Thursday, December 4, 2014

Strategic Management Options

There are many options available when creating a strategic management program for your organization.


Strategic management is commonly used in business to help managers maintain focus on the organization's long-term goals. This typically begins with the creation of a mission statement that outlines the company's purpose for existing. Managers then create strategic goals designed to guide the organization toward a desired future vision. There are many strategic management options available to bring about the necessary changes to meet these goals.


SWOT Analysis


The SWOT analysis is commonly used by managers to identify possible strategic management options. The SWOT analysis is used to analyze the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths and weaknesses are internal aspects, while opportunities and threats are external factors. Once managers and leaders have identified the specific factors that may impact their organizational goals, they can then identify the correct strategic management options available to take advantage of the organization's strengths and opportunities while also combating its weaknesses and threats.


SMART Goals


The SMART goals model is an option commonly used to set goals in the strategic management process. SMART goals are goals that are specific, measurable and reasonably attainable. Most importantly, they are relevant to the organization's mission statement. Finally, they are tied to a specific time line. The use of the SMART goals model is essential to creating goals that are designed to direct the focus of the organization on its long-term strategic management goals.


Sustainable Competitive Advantage


A typical goal of many strategic management programs is to build and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage. This is done by identifying what it is about the company and its products that make them stand out from competitors within the industry. Strategic management options for maintaining a sustainable competitive advantage include researching your target market to understand consumer needs and researching the overall industry to understand your competitors.


Phases of Growth


The strategic management options appropriate to a particular organization will often depend on the organization's phase of growth. For example, a business in an emerging industry must be managed differently than a business in a mature industry. It is essential for managers to maintain a complete and factual understanding of both their own organizational situation and the situation of the overall industry to determine the appropriate strategic management options for their particular organization.

Tags: management options, strategic management, strategic management options, commonly used, options available