A overview of Strategic Management where describe following question-
1. What do we mean by Strategy? Explain four of the most frequently used and dependable approach to set a company apart from rivals and winning a sustainable competitive advantages
2. Why a company’s strategy evolves over time. Describe the concept of – “A company is partly proactive and partly reactive”.
3. Why are crafting and executing strategies important?
4. Explain the relationship between a company’s strategy and its business model
5. “Ethical and Moral standards are not governed by what is legal, rather they involves issues of right versus wrong and of duty”- what one should do?
A overview of Strategic Management where describe following question-
1. What do we mean by Strategy? Explain four of the most frequently used and dependable approach to set a company apart from rivals and winning a sustainable competitive advantages
2. Why a company’s strategy evolves over time. Describe the concept of – “A company is partly proactive and partly reactive”.
3. Why are crafting and executing strategies important?
4. Explain the relationship between a company’s strategy and its business model
5. “Ethical and Moral standards are not governed by what is legal, rather they involves issues of right versus wrong and of duty”- what one should do?
A overview of Strategic Management where describe following question-
1. What do we mean by Strategy? Explain four of the most frequently used and dependable approach to set a company apart from rivals and winning a sustainable competitive advantages
2. Why a company’s strategy evolves over time. Describe the concept of – “A company is partly proactive and partly reactive”.
3. Why are crafting and executing strategies important?
4. Explain the relationship between a company’s strategy and its business model
5. “Ethical and Moral standards are not governed by what is legal, rather they involves issues of right versus wrong and of duty”- what one should do?
Important? Meherun Nahar (s111286) QUESTIONS 1. What do we mean by Strategy? Explain four of the most frequently used and dependable approach to set a company apart from rivals and winning a sustainable competitive advantages 2. Why a companys strategy evolves over time. !escribe the concept of " #$ company is partly proactive and partly reactive%. &. Why are crafting and executing strategies important? '. Explain the relationship between a companys strategy and its business model (. #Ethical and )oral standards are not governed by what is legal* rather they involves issues of right versus wrong and of duty%+ what one should do? 1. What do we mean by Strategy? Explain four of the most frequently used and dependable approah to set a ompany apart from ri!als and winning a sustainable ompetiti!e ad!antages Answer: A companys strategy is managements action plan for running the usiness an! con!ucting operations" #he crafting of a strategy represents a managerial commitment to pursue a particular set of actions in growing the usiness$ attracting an! pleasing customers$ competing successfully$ con!ucting operations$ an! impro%ing the companys financial an! mar&et performance" #hus$ a companys strategy is all aout how: ' (ow management inten!s to grow the usiness" ' (ow it will uil! a loyal clientele an! out compete ri%als" ' (ow each functional piece of the usiness (research an! !e%elopment$ supply chain acti%ities$ pro!uction$ sales an! mar&eting$ !istriution$ finance$ an! human resources) will e operate! ' (ow performance will e ooste!" )n choosing a strategy$ management is in effect saying$ *Among all the many !ifferent ways of competing we coul! ha%e chosen$ we ha%e !eci!e! to employ this comination of competiti%e an! operating approaches to mo%e the company in the inten!e! !irection$ strengthen its mar&et position an! competiti%eness$ an! oost performance"+ #he strategic choices a company ma&es are sel!om easy !ecisions$ an! some of them may turn out to e wrong,ut that is not an e-cuse for not !eci!ing on a concrete course of action" )n most in!ustries companies ha%e consi!erale free!om in choosing the howls of strategy" )ts nice when a companys strategy pro!uces at least a temporary competiti%e e!ge$ ut a sustainale competiti%e a!%antage is plainly much etter" .hat ma&e a competiti%e a!%antage sustainale as oppose! to temporary are actions an! elements in the strategy that cause an attracti%e numer of uyers to ha%e a lasting preference for a companys pro!ucts or ser%ices" /ompetiti%e a!%antage is the &ey to ao%e0a%erage profitaility an! financial performance ecause strong uyer preferences for the companys pro!uct offering translate into higher sales %olumes (.al0Mart) an!1or the aility to comman! a higher price (Merce!es02en3)$ thus !ri%ing up earnings$ return on in%estment$ an! other measures of financial performance" 4our of the most fre5uently use! an! !epen!ale strategic approaches to setting a company apart from ri%als$ uil!ing strong customer loyalty$ an! winning a sustainale competiti%e a!%antage are: 1" Stri%ing to e the in!ustrys low0cost pro%i!er" .al0Mart an! Southwest Airlines ha%e earne! strong mar&et positions ecause of the low0cost a!%antages they ha%e achie%e! o%er their ri%als an! their conse5uent aility to un!er price competitors" Achie%ing a cost0 ase! a!%antage o%er ri%als can pro!uce a !urale competiti%e e!ge when ri%als fin! it har! to match the low0cost lea!ers approach to !ri%ing costs out of the usiness" a" /rafting a strategy to achie%e the !esire! outcomes" " /rafting a strategy to stri%e to e the in!ustrys low0cost pro%i!er" 2" /reating a !ifferentiation0ase! a!%antage &eye! to such features as higher 5uality$ wi!er pro!uct selection$ a!!e! performance$ %alue0a!!e! ser%ices$ more attracti%e styling$ technological superiority$ or unusually goo! %alue for the money" Successful a!opters of !ifferentiation strategies inclu!e 6ohnson on strategies can e powerful so long as a company is sufficiently inno%ati%e to thwart cle%er ri%als in fin!ing ways to copy or closely imitate the features of a successful !ifferentiators pro!uct offering" 7" 4ocusing on ser%ing the special nee!s an! tastes of uyers comprising a narrow mar&et niche" 8rominent companies that en9oy competiti%e success in a special McAfee in %irus protection software$ Staruc&s in premium coffees an! coffee !rin&s$ .hole 4oo!s Mar&et in natural an! organic foo!s$ an! #he .eather /hannel in cale #:"cialMcAfee in %irus protection software$ Staruc&s in premium coffees" ;" Developing expertise and resource strengths that give the company competitively valuable capabilities that rivals cant easily match, copy, or trump with substitute capabilities. 4e!<- has !e%elope! a resource0ase! competiti%e a!%antage through its superior capailities in ne-t0!ay !eli%ery of small pac&ages" .alt r manufacturing capailities in computer har!ware ha%e consistently allowe! it to earn healthy profit margins while offering usinesses an! consumers competiti%e prices" #he strategy0ma&ing$ strategy0implementing process consists of fi%e interrelate! managerial tas&s" ". Why a ompany#s strategy e!ol!es o!er time. $esribe the onept of % &' ompany is partly proati!e and partly reati!e(. Answer: 4re5uent fine0tuning an! twea&ing of a company strategy$ first in one !epartment or functional area an! then n another$ are 5uite normal" =n occasion$ 5uantum changes in strategy are calle! for,when a competiti%ely" 2ecause strategic mo%es an! new action approaches are ongoing across the usiness$ an organi3ations strategy forms o%er a perio! of time an! then reforms as the numer of changes egin to mount" )rrespecti%e of where the strategy comes from,e it the pro!uct of top e-ecuti%es or the collaorati%e pro!uct of numerous company personnel,it is unli&ely that the strategy$ as originally concei%e!$ will pro%e entirely suitale o%er time" <%ery company must e willing an! rea!y to mo!ify its strategy in response to changing mar&et con!itions$ a!%ancing technology$ the fresh mo%es of competitors$ shifting uyer nee!s an! preferences$ emerging mar&et opportunities$ new i!eas for impro%ing the strategy$ an! mounting e%i!ence that the strategy is not wor&ing well" #hus$ a companys strategy is always a wor& in progress" Most of the time a companys strategy e%ol%es incrementally from managements ongoing efforts to fine0tune this or that piece of the strategy an! to a!9ust certain strategy elements in response to unfol!ing e%ents" 2ut$ on occasion$ ma9or strategy shifts are calle! for$ such as when a strategy is clearly failing an! the company faces a financial crisis$ when mar&et con!itions or uyer preferences change significantly$ or when important technological rea&throughs occur" )n some in!ustries$ con!itions change at a fairly slow pace$ ma&ing it feasile for the ma9or components of a goo! strategy to remain in place for long perio!s" 2ut in in!ustries where in!ustry an! competiti%e con!itions change fre5uently an! in sometimes !ramatic ways$ the life cycle of a gi%en strategy is short" )n!ustry en%ironments characteri3e! y high0%elocity change re5uire companies to rapi!ly a!apt their strategies"7 4or e-ample$ companies in in!ustries with rapi!0fire a!%ances in technology,li&e me!ical e5uipment$ electronics$ an! wireless !e%ices,often fin! it essential to a!9ust one or more &ey elements of their strategies se%eral times a year$ sometimes e%en fin!ing necessary to rein%ent their approach to pro%i!ing %alue to their customers" /ompanies in online retailing an! the tra%el an! resort in!ustries fin! it necessary to a!apt their strategies to accommo!ate su!!en ursts of new spen!ing or sharp !rop0offs in !eman!$ often up!ating their mar&et prospects an! financial pro9ections e%ery few months" 2ut regar!less of whether a companys strategy changes gra!ually or swiftly$ the important point is that a companys present strategy is always temporary an! on trial$ pen!ing new i!eas for impro%ement from management$ changing in!ustry an! competiti%e con!itions$ an! any other new !e%elopments that management elie%es warrant strategy a!9ustments" #hus$ a companys strategy at any gi%en point is flui!$ representing the temporary outcome of an ongoing process that$ on the one han!$ in%ol%es reasone! an! creati%e management efforts to craft an effecti%e strategy an!$ on the other han!$ in%ol%es ongoing responses to mar&et change an! constant e-perimentation an! tin&ering" A!apting to new con!itions an! constantly learning what is wor&ing well enough to continue an! what nee!s to e impro%e! is conse5uently a normal part of the strategy0ma&ing process an! results in an e%ol%ing strategy" &' ompany is partly proati!e and partly reati!e( #he e%ol%ing nature of a companys strategy means that the typical company strategy is a len! of (1) 8roacti%e actions to impro%e the companys financial performance an! secure a competiti%e e!ge an! (2) as0nee!e! reactions to unanticipate! !e%elopments an! fresh mar&et con!itions #he iggest portion of a companys current strategy flows from pre%iously initiate! actions an! usiness approaches that are wor&ing well enough to merit continuation an! newly launche! initiati%es aime! at oosting financial performance an! e!ging out ri%als" #ypically$ managers proacti%ely mo!ify this or that aspect of their strategy as new learning emerges aout which pieces of the strategy are wor&ing well an! which arent$ an! as they hit upon new i!eas for strategy impro%ement" #his part of managements action plan for running the company is !elierate an! proacti%e$ stan!ing as the current pro!uct of managements latest an! est strategy i!eas" 2ut managers must always e willing to supplement or mo!ify all the proacti%e strategy elements with as0nee!e! reactions to unanticipate! !e%elopments" )ne%italy$ there will e occasions when mar&et an! competiti%e con!itions ta&e an une-pecte! turn that calls for some &in! of strategic reaction or a!9ustment" (ence$ a portion of a companys strategy is always !e%elope! on the fly$ coming as a response to fresh strategic maneu%ers on the part of ri%al firms$ une-pecte! shifts in customer re5uirements an! e-pectations$ fast0changing technological !e%elopments$ newly appearing mar&et opportunities$ a changing political or economic climate$ or other unanticipate! happenings in the surroun!ing en%ironment" #hese a!apti%e strategy a!9ustments form the reacti%e strategy elements" ). Why are rafting and exeuting strategies important? Answer: /rafting an! e-ecuting strategy are top0priority managerial tas&s for two %ery ig reasons" *irst+ there is a compelling nee! for managers to proactively shape$ or craft$ how the companys usiness will e con!ucte!" A clear an! reasone! strategy is managements prescription for !oing usiness$ its roa! map to competiti%e a!%antage$ its game plan for pleasing customers an! impro%ing financial performance" .inning in the mar&etplace re5uires a well0 concei%e!$ opportunistic strategy$ usually one characteri3e! y strategic offensi%es to out inno%ate an! outmaneu%er ri%als an! secure sustainale competiti%e a!%antage$ then using this mar&et e!ge to achie%e superior financial performance" A powerful strategy that !eli%ers a home run in the mar&etplace can propel a firm from a trailing position into a lea!ing one$ clearing the way for its pro!ucts1ser%ices to ecome the in!ustry stan!ar!" (igh0achie%ing enterprises are nearly always the pro!uct of astute$ creati%e$ proacti%e strategy ma&ing that sets a company apart from its ri%als" Seond+ a strategy-focused enterprise is more li&ely to e a strong ottom0line performer than a company whose management %iews strategy as secon!ary an! puts its priorities elsewhere" #heres no escaping the fact that the 5uality of managerial strategy ma&ing an! strategy e-ecution has a highly positi%e impact on re%enue growth$ earnings$ an! return on in%estment" A company that lac&s clear0cut !irection$ has %ague or un!eman!ing performance targets$ has a mu!!le! or flawe! strategy$ or cant seem to e-ecute its strategy competently is a company whose financial performance is proaly suffering$ whose usiness is at long0term ris&$ an! whose management is sorely lac&ing" )n contrast$ when crafting an! e-ecuting a winning strategy !ri%e managements whole approach to operating the enterprise$ the o!!s are much greater that the initiati%es an! acti%ities of !ifferent !i%isions$ !epartments$ managers$ an! wor& groups will e unifie! into a coordinated, cohesive effort. Moili3ing the full complement of company resources in a total team effort ehin! goo! e-ecution of the chosen strategy an! achie%ement of the targete! performance allows a company to operate at full power" ,. Explain the relationship between a ompany#s strategy and its business model Answer: /losely relate! to the concept of strategy is the concept of a companys business model. .hile the wor! model con9ures up images of i%ory0tower i!eas that may e loosely connecte! to the real worl!$ such images !o not apply here" A companys usiness mo!el is managements story line for how the strategy will e a moneyma&er" #he story line sets forth the &ey components of the enterprises usiness approach$ in!icates how re%enues will e generate!$ an! ma&es a case for why the strategy can !eli%er %alue to customers in a profitale manner"6 A companys usiness mo!el thus e-plains why its usiness approach an! strategy will generate ample re%enues to co%er costs an! capture a profit" /ompanies that ha%e een in usiness for a while an! are ma&ing acceptale profits ha%e a pro%en usiness mo!el,ecause there is har! e%i!ence that their strategies are capale of profitaility" /ompanies that are in a start0up mo!e or that are losing money ha%e 5uestionale usiness mo!els> their strategies ha%e yet to pro!uce goo! ottom0line results$ putting their story line aout how they inten! to ma&e money an! their %iaility as usiness enterprises in !out" -. &Ethial and .oral standards are not go!erned by what is legal+ rather they in!ol!es issues of right !ersus wrong and of duty(/ what one should do? Answer: )n choosing from among strategic alternati%es$ company managers are well a!%ise! to emrace actions that are ao%e oar! an! can pass the test of moral scrutiny" 6ust&eeping a companys strategic actions within the oun!s of what is legal !o not mean the strategy is ethical" <thical an! moral stan!ar!s are not go%erne! y what is legal" ?ather$ they in%ol%e issues of oth right %ersus wrong an! duty,what one should !o" A strategy is ethical only if (1) )t !oes not entail actions an! eha%iors that cross the line from *shoul! !o+ to *shoul! not !o+ (ecause such actions are unsa%ory$ unconscionale$ or in9urious to other people or unnecessarily harmful to the en%ironment) an! (2) )t allows management to fulfill its ethical !uties to all sta&ehol!ers,owners1sharehol!ers$ employees$ customers$ suppliers$ the communities in which it operates$ an! society at large" Senior e-ecuti%es with strong ethical con%ictions are generally proacti%e in lin&ing strategic action an! ethics: #hey fori! the pursuit of ethically 5uestionale usiness opportunities an! insist that all aspects of company strategy reflect high ethical stan!ar!s" #hey ma&e it clear that all company personnel are e-pecte! to act with integrity$ an! they put organi3ational chec&s an! alances into place to monitor eha%ior$ enforce ethical co!es of con!uct$ an! pro%i!e gui!ance to employees regar!ing any gray areas" #heir commitment to con!ucting the companys usiness in an ethical manner is genuine$ not hypocritical"