Strategic Thinking and Business Planning

Course Objectives

The course is aimed at fulfilling following objectives:

• Develop analytical skills within participants to timely identify opportunities and vulnerabilities
• Prepare participants to take research backed decisions
• To develop managerial awareness within the participants by sharpening their future oriented approach
• To equip the participants with various managerial tools that will help them review different business functions
• To help develop insights for strategic decisions such as identifying cost drivers, focusing on differentiation, etc.
• To inculcate competitive intelligence with the participants

Course Outline

 Fundamentals of Strategic Thinking

• Why is strategic thinking important?
• Role of strategic thinking in business
• Components of strategic thinking
• Strategic thinking competencies: intent focused, intelligent opportunism
• Ways to improve strategic thinking skills

 Introduction to Business Planning

• Strategic thinking versus strategic planning
• Role of strategic thinking in business planning
• Types of business planning
• Steps in business planning
• Drafting a business plan
• Genesis of business policy

Establishing strategic intent

• Understanding stretch, leverage and fit
• Developing vision and mission statement
• Dimensions of business definition
• Business model
• Objective setting

Strategy formulation

• Environmental scanning
• Sources of information
• Organisation appraisal

Corporate level strategies

• Concentration, integration and diversification
• Expansion, stability, retrenchment strategies
• Integration strategies: horizontal and vertical
• Diversification strategies-concentric or related

 Business level strategies

• Positioning of firm in industry
• General business strategy- differentiation and cost leadership
• Tactics for business strategy- timing tactics, location tactics
• Business strategy for different industry stages

 Strategic analysis

• Tools and techniques for strategic analysis
• Corporate portfolio analysis
• Experience curve analysis
• Strategic group analysis
• Competitor analysis

 Strategic choice

• Process of strategic choice
• Strategic alternatives
• Analysing and evaluating strategic alternatives

Basics of problem-solving and negotiation skills

• Tools for understanding problems
• Cause and effect analysis
• Use of brainstorming
• Critical thinking in decision making
• Techniques of negotiation
• Dynamics of negotiation
• Role of communication in negotiation