Running head: STRATEGY 1
Business Strategy Development
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STRATEGY 2
Business strategy development
Introduction
A business strategy is a long-term plan of action that is designed purposely to achieve
a particular objective or goal in business. A strategy is like a roadmap or game plan that a
company uses to strengthen its performance (Rumelt, 2012). It stipulates the course of action
for a business. Strategy development, also referred to as strategic planning, is essential for the
creation and running of any business. For a business to achieve its goals, it must have a game
plan that guides it towards the achievement of those specific goals. This paper discusses the
process of business strategy development, strategic thinking, and the importance of decision
models used in the process.
Business Strategy Development Process
The development of strategies does not necessarily have to be time and labor-
intensive, and it does not have to be complicated either. A complicated business strategy
may end up sitting on the shelf without any implementation. To develop a business strategy, a
standard process should be followed starting from the most crucial part; goals, objectives, and
strategy (Chang, 2016).
Goals – the business must first identify the goals it desires to achieve and determine how the
endpoint of the goals should look. By defining goals, the company opens the way for the
development of specific actions and measures that can be used to achieve those goals. Once
the strategic planning team has the goals, they need to gather relevant information so that the
decisions they make are based on facts. The next step then for the team is situation analysis;
through this analysis, the planning team will review both internal and external environments
of the business (Chang, 2016).
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SWOT Analysis – the data gathered during the situational analysis needs to be organized so
that the most critical areas are considered. A SWOT analysis will help the planning team to
identify the organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Having this
information places the team in a better position to decide the way forward for the business.
Objectives – goals are broad; they give a common course for the organization. However, for
a business to measure success, it needs a yardstick, and that is where Objectives come in. The
next step in the process is to create objectives that indicate precisely the outcomes that are
desired. For instance, if the goal were to increase the market share, the related objective
would be to increase the market share in the B region by 15%.
Strategies – strategies or tactics refer to what a business intends to do to realize its goals.
Strategies are the general guidelines on what is to be done to achieve a goal. For instance, if
the goal is increasing market share, a planning team can decide on creating social network
accounts and engaging customers online. By undertaking all the strategies, the company
moves towards its goals.
Key Decisions Necessary for Strategy Development
It is not enough to have a strategy; sometimes, organizations make plans and fail to deliver
the expected results. To ensure that the organization makes the best strategic decision, it
needs first to consider some critical decisions.
a. Engagement - since strategic planning is a process, the senior management needs to
engage all levels of staff throughout the organization. Engaging all staff will increase
input and increase the chances of success since they are the ones executing the actual
strategies (Thompson, Strickland & Gamble, 2015).
b. Communication – the management must choose an effective communication strategy
to ensure that there is an understanding of the issues affecting the business. A bottom-
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up and top-down communication strategy will help employees provide management
with valuable input through surveys, meetings, and focus groups.
c. Culture – the management needs to cultivate a friendly organizational culture that is
open to change. Organization culture can determine whether the strategy will work or
not. Therefore, the company needs to work on its corporate culture.
Decision models
Decision models are academic templates for distinguishing, organizing, and running business
logic behind a judgment. They can also be defined as a set of business rules and facts that
help management to derive conclusions. These models help in drawing logical conclusions
that are important to the business and which a company is interested in managing. The use of
decision models helps the strategy development process because it simplifies the process so
that logical conclusions are derived easily. Models also manage business rules and tactics so
that they can be clear for implementation. They also act as a reference for recurring projects
and decisions.
Conclusion
Business strategies are essential for the success of any business, and every
management team needs to take the initiative of formulating one (Rumelt, 2012). The process
must be followed keenly to take into consideration all the key factors such as the goals, the
objectives, and strategies. Apart from just coming up with a plan, the top management must
cultivate a good organization culture and take measures necessary to ensure that the strategy
produces the desired results. Strategies depend on teamwork, and therefore, every stakeholder
in the business must be engaged.
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Annotated Bibliography
Rumelt, R. P. (2012). Good strategy/bad strategy: The difference and why it
matters. Strategic Direction, 28(8).
Chang, J. F. (2016). Business process management systems: strategy and implementation.
Auerbach Publications.
Business process management systems: strategy and implementation is authored by
James Chang who is the founder and president of Ivy consultants, Inc. with the focus
on strategy and its implementation, the author discusses business management
practices and the relevant technologies that enable them. His book is suitable for
answering the questions of strategy formulation and how to ensure that strategies
work. His approach to the subject makes it relevant to both IT and business
professionals who are faced with the questions of strategy.
Thompson, A., Strickland, A. J., & Gamble, J. (2015). Crafting and executing strategy:
Concepts and readings. McGraw-Hill Education.
Crafting and executing strategy by Thomson, Strickland, and Gamble is a
demonstration of the quest to competitive advantage. The book maintains a solid
foundation and also brings an enriched presentation of the concepts of strategy. The
book includes compelling cases that bring cases to life for the readers to understand
the concepts of creating and execution of strategy. The book is up to date with the up-
to-date improvements in the theory and practice of strategic management. The
presentation of concepts is precise such that the reader is provided the necessary
information without having to go through a whole lot of irrelevant knowledge.
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