 |  Management: Skills and Application, 10/e Leslie W Rue,
Georgia State University - Emeritus
Lloyd L Byars,
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Basics of Management and Strategic Management
Chapter Summary| 1. Define planning, and distinguish between formal and functional plans. Planning is the process of deciding which objectives to pursue during a future time period and what to do to achieve those objectives. Formal planning occurs when a written, documented plan is developed through an identifiable process. Functional plans originate from the functional areas of an organization, such as production, marketing, finance, and personnel.
2. Contrast strategic planning with operational planning. Strategic planning covers a relatively long period, affects many parts of the organization, and includes the formulation of objectives and the selection of the means for attaining those objectives. Operational or tactical planning is short range and concentrates on the formulation of functional strategies.
3. Define strategy, and explain the various levels of strategies. A strategy outlines the basic steps management must take to reach an objective or a set of objectives. Corporate strategies (growth, stability, defensive, or combination) address what businesses an organization will be in and how resources will be allocated among those businesses. Business strategies (overall cost leadership, differentiation, and focus) concentrate on how to compete in a given business or industry. Functional strategies (production, marketing, finance, and personnel) deal with the activities of the different functional areas of the business.
4. Define strategic management, and explain the strategic management process. Strategic management is the process of determining the long-run direction and performance of an organization by ensuring careful formulation, proper implementation, and continuous evaluation of plans and strategies. The major phases of the strategic management process are (1) formulating the strategic plan, (2) implementing the strategic plan, and (3) continuously evaluating and updating the strategic plan.
5. Explain the differences among missions, objectives, policies, procedures, and rules. The organization's mission defines the basic purpose or purposes of the organization and usually includes a description of the organization's basic products or services and a definition of its markets or sources of revenue. Objectives are statements outlining what the organization is trying to achieve; they give the organization and its members direction and purpose. Objectives can be long, intermediate, or short range in nature. Policies are broad, general guides to action that constrain or direct the attainment of objectives. Policies do not tell the organization what to do, but they do establish the boundaries within which it must operate. Procedures are a series of related steps or tasks expressed in chronological order for a specific purpose. Procedures emphasize details. Finally, rules require specific and definite actions to be taken or not to be taken in a given situation. Unlike procedures, rules do not have to specify sequence; they permit no flexibility or deviation.
6. Discuss the components of a SWOT analysis. SWOT is an acronym for an organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. A SWOT analysis is a technique for evaluating an organization's internal strengths and weaknesses and its external opportunities and threats. A major advantage of using a SWOT analysis is that it provides a general overview of the organization's strategic situation.
7. Define a strategic business unit (SBU). An SBU is a distinct business that has its own set of competitors and can be managed reasonably independently of other businesses within the organization.
8. Discuss what organizational factors need to be evaluated in implementing a strategic plan. Not only does an organization have a strategic history; it also has existing structures, policies, and systems. Although each of these factors can change as a result of a new strategy, each must be assessed and dealt with as part of the implementation process. |
|
2003 McGraw-Hill Higher Education