Assignment: STRATEGY REVIEW
Strategy Review, Evaluation, and Control.
Thus far, you have taken a number of steps that have led you through the strategy formulation and implementation activities of the strategic management. Now you are ready to learn about the activities pertaining to the ongoing review and evaluation of the strategy. These activities also include some planning, some structuring, and the execution of a continuous evaluation process that includes the ongoing adaptation of strategy to the ever-changing internal and external context.
Like the strategy formulation and implementation stages, evaluation should be built into the systems and processes of the organization, so that as it does its work, whether on a daily basis, quarterly basis, or yearly basis, it engages in activities that systemically feed into the overall strategic management process.
It is easy to see how strategy evaluation should be built into the systems and processes of the organization because strategy evaluation should naturally be wedded to the control processes of management.
However, it is equally valid that the standing systems and processes of the organization should be designed so that they feed information and insight into the formulation and implementation stages.
Designing the systems and processes of the organization this way is necessary so that evaluation can drive individual and organizational learning and so that organizational learning can become the means by which continuous strategy formulation, implementation, and evaluation can occur.
In a picture, think of the operational systems, processes, and activities of the organization as smaller cogwheels that are connected to the larger cogwheels of strategic management and turn the larger wheels as they turn.
Study Group Work: Managing the Strategy
After studying and integrating in your thinking the materials presented to you on strategy evaluation in the lectures and assigned readings, you will design and propose a strategy evaluation approach for your organization by following the steps below.
As you are not actually executing a strategy in real life, you will not be able to actually engage in an evaluation of your recommended strategy.
However, you can design the evaluation approach, and you can describe how the evaluation approach will measure the results you would expect for the strategy to achieve.
Step 1: As your organization is implementing its strategy, how will it review the progress being made against the plan?
What kind of periodic progress reviews should take place? What should be reviewed? Who should be involved in the review(s), and how?
Describe the philosophy and objectives of the review process. How does it fit in with the Acquire, Interpret, and Apply (using PDSA) approach to learning-focusing specifically on the PDSA process?
Step 2: As your organization is implementing its strategy, how will it evaluate what is occurring so that the root causes of the gaps between the plan and the actions and results are identified?
Bossidy and Charan (2002) note: "The strategy by itself is not often the cause [of failure]. Strategies most often fail because they aren't executed well" (p. 15). If things aren't going well, how will you determine if the root cause lies with the execution or with the strategy itself? What criteria would be used to guide you in this evaluation?
What structures, policies, personnel, and processes should be put in place in order to anticipate, prevent, or fix early some of the common causes of strategy implementation failure? Try to be as specific as you can about which common causes you will anticipate and the approach you will take to prevent or quickly fix them.
Step 3: As your organization is implementing its strategy, what management controls will be needed, and how will they be executed, so that necessary adjustments are made to move the organization closer to the strategy?
Step 4: As your organization is implementing its strategy, some things are bound to go wrong. Strategy implementation may fail because of any of a myriad of external and internal changes that were not foreseen.
What might be some of problems your strategy implementation could face?
Describe briefly a contingency plan for each of these.
Step 5: The key to strategy implementation often comes down to the mental models, attitudes, feelings, and behaviors of the people in your organization. The mental models of both individuals, and entire groups within the organization, matter.
How will you go about getting the people and critical groups in your organization committed to successful implementation?
What will you do to minimize or eliminate the resistance to the change that the new strategy will bring?
What new enabling structures, organizational culture traits, and communication habits should be developed to ensure successful implementation of the new strategy? Be specific in your list and description of these. Try to give a brief explanation for how you would put these things in place within the organization.
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.