Welcome to

AP/ADMS 4900
Management Policy I
Today’s Agenda
• Course overview

• Grade components

• Chapter 1
• Text: Barney, J. B. and Hesterly,
W. S. Strategic Management &
Competitive Advantage, 6th
edition, Pearson.

• Cases: 9 cases to purchase on

https://www.iveypublishing.ca/s
/
1. What happened to labor markets in April in Canada and
US?

2. What happened to interest rates and housing markets?

3. What happened to Shopify last week?

4. What happened to Amazon’s last quarter earnings?

5. What happened to Twitter last two weeks?

Course Objectives
• To better appreciate strategy decision
making processes
• To better understand what contributing to
differences in firm performances
• To better understand different kinds of
strategies
• To sharpen the case analysis ability
Course Evaluation
• Mid-term exam (30%) • Participation (20%)
• July 22, 10-12pm • 15% Session on-going

• Group work (30%) participation

• 5% Q&As
• 5% Group critique
• 25% Group presentation

• Final exam (20%)

• Aug 14, In class
Group work (30%)

• You will be assigned to a group

• Group presentation (25%)

• Sessions 9 – 11

• Group critique (5%)

Participation (20%)
• 15% session on-going participation

• 5% Q&As during the three-session of

group presentation
Chapter 1

What Is Strategy and the Strategic

Management Process?
Competitive Advantage:
Temporary vs sustainable

• Competitive advantage is about to create more

economic value than rivals.

• Competitive advantage typically results in profits

• Profits attract competition

• Most competitive advantage is temporary

• Competitors imitate the advantage or offer

something better
Strategic Management Process
Strategic management process
Strategic management process
Strategy Implementation
• how strategies are carried out
• who will do what
• organizational structure and control
• who reports to whom
• how does the firm hire, promote, pay, etc.

A Strategy Is Only As Good As Its

Implementation
The role of general managers in strategic
management

• To evaluate performance
• Various performance indicators
• Self and social comparison

• To make decisions on firm operational and

strategic issues and implement the decision.
• Scanning and monitoring internal and external environments

• But, there is always uncertainty in the process

What’s on next session?
• Chapter 2

• Case: The Chinese Firework

Industry (please purchase the case
on Ivey Publishing).