Paper Example on Strategy Making and Strategy Executing Process

Introduction

The strategy-making strategy executing process is a very crucial process every organization or company seeks to adopt for better results. The most important reason for designing, planning, implementing and monitoring the company's strategies is to enhance the proper operation of activities and the achievement of results. The process of designing, planning and executing a company's strategy comprises five interconnected managerial activities. They include the development of the mission, vision and core values, setting the company's objectives, crafting strategies, executing strategies, monitoring and evaluating performance as well as initiating corrective adjustments. The manager-in-charge should take care of this process by leading the organization through the various stages, processes, activities, and organizational changes. There are various strategic management concepts which are very crucial in the strategy making-strategy executing process as discussed hereunder.

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First, the development of the strategic mission, vision, and core values enables the company to direct all its efforts toward a common goal and objective. The manager helps in the identification of the primary vision for which the strategy is to be developed. By considering the company's mission, the manager-in-charge can direct the subordinates and the operations crew to the conventional path of action. As a result, the unity of purpose is born among the company workers thereby enabling them to pool together efforts which enhance the realization of the company's main agenda. The core values would allow employees to stay on the right track of the required company's development agenda and also serves as the breakthrough to conducting the succeeding processes, procedures, or tasks. Moreover, it aligns the company's workers towards the unity of purpose and gives the ground which is favorable for strategy executing process.

Second, setting the organizational objectives which are the representations of the developed strategic vision and mission of the company. The manager-in-charge should ensure that the strategic objectives set for the organization are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time specific. Setting the organizational strategic objectives is a managerial task which is very crucial to ensure the set vision and mission are realized in the long run. The objectives serve as the yardstick for measuring the level of performance that the organization is committed to doing. The objectives should be such specific as to show what exactly the organization wants to achieve at a particular time frame. The strategic objectives which are set for an organization should relate to the outcomes the manager wants the company to produce. They give the best indication of the position of the company in the industry by showing the company's competitive advantage, strength in the market, and prospects of the business.

Another critical concept in the strategic management is the correct evaluation of the external business environment. A business industry may comprise of numerous entities utilizing the available provisions in that industry. Such business entities compete with each other for the market share, profits, and the popularity. Since every business has its strategies, the manager must be smart to ensure the company can thrive in such an environment where each one strives for survival and success. The manager should identify the strengths of the other competitors in the industry, analyze the trends or moves they make in their operations, and then predict possible moves they will likely make in the future. A correct analysis of these factors can enable the manager to design, plan, and implement the various counteractive steps which will neutralize the threats that the competitors would likely pose to the company and ensure the business goes on uninterrupted. As a result, the business will be able to thrive in any given situation an industry presents.

Having conducted a prudent diagnosis of the external business environment, the manager should evaluate the available resources of the company and determine the ability to successfully compete with the critical rivals in the industry. To develop efficient and practical strategies, the manager should pay attention to the competitive strengths and weaknesses that the company has over its rivals. In this analysis, the manager should evaluate the prices other competitors offer in the market, their quality of service, and different competitive strengths and weakness that the competitors have. In knowing the competitors' strategic strengths and weaknesses, the manager will be able to craft the strategies which match and address the specific considerations in the industry which will give a cutting age competitive advantage to the company to run its business.

Next, the manager has to choose the best strategy which the company is capable of running proficiently. There are five vital strategic options that a manager can opt to apply such as being the provider with either the broad differentiation, focused on low-cost, overall low-cost, best-cost, or focused differentiation. The strategy selected should be the most suitable strategy for addressing the strategic mission and vision of the company. It should also provide the most suitable opportunities for gaining a competitive advantage over the other competitors within the industry. Moreover, the strategy should be the one which the company is most capable of performing more proficiently, efficiently and effectively.

After selecting the basic strategy, the manager needs to determine whether to supplement it with other approaches or not. The manager may decide to use either offensive or defensive strategy to gain a competitive advantage over the rivals. Offensive strategies include offering high-quality products at a lower price, being the first to provide the next generation product or technology, taking advantage of the competitors' weaknesses, innovating the existing product, and exploiting the less contested market niches. Defensive strategies, on the other hand, seeks to protect the position of the company in the market by restricting any advancement by other rivals into the prospective market territory. Other supplementary strategies involve outsourcing, collaborative partnerships, strategic alliances, or joint ventures. The identification of the right supplementary strategies will enable the company's strategy-executing process to become more active and consequently lead to the achievement of the desired outcome.

Additionally, the manager should consider the global competition by adopting the best strategies which will enable the company to thrive in the international market. To ensure this, the company should be capable of maintaining the national production base and also export its products to the foreign markets. Apart from that, the company's strategy needs to encourage the internal startups to enter international markets and to license the use of the company's technology to the foreign firms. The use of a franchising strategy would also play a crucial role in building the company's competitive advantage.

Moreover, the diversification into the related businesses is also a good strategy which ensures the company's profit base is well secured. When the company decides to apply the diversification strategy, the manager should ensure that the final long-term outcome should produce the best shareholder value. Diversification should be made to businesses which are likely to result in high prospective profits. In addition to that, the acquisition of such businesses should be of sound financial terms.

The strategy making, the strategy-executing process should put into consideration the right ethical standards for the company operations and its workforce. The strategy adopted should be the right one which is legally acceptable as well as morally upright. Apart from that, the company should also consider the corporate social responsibility by working while conserving or preserving both social and environmental welfare. A strategy which is both legally accepted and morally upright will be very easy to implement in the organization thereby, having high chances of producing better results as planned.

The manager should then be able to establish a suitable environment favorable for implementing the strategies. Managerial tasks, in this case, involve coming up with the right staffing for the organization, developing the right organizational structures, resources, competencies and capabilities which will ensure the successful execution of strategies. The manager should also steer resources and financial requirements for the implementation of the strategy, adopt best practices for the organization, and give rewards and incentives whenever the strategic performance targets are attained.

Conclusion

Effective management of the internal operations becomes very imperative for the successful strategy-executing process. It entails the unwavering managerial commitment to ensuring continuous improvement and the company's best practices. To promote better implementation of strategies, the manager should encourage programs such as total quality management, business process re-engineering, Six Sigma programs, benchmarking, as well as the adoption of best practices. By strengthening these programs, the company's strategic making, the strategic-executing process is set to run very efficiently and effectively.

Furthermore, embracing the best corporate culture and leadership strategies is a critical concept in attaining successful strategic outcomes. It involves the ability of the manager to stay on top of the current business affairs by controlling the whole business process. The manager should be able to spot the possible problems before they occur, identify the potential obstacles which may deter the effective execution of strategies and clear the path for the progress of the business. Apart from that, the manager should ensure the achievement of the intended results and operations excellence by putting constructive pressure on the organization. In case of any incapacitation, the manager should be able to exert the appropriate corrective mechanisms necessary for attaining the desired results.