Strategic management is regarded as a capstone course because it is a summative course that makes use of prior courses and college experiences to evaluate the performance of a student. The student is given an opportunity to demonstrate their mastery in a major and assesses the students' cognitive and psychomotor learning in a major. Capstones are receiving increased attention for their ability to evaluate the performance of a student. Faculties have developed different approaches that have led to extensive benefits than initially expected (Afonina, 2015; David & David, 2015).
Strategic management helps the learner to integrate the perspectives, skills and the subfields of the other courses resulting in the increased coherence of the course. It enhances a multi-assessment of the students' understanding of the different classes that were taken in earlier stages of the course. In this course, students build a range of skills that help to demonstrate their abilities in presenting, reviewing, writing, designing projects to sitting for a comprehensive exam (David & David, 2015).
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Students engage in a strategic management course might be required to present term papers or their research projects in the class, to defend or argue for or against an issue, sit in an oral exam or form a group to solve a problem or to conduct research. Such courses also attempt to assess different levels of critical thinking by allowing the students to apply various concepts and theories learned in previous units in the class. It tries to enhance their problem-solving (Pearce & Robinson; 2013).
The students are exposed to literature reviews, case studies, audience analysis, argumentative papers, canon discussions, and self-evaluation to enhance their knowledge and assess their skills. Case studies in strategic management are widely used for role plays and to present the students with ethical dilemmas that they will have to resolve. The course provides multiple opportunities where students can conduct a self assessment (Thompson et al., 2008).
Strategic management involves a series of essential steps that start with developing a business mission and vision to selecting a strategy that an organization will pursue. It comprises three broad topics, i.e., strategy formulation, implementation, and evaluation. Strategy formulation involves many steps including the development of vision and mission statement, conducting a swot analysis, establishing long-term objectives, identifying alternatives and selecting unique strategies to pursue. Managers must consider strategic issues like what new businesses to engage in, what to abandon, resource allocation, decisions of expansion or diversification, expanding to international markets, merging or formation of joint ventures (Afonina, 2015; Pearce & Robinson; 2013).
Conducting an external market analysis often takes more time because an organization must identify relevant information that can be used to make strategic decisions. External market analysis requires qualified people who are aware of the task ahead and the kind of information that they are looking for. Some of the data might be difficult to access mainly if it is sensitive and competitors are unwilling to divulge (Thompson et al., 2008).
Vision and mission statement is essential to an organization in its quest to conduct business activities in a competitive world as they communicate its values and purpose. The vision focuses on the future of the company and acts as a roadmap that shows what the company desires to be and guides such initiatives by establishing the direction that the company will take in its growth. Organizations set vision statements and stick with them for an extended period without conducting any alterations. It helps in the formulation of strategic plans while motivating the employees and enables the creation of core competencies to differentiate from the competition (David & David, 2015; Pearce & Robinson; 2013).
A mission statement addresses the issues of what business the company should engage in. It helps in strategy formulation by identifying the scope, the type of product or services to offer, the primary market and the geographical location in which a business operates. It is a declaration by the management of the desire and intentions of the company. A mission statement is useful in directing an organization and to communicate to the employees. The statement helps by clearly stating the key markets, the products and the unique features that differentiate a company from its competitors (David & David, 2015; Pearce & Robinson; 2013).
Objectives are the results that an organization desires to achieve and commonly cover a year or more. A strategy is the means for obtaining the long-term goal, for example, expanding into new markets, diversifying business operations, mergers, developing new products, entering into new markets, forming joint ventures and liquidation. Policies are the means of achieving annual organizational objectives. They include the rules, guidelines, and the procedures in place that support the efforts of an organization to achieve the desired goals (David & David, 2015; Steiner; 2008).
Some CEOs fail to use strategic management approaches arguing that it is a complicated process that is time-consuming. Such officers find it difficult to make decisions preferring to operate without. Some organizations have poor reward structures. Therefore, the employees are not willing to engage in strategic management. Others say that they are too expensive and time-consuming. Some are content with the conditions or are somewhat lazy to participate in the process. The fear of failure or overconfidence in the CEO can also be a factor for not using strategic management. Other factors include differences in opinions, prior experiences, self-interest, fear of the unknown and suspicion (David & David, 2015; Thompson et al., 2008).
Strategic management has several financial and non-financial benefits for an organization. Economic benefits range from profitability, high performance, and responsiveness to changing environmental conditions leading to enhance d long-term financial performance compared to other firms in the industry (Pearce & Robinson; 2013).
Nonfinancial benefits include enhanced awareness of the firm, its strengths, and weakness and its competitors leading to employee productivity. It contributes to order and discipline to the company while allowing them to take advantage of opportunities. It helps firms to allocate resources and creates a framework for internal communication. Strategic management, therefore, is an essential element in an organization for making decisions that benefit the firm both financially and non-financially (Afonina, 2015; David & David, 2015; Pearce & Robinson; 2013; Steiner; 2008; Thompson et al., 2008).
References
Afonina, A. (2015). Strategic Management Tools and Techniques and Organizational Performance: Findings from the Czech Republic. Journal of Competitiveness, 7 (3), 19-36. doi:10.7441/joc.2015.03.02
David, F. R., & David, F. R. (2015). Strategic management: concepts and cases ; a competitive advantage approach . Boston: Pearson.
Pearce, J. A., & Robinson, R. B. (2013). Strategic management: formulation, implementation, and control . New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education
Steiner, G. A. (2008). Strategic Planning . Riverside: Free Press.
Thompson, A. A., Strickland, A. J., & Gamble, J. (2006). Strategic management: concepts and cases . Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Education.
