business)
  • Structure: Orientation (customer, functional) Remove baggage from organizational chart. is plan appropriate to mission?
  • Systems: Improve processes and flows that gets things done.
  • Skills: Appropriate skills need to be developed/acquired.
  • Style: Culture - how are things done. Aggressive. Behaviors, thoughts, beliefs Management should focus on quality and sales.
  • Staff: Human Resource Systems (training, appraisals, wages) Continue organic rightsizing.
  • Shared Values: Culture/Values are part of goal statements.
  • Strategy: A coherent set of actions aimed at gaining sustainable advantage are defined.
  • Strategic Control
  • Vision
  • Acceptable Risk
  • Short term (in 4 weeks) globalize products and descriptions across company. Define degree of acceptable failure is acceptable.
  • Intermediate (in 4 months) continue new product development. Poll sales force for success and problems
  • Long term (in 48 months) create new products to reflect sales force findings. Watch financing.
  • Functional Area Roles in Implementation Control
  • Marketing: Start new trade up market testing.
  • Finance: Make a revenue forecast and compare results. Watch ROI but don't get short sighted.
  • Operational: Standards performance measurement. Benchmark. Improve planning and control systems.
  • Management: Develop standards for job effort. Note if people are working within their job descriptions, state acceptable tolerances. Make sure that problems will not reoccur.
  • Production: Measure actual performance, only act when performance is out of line. Continuous control should focus on outputs.
  • Human Resource
  • Research and Development
  • Strategic Control Questions
  • Is strategy internally consistent, consistent with organizational mission? Yes.
  • Consistent with the environment? Yes.
  • Consistent with internal resources? Yes.
  • Appropriate amount of risk? Yes.
  • Proper time horizon? Yes.
  • Is strategy identifiable? Yes.
  • Is it socially responsible? Yes.
  • Clear stimulus to organizational behavior? Yes.
  • Adequate contingency plans? Yes.
  • Exploit major opportunities? Yes.
  • Are milestones clearly defined? Yes.