STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT MODEL / STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS

In today's highly competitive business environment, budget-oriented planning or

forecast-based planning methods are insufficient for a large corporation to survive
and prosper. The firm must engage in strategic planning that clearly defines objectives
and assesses both the internal and external situation to formulate strategy,
implement the strategy, evaluate the progress, and make adjustments as
necessary to stay on track.

 STRATEGIC INTENT
Strategic intent takes the form of a number of corporate challenges and
opportunities, specified as short term projects. The strategic intent must convey a
significant stretch for the company, a sense of direction, which can be
communicated to all employees. It should not focus so much on today's problems,
but rather on tomorrow’s opportunities. Strategic intent should specify the
competitive factors, the factors critical to success in the future

Strategic intent gives a picture about what an organization must get into
immediately in order to use the opportunity. Strategic intent helps management to
emphasize and concentrate on the priorities. Strategic intent is, nothing but, the
influencing of an organization’s resource potential and core competencies to achieve
what at first may seem to be unachievable goals in the competitive environment

 Environmental Scan
The environmental scan includes the following components:
Analysis of the firm (Internal environment)
Analysis of the firm's industry (micro or task environment)

Analysis of the External macro environment (PEST analysis)

The internal analysis can identify the firm's strengths and weaknesses and the
External analysis reveals opportunities and threats. A profile of the strengths, ,
opportunities, and threats is generated by means of a SWOT analysis An industry
analysis can be performed using a framework developed by Michael Porter known
as Porter's five forces. This framework evaluates entry barriers, suppliers,
customers, substitute products, and industry rivalry.

 Strategy Formulation
Strategy Formulation is the development of long-range plans for the effective
management of environmental opportunities and threats, in light of corporate
Strengths & weakness. It includes defining the corporate mission, specifying
achievable objectives, developing strategy & setting policy guidelines

i) Mission
Mission is the purpose or reason for the organization’s existence. It tells what the
company is providing to society, either a service like housekeeping or a product like
automobiles.
ii) Objectives
Objectives are the end results of planned activity. They state what is to be
accomplished by when and should be quantified, if possible. The achievement of
corporate objectives should result in the fulfillment of a corporation’s mission.

iii) Strategies
Strategy is the complex plan for bringing the organization from a given posture to a
desired position in a future period of time.

 Strategy Implementation
It is the process by which strategy & policies are put into actions through the
development of programs, budgets & procedures. This process might involve
changes within the overall culture, structure and/or management system of the
entire organization.

i) Programs:
It is a statement of the activities or steps needed to accomplish a single-use plan It
makes the strategy action oriented. It may involve restructuring the corporation,
changing the company’s internal culture or beginning a new research effort.

ii) Budgets:
A budget is a statement of a corporations program in terms of dollars. Used in
planning & control, a budget lists the detailed cost of each program. The budget
thus not only serves as a detailed plan of the new strategy in action, but also
specifies through preform financial statements the expected impact on the firm’s
financial future

iii) Procedures:
Procedures, sometimes termed Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) are a system
of sequential steps or techniques that describe in detail how a particular task or job
is to be done. They typically detail the various activities that must be carried out in
Order to complete