UNIT 1
Meaning of Strategy
Johnson and Scholes
Strategy is the direction and scope of an organization over long term which achieves advantage for the organization through its configuration of resources within a changing environment and to fulfill the stakeholder expectation.
Harvard Business School
Its is the pattern of objectives, purpose and goals stated in such a way as to define what business the organization is in or is to be in and the kind of organization it is or is to be.
Evaluating the concept of strategic management
The strategic management is a complex undertaking. The logical and rational approaches while still in use do not provide appropriate solutions to strategic corporate planning. Most organizations rely upon adaptation and a process similar to logical instrumentalism as the strategies emerge as a result of environmental changes. This understanding raises important point in strategic management:
There is probably no one right way to develop a strategy us as there is no best way to manage. Different situations and environment would call for flexibility and alternative approaches.
The process of strategic development would change over time and in different contexts turbulent environment call for rapid change and necessitate different strategic processes from steady state situations where change is slowly and predictable.
The strategists have different perceptions relating to strategic process due to cultural and social influences. Due to these factors it is difficult to agree on a particular strategy since it will often depend on the type of the organization and its environment.
The strategic processes are different in each organization and also vary from one situation to another.
A. Corporate strategy
Generally corporate strategies are concerned with:
Determining what business the enterprise should be in order to maximize profitability
Deciding ‘grand’ strategies