Strategic Management Process, Essay Example

Introduction

The components of strategic management process are the key building blocks of every strategy which enable the organization to achieve the desired goals and objectives. it is in the realization of this fact that this paper highlights these components which are vital in strategic management.

Components of strategic management

The following elements are the major components of every strategic management process; setting of strategic vision, formulating objectives, establishing strategies to match the designed objectives, implementation and execution of the strategy and finally assessment of performance.

Setting of strategic vision is the first component of strategic management which involves searching for information that is vital for the creation of the company’s vision. The designed vision enables the organization to achieve long term mission statement. At this stage, the management of the organization has the duty of deciding the anticipated future of the business. The vision of the company cultivates its identity in the market or industry and hence achieves the purpose of existence (Evens and Wurster 2009).

Formulation of objectives involves reducing dividing the vision statement into small manageable specific objectives of the business. The objectives specify what has to be achieved within a specified time period and outline the activities and the distance involved. During formulation of a company’s objectives, the SMART principle should be used as the proper guideline that enables the company design good objectives.

Establishing strategies to match the designed objectives is the next step which entails stating the expected direction while at the same time ensuring that strategies highlight what should be pursued to realize the stated objectives. This step is aimed at making the objectives more realistic and achievable as stated in the SMART principle (Moore, 2010).

Implementation and execution, this stage involves changing the strategies into actual activities and processes of the business. At this stage, the management has the main task of ensuring that activities of the organization meet the set objectives. The stage also requires all organizational members to stick to the core values of the company regardless of the changes that may occur during implementation (Evens and Wurster 2009).

Assessment of performance is the last component of strategic management process which involves assumption of the continual transition in the organization. This stage calls for the management of the organization to develop proper techniques which can be used in analyzing and monitoring the performance of the organization (Evens and Wurster 2009).

The next section of this paper describes strategic management process used by Unilever. As international organization, Unilever has strategic management process which entail scanning of the environment for business information. This is followed by formulation of strategies to accomplish the company’s goals. The next stage taken by the company is implementation of strategy whereby the identified strategy is put into action by incorporating it into the business activities and processes. The last stage taken by the organization is evaluation of strategy whereby the organization performs internal and external assessment of the strategy (Rushton, 2011).

References

Evens, P. & Wurster, T. (2009). “Strategy and the New Economics of Information”, Harvard Business Review.

Moore, H. (2010), Creating Public Value: Strategic Management in Government, Cambridge: Harvard University Press,

Rushton, K. (2011). “Unilever to shake up £5.1bn global advertising spend”. London: The Telegraph.