Strategy is grounded in the array of competitive moves and business approaches

management depends on to produce successful performance. Strategy, in effect,

is management's game plan for strengthening the organization's position, pleasing

customers, and achieving performance targets. Managers devise strategies to

guide how the company's business will be conducted and to help them make

reasoned, cohesive choices among alternative courses of action. The strategy

managers decide on indicates that "among all the paths and actions we could have

chosen, we decided to follow this route and conduct our business in this manner.

"Without a strategy, a manager has no thought-out course to follow, no roadmap

to manage by, no unified action program to produce the intended results.

Management's game plan involves every major function and department—

purchasing, production, finance, marketing, human resources, R&D. Each has a

role in the strategy. The strategy-making challenge is to link business decisions

and competitive actions taken across the company into a united pattern. The

current pattern of moves and approaches indicates what the current strategy is;

new moves and approaches under consideration signal how the current strategy

may be adjusted or changed.

Crafting and implementing strategy are core management functions. Among all

the things managers do, few affect company performance more fundamentally

than how well its management team charts the company's long-term direction,

develops competitively effective strategic moves and business approaches, and

executes the strategy in ways that produce the targeted results. Indeed, good

strategy and good strategy execution are the most trustworthy signs of good

management.

There's a strong case for linking "good management" to how well managers craft

and execute strategy. Some managers design good strategies but fail to carry

them out well. Others design only fairly good strategies but execute them

competently. Both situations open the door to shortfalls in performance.

Managers must combine good strategy-making with good strategy execution for

company performance to approach maximum potential. The better understanding

a company's strategy and the better its execution, the greater the chance the

company will be a solid performer. Powerful execution of a powerful strategy is

not only a proven method for business success but also the best test of excellent

management.

Granted, good strategy combined with good strategy execution doesn't guarantee

that a company will avoid periods of weak or down performance. On occasion it

takes time for management's efforts to show good results. And even well-

managed organizations can face adverse and unforeseen conditions. But neither

the "we need more time" reason nor the bad luck of adverse events excuses low

performance year after year. It is management's responsibility to adjust to

unexpectedly tough conditions by undertaking strategic defenses and business

approaches that can overcome adversity. Indeed, the essence of good strategy-

making is to build a market position strong enough and an organization capable

enough to produce successful performance despite unforeseeable events, severe

competition, and internal problems.

2. My objectives

At the end of my presentation, participants are expected to understand:

·        The role of strategic management process

                  ·        How to motivate the employees to achieve the business goals.

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