The Art, Science, and Craft of Decision-Making

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?

General Business Management

Failure of Strategy

Reasons why strategic plans fail

There are many reasons why strategic plans fail, especially:

  • Failure to understand the customer
    • Why do they buy
    • Is there a real need for the product
    • inadequate or incorrect marketing research
    • customer looking for more advanced technology, user safety, aesthetic appearance
  • Inability to predict competitive|environmental reaction
    • What will competitors do
    • Does your product fulfill the aspirational needs of customer
    • company structure and style not lending to find out the possible reactions; its style has always been 'knee-jerk' reactions.
      • Fighting brand management|brands
    • product has crossed its half-life period; no further research done to revamp/add more attributes
    • Company has not taken a full view of the market demand ;supplies reaching only a few pockets.
      • Price wars
    • an attitude of complacence or a fear of market expecting a permanent crash in prices due to price war
    • Will government intervene
    • Whether any USP is envisaged vis-a-vis the existing models
  • Over-estimation of resource competence
    • Can the staff, equipment, and processes handle the new strategy
    • Failure to develop new employee and management skills
    • Does the organization know how to fit in new resources with old team
  • Failure to coordinate
    • Reporting and control relationships not adequate; company is bogged down by silos, internal politics
    • Organizational structure not flexible enough
    • Keeping the teams in darkness about their roles in the overall progress of the project
    • Teams not given the big picture
  • Failure to obtain senior management commitment
    • Failure to get management involved right from the start
    • Failure to obtain sufficient company resources to accomplish task
    • Failure give adequate briefing to senior management
    • Failure to be transparent with senior management team
  • Failure to obtain employee commitment
    • New strategy not well explained to employees
    • No incentives given to workers to embrace the new strategy
    • Failure to train the junior level operatives for the new project
    • Failure to involve employees before the start of project
    • Failure of senior planners to understand the nitty gritties at the operational level
  • Under-estimation of time requirements
    • No critical path analysis done
    • Senior and middle level managers not adequately exposed or trained to handle nitty gritties in execution
  • Failure to follow the plan
    • No follow through after initial planning
    • No tracking of progress against plan
    • No consequences for above
    • No proper training to give feed back at the critical junctures
  • Failure to manage change
    • Inadequate understanding of the internal resistance to change
    • Lack of vision on the relationships between processes, technology and organization
  • Poor communications
    • Insufficient information sharing among stakeholders
    • Exclusion of stakeholders and delegates