Managing, Developing and Implementing Strategy

Aims of this Unit

This unit aims to provide students with both a theoretical and practical understanding of strategic management and the strategy process, including how to use the tools and techniques of business analysis and decision-making to develop and implement value creating (competitive) strategies at organisations.

Knowledge and Understanding

This unit is designed to provide students with an understanding of:
• Theories and concepts of strategic management, and how they can be applied to organisations operating in complex and uncertain business or non-market institutional environments
• Strategy process, including how rational and non-rational processes of analysis are used to develop and implement strategies, and the role played by different organisational functions
• External and internal factors that impact organisations and industries
• Tools and techniques of strategic analysis and strategy implementation
• Methods used to assess and improve organisational performance and link strategy to performance and vice versa

Learning Outcomes

Following completion of this course, participants should be able to:

1. Identify, analyse and discuss the important business challenges confronting managers and leaders
2. Interpret these challenges in the context of strategic management and the business objectives and strategic options they represent
3. Critically analyse the effectiveness and sustainability of an organisation’s current strategy and where performance gaps exist
4. Identify the skills and resources needed to fill performance gaps and achieve strategic goals while mitigating risk
5. Use and evaluate monitoring and control processes to measure the progress of the strategy as it is implemented
6. Develop, articulate and present competitive business strategies and visions
7. Effectively apply critical thinking skills to resolve problems independently and ethically while drawing on credible sources of information and data