BUS501: Strategic Management

This video introduces strategic management, starting with a traditional approach. It leads you through the major concepts that will follow in the course. Do not be overwhelmed by the scope of strategic management. You may want to have the course syllabus in front of you and note the flow of the course as you watch the video.

The videos in this course come from a wide range of business experts, scholars, and organizational leaders. Therefore, you might hear the narrators encourage you to participate in activities outside of our course. Also, the narrators might offer you access to other resources you might consider using as a helpful tool to expand your knowledge of strategic management.

Pay attention to the critical concepts stressed in the instructions included with each activity as you progress through the course.

Before you watch this video, write down your definition of strategy. Pay attention to the role of strategy in achieving organizational goals. This professor has recorded many informational lectures on strategy that we cannot specifically reference in this course because of copyright issues. However, as you continue through the materials in this course, you are encouraged to do your own independent research to access other items by the professors with presentation styles that are meaningful to you.

Consider this high-level introduction to Strategic Management and its applications. Outline or take notes as you read, and pay attention to the key points identified in each section. Consider the three-legged stool explanation 5 minutes into the Kryscynski video you just viewed, especially the summary. How do the three legs compare with this book's three main processes of strategic business management?

Watch this video, which challenges strategic managers to ask the right questions to build a winning business strategy. Start thinking about the metrics, strengths, weaknesses, inputs, and outputs you will need to think about your company's performance.

Read this short article and study the diagram. This is a good reference item identifying and defining the four basic market structures. In developing a strategy, one needs first to determine the structure the firm is competing in.

This video defines and explains competition in each market structure from an economic viewpoint. In which structure might uniqueness be the most important? In which structure might uniqueness be the least important?

As you watch this video, pay attention to the terms you've heard in your economics courses. Pause the video and review any terms that are unfamiliar to you. Can you name at least one business or service in your community that is an example of (near) perfect competition?

Watch this video for a better understanding of monopolies. Consider the current evolution of these two structures (perfect competition vs. monopoly) in an expanding global-enterprise environment.

In microeconomics, the purpose of every business is to make a profit. In business strategy management, this profit motive is often opposed by organization goals that bend towards social welfare or the firm's reputation. Read the section on the firm's pricing objectives. Can you identify a business that appears to promote a non-profit business goal, such as being a "green" organization?

Read this section, which serves as an overview of the strategic planning process from a market plan perspective. Various stakeholders may look to a firm to maximize different objectives. Think about how firms are in a competitive marketplace and how they can survive and thrive long term.

This chart summarizes the many levels in a business that may be affected by a strategy decision. As you examine this chart, think about how each level of strategy is interrelated to the others. You must strategically manage a more complex organizational structure to be effective and efficient. Any structure must leverage each part's strengths.

Read the introduction, which explains how industries are categorized in the United States. This system allows governments to measure the overall business activity in each sector of the economy.

The SIC Division Structure is a list of categorizations of businesses and industries. Explore the many classifications and think about how strategies might differ among industries.

Read this section to learn the difference between internal and external forces and how they affect organizations. Attempt the exercises at the end of the section.

Read this article, which explains Porter's five forces to consider in business strategy development. This model has been the classical approach to industry analysis since the late 1970s.

This section provides an update to Porter's five forces model to account for the effect of technology on strategic management. Thoroughly read the material for this section, then exercises at the end of the section. How would you apply Porter's five forces model in the world today?

This is a classic work about balance. The ideas are abstract, but work to separate the practical applications, noting how the internal and external environments are perceived. For example, the phrase "When gold and jade fill the hall, their possessor cannot keep them safe" addresses how much wealth a company ought to accumulate. In other words, it may be better to distribute profits as they are made rather than build up a large store of cash that competitors can raid. This is a challenging text to read and understand but is valuable and insightful.

How do you apply and develop vision and mission statements? Read this article for more information on the process.

While this video emphasizes strategy development in healthcare, take notes of its key points. Think about the "I CARE" mission statement what goal each letter stands for. Could this mission statement be used in any business? The last 12 minutes cover SWOT, which we will discuss next.

What is SWOT? How is it used in strategic planning? Read this section and do the exercises at the end. SWOT is an essential tool that you can use to analyze an organization's internal and external factors.

Read this overview of SWOT analysis. Then, conduct a quick web search to identify a company and its SWOT analysis. An example of a company you might find in your search is Walmart. You might notice several sites that illustrate the table found in this article.

Watch this video of a live SWOT analysis in an organization. Note the completion of each of the four components.

A SWOT analysis often is preceded by a PEST Analysis: Political, Economic, Social, Technology. The PEST Analysis model was first introduced in 1967 and has had other names. This course will use the PESTEL Analysis (PEST plus Environmental and Legal issues) as a macro-level viewpoint analysis tool.

Watch this mini-lecture on the generic strategies companies use to develop a plan for competitive advantage.

Read this article and then watch the video, which breaks down the reality that many organizations fail to fully identify their competitive advantage. Start to think about how you might understand or explain your organization's competitive advantage and how to leverage those attributes for growth and sustainability.

After you read this section, think about the role of the value chain in strategic management. How does the use of a value chain impact the distribution of goods in the marketplace? Also, consider the future of value chains as a strategy for business managers after the global pandemic of 2020.

Review this article that explains models of competitive theory. Consider the historical origins of competition and the desire for organizations to gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. Review the account of using a value chain to develop the organization's sustainable competitive advantage.

After you read this section on Porter’s competitive strategies, watch the video for examples of how to apply them in a business environment.

Read this section on "generic strategies" and review the video discussing how many companies implement them. Complete the exercises at the end.

This presentation explains the Delta Model as a tool for competitive advantage by identifying business competencies in three different areas: system lock-in, total customer solutions, and best product. The primary focus for using this tool is the customer. Consider the value the customer places on the product or service and how your organization plans to meet those expectations.

Read this section and watch the video on supply channel models, which discusses how strategic managers can apply a process to sustain a competitive advantage by creating high-quality products and reducing costs. Start to think about how you would use the supply channel model as a strategic manager.

Skim this book about ancient Chinese philosophy and strategy. Pay attention to passages about being victorious over rivals. Consider these general ideas in light of corporate actions like takeovers, price wars, and buyouts.

As you navigate this section, you will explore the growth strategies organizations use to spur growth. You will discover ways that markets might emerge organically to promote a company's growth. The discussion also reflects on how companies integrate and diversify as a form of strategic management.

Read this chapter on the various growth strategies companies use. One particular area of interest for strategic managers is the best practices to build growth for new start-ups in the evolving marketplace. This video will teach how Hubspot CEO Brian Halligan addresses growth. He offers an analogy to showcase how much we as consumers invest in start-ups in our daily lives, such as using Spotify and Uber, which are all start-ups.

Review this article on corporate strategies. Not all firms can make a profit, and sometimes they must cut back. Consider the pros and cons of each retrenchment strategy: turnaround, divestment, bankruptcy, and liquidation.

Then, watch the video from Henry Mintzberg, where he discusses how the strategy must come from the bottom and not from the leaders. Consider how your organization addresses strategy. Are decisions being made by leaders or from the bottom?

Read this section about the concept of a company strategizing to get smaller. It delves deeper into retrenchment and restructuring. Why might a company shrink or exit from its current business structure?

Read this article on the GE/McKinsey matrix model. Strategic planning is a system that allows managers to make decisions regarding processes or choices they need to make on behalf of the organization. The planning process helps leaders organize their reasoning behind specific objectives by mapping out the process for implementation.

As you watch these videos, note the application of competitive advantage in the global arena. The second video covers the application of competitive advantage in the global environment. Note the discussion of the value chain.

Read this introduction to the role of culture in an organization. What is your organization's culture? Why is it essential to business strategy formulation and management?

Read this article. How does MacGregor's Theory X compare to Theory Y?

Strategic managers have struggled with creating a best practice approach to addressing innovation's role in disrupting established businesses. In this video, one managing director challenges participants to consider innovation as more than technology. How does innovation affect your work and personal life?

Review this presentation. How can organizational competencies be used as a competitive force?