Strategic decisions are the decisions that are made within the entire operational roles within a corporation. They deal with the entire resources as well as the human capital within a corporation and act as the interface between the resources and the human capital (Kuhn, 2006). They entail the major resource propositions for a corporation (Baden-Fuller, 2004). This may entail the taking into possession new resources as well as organizing and reallocating other resources. Further to the above role, strategic decisions ensure there is harmony in regards to the organizational resource capabilities in contrast to its threats and opportunities. They also matter themselves in making decisions on behalf of the corporation so as to lead it towards what the corporation is aspired to become of as well as what it ought to become. Due to the dynamic nature of corporations, the best way to incorporate the changes therein is through strategic decisions. These decisions are in most cases complex in nature, and are mostly made at the top most level of the corporation. They are characterized with a lot on uncertainty as they are in most cases futuristic in nature. Safe for this, another characteristic is that they are subject to a lot of risks. These are however different to administrative as well as operational decisions as explained by Alexander (1985). This is because the former matter themselves with the organizations routine and are directed towards facilitating the implementation of strategic as well as operational decisions. On the other hand the former matter themselves with the technical decisions that are required for the execution and implementation of strategic decisions. The steward theory is to the effect that managers, if th... ... middle of paper ... ...e Planning, 18(3), 91-97. Retrieved from http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/002463018590161X Baden-Fuller, C. (2004). Executing strategic decisions successfully. Long Range Planning, 37(3), 197. Retrieved from http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0024630104000627 Dess, G., Lumpkin, T., & Eisner, A. (2010). Strategic management : creating competitive advantages. McGraw-Hill Irwin. Donaldson, L., & Davis, J. H. (1991). Stewardship Theory or Agency Theory: CEO Governance and Shareholder Returns. Australian Journal of Management, 16(1), 49-64. University of New South Wales. Retrieved from http://aum.sagepub.com/cgi/doi/10.1177/031289629101600103 Kuhn, T. (2006). The human factor in strategic decisions. McKinsey Quarterly, (1), 4-5. Stanciu, C. O. (2009). Decision Support Systems Architectures, 8. Retrieved from http://arxiv.org/abs/0906.0863
Pearce II, J. A., & Robinson, R. B. (2011). Strategic Management 12th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Fast Company,(139), 69-70,73,16. Retrieved from Research Library. Document ID: 1870795761. Wheelen, Thomas L. & Hunger, J. David, (2010). Strategic management and business policy.
The Strategic management is help to accomplish the goals and intention for organizations recourses and future plans by following the important elements, which are planning, controlling, analyzing by study both internal and external strengths and weaknesses.
Carpenter, MA & Sanders, WG 2007, Strategic management: concepts: a dynamic perspective, Prentice Hall, New Jersy.
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Pearce, J. A., & Robinson, R. B. (2013). Strategic management: planning for domestic & global competition (13th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Thompson, Arthur A., & Strickland, Alonzo J. 2003. Strategic management: concepts and cases. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
2. Thompson and Strickland (2002), Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases, 13th Edition, Chicago Irwin Publications.
According to Wheelen & Hunger, strategic management “is that set of managerial decisions and actions that determines the long-run performance of a corporation. It includes environmental scanning (both external and internal), strategy formulation (strategic or long-range planning), strategy implementation, and evaluation and control” (2004, p2). All eleven good to great companies are benefit from strategic management and gain long term strategic advantage then lead to outperforming compared companies.
Strategic management is the ongoing process of ensuring a competitively superior fit between the organization and its ever-changing environment (Kreitner, G13). Strategic management serves as the competitive edge for the entire management process. It effectively blends strategic planning, implementation, and control. Organizations that are guided by a coherent strategic framework tend to execute even the smallest details of their mission in a coordinated fashion. The strategic management process includes the formulation of a strategy/strategic plans, implementation of the strategy, and strategic control. A clear statement of the organizational mission serves as the focal point for the entire planning process. People inside and outside the organization are given a general idea of why the organization exists and where it is headed. Working from the mission statement, management formulates the organization's strategy, a general explanation of how the organization's mission is to be accomplished. Then general intentions are translated into more concrete and measurable plans, policies, and budget allocations. Implementation is the most important part of the strategy. Strategic plans must be filtered down to lower levels to be success. Strategic plans can go astray, but a formal control system helps keep strategic plans on track. In the strategic management process general managers who adopt a strategic management perspective appreciate that strategic plans require updating and fine-tuning as conditions change. Given today's competitive pressures, management cannot afford to let strategic plans sit as is. A strategic orientation encourages farsightedness. Sun Microsystems Inc. is one company that developed a strategy to become the competitive leader and become the most reliable in the net business. I will explain how Sun's strategy integrates their marketing, management, technology, and service functions into one effective strategy. First I'll discuss who Sun is and what encouraged them to develop their strategy.
Gamble, J. E., Peteraf, M. A., Strickland III, A. J., & Thompson A. A. (2012). Crafting & Executing Strategy: The Quest for Competitive Advantage. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Strategic management is regarded as an important process for businesses (Bowman and Asch, 1987; Kumar, 2010; Thomson and Strickland, 2003; Viljoan and Dann, 2003). The growing environment where these organization or company compete somehow will determine whether the company standstill or gone. Thus, most companies are trying to improve their performance to survive and expand. Strategic management process is important for a firm’s success because it enables a firm to develop a future direction, provides the ways to achieve its mission, and ultimately leads to value creation (Porth, 2003). A review of literature by Powell (1992) also indicates that firms who adopt strategic management generally improve their performance.
Strategic management seeks to coordinate and integrate the activities of the various functional areas of a business in order to achieve long-term organizational objectives. A balanced scorecard is often used to evaluate the overall performance of the business and its progress towards objectives. Strategic management hinges upon answering three key questions:
The current business environment is very competitive. Only those companies that will employee efficient strategies will achieve success. Strategic management helps an entity to utilize its resources effectively achieve a cost advantage. A cost advantage plays a key role in ensuring that a company offers competitive product prices in the market. Basis of management comes from earlier thinking and books on strategy that date back to thousands of years ago (Ambrosini and Bowman, 2009). Strategic management refers to a continuous process of analysis, creation and monitoring strategic progress of an entity to ensure sustainability (Helmstetter, Cleveland, Evans and Galloway, 2002). Organizations formulate strategies in order to focus their energy to one direction to achieve superior performance. Ambrosini and Bowman (2009) indicate that strategic management and strategic planning mean the same thing except that the term strategic management is used in academic while strategic planning is used in the industry. According Hopkins, Mallette and Hopkins (2013, strategic management is essential in sustaining competitive advantage. Organizations need to sustain their competitive advantage in order to be ahead of their competitors. According to Ambrosini and Bowman (2009), companies which have competitive advantages, perform better financially than other companies in the industry, and they also perform better than the industry average. Strategic management is also important in viewing the organization as a whole.
Hitt, M., Ireland, and Hoskisson, R. (2009).Strategic management: Competitive and Globalization, Concepts and Cases. In M.Staudt & Stranz (Ed).