Course Overview
Strategic thinking is the ability to think on a big and small scale, long and short term, and into the past and the present. While strategic thinking is a valuable skill for everyone in an organization, it becomes increasingly essential as you ascend the ladder. In fact, you may have a difficult time being promoted or succeeding as a leader without it. Yet, no one formally teaches strategic thinking—so it’s critical to take the initiative and learn how to do it yourself. This course teaches managers and leaders how to use strategic thinking to guide the direction of their teams and come up with solutions to key business problems. We show you how to carve out time to think about strategy, gather data, learn from the past, create a vision for the future, and implement strategic thinking within your team
Objectives
- Learn how to develop a plan to achieve the goals you want for you and your organization (company/division/ business unit/team)
- Develop strategic thinking in your organization
- Develop a strategic plan for your organization
- Identify the principles and mechanisms that drive successful implementation
- Develop measurable action plans that result in success
- Understand your underlying business model and how it relates to your strategy
Training Methodology
This highly interactive Strategic Business Thinking training course encourages delegate participation through a combination of short lectures, large and small group discussion, practical exercises, case studies, and breakout sessions to practice new skills. The comprehensive course manual has been designed to be practical, and easy to use. Delegates will gain the skills and motivation they need to design, develop and implement powerful but simple strategies.
Training Outline
DAY 1
Strategic Thinking and Planning
- The Essence of Strategy – core concept and definition of terms
- The Difference between Good Strategy and Bad Strategy
- How to Think Strategically – practical techniques
- Leadership and Management, Comparing Strategy and Operations
- Strategic and Operational Goals – the significance and difference
- Using the Strategic Management System
DAY 2
Developing Strategy – The Power of Business Analysis
- Understanding the Importance and Value of a “Business Model”
- Vision, Values, Mission, and Goals – strategy as perspective
- Case Examples and Guidelines: Vision and Mission Statements
- Analyzing your Business Environment
- How to Evaluate Your Organisation’s Competencies and Capabilities
- Resource-based Approaches to Strategy
DAY 3
Strategy Development, Choice and Translation
- Levels of Strategy: Corporate, Business and Functional
- Competitive Strategy – strategy as position
- Emergent Strategies – strategy as patterns
- Uncertainty and Scenarios – strategy as plans
- Strategic Choice – how to select the best strategy
- Translating Strategy with Strategy Maps and Balanced Scorecards
DAY 4
Embedding Strategy in the Organisation
- Communicating Strategy and Managing Stakeholders
- How to Manage Strategic Risk
- Alignment of Operations with Strategy
- Strategic Performance Measurement
- Managing Implementation – effective execution of strategy
- Integrating Strategic and Operational Management Processes
DAY 5
Bringing It All Together
- Good Strategy – case examples
- Building a Strategy / Business Planning Team
- Analyzing Business Models and Strategies in an Industry
- Understanding and Overcoming Psychological Bias
- Overview of the whole course
- Action Planning and Next Steps
Who Should Attend?
This Strategic Business Thinking training provides a vital knowledge base to prepare for greater responsibility and moving into more senior roles. It will benefit managers who are about to take on strategic responsibility; those who have recently done so and more established senior managers who want to update their knowledge, including:
- Business Managers
- Team Leaders
- Process Leaders
- Functional Managers
- Project Managers
- Newly-appointed Senior Managers
Course Features
- Lectures 0
- Quizzes 0
- Duration 40 hours
- Skill level All levels
- Language English
- Students 250
- Assessments Yes
