Running head: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS TOOLS
Strategic Management Analysis Tools
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Abstract
The number of strategic management analysis tools have increased dramatically in the last twenty years. This increase could be a result of a growing demand to meet the new demands this new global market. This literature review aims to outline these articles and findings by concentrating on the strategic management research tools and describing the tools that are the most useful for managers to use.
Keywords: tools, strategic analysis, strategic management, strategic planning.
Strategic Management Analysis Tools
Brief History
In recent decades, ...view middle of the document...
Because the tools were only a method to attain the objectives determined by management, the study of strategic management analysis has not been the focus of researchers. Despite, the lack of research on this subject matter, strategic management analysis tools is an instrumental part of a strategic plan.
As a prelude to reviewing strategic management analysis tools, it is important to evaluate the history of strategic planning. What we consider strategic planning today was preceded by the process Programming, Planning, and Budgeting Systems also known as PPBS which was introduced in the 1940s. Initially, this process was rarely practiced by the managers during that time period. With the growth of the economy not only domestically but also globally during the 1950’s, Fortune 100 Corporations like General Electric started planning strategically and promoting its merits. Companies wanted to know at this point “What was strategic planning?”
Strategic planning experienced a growth period during the decades of the 60’s and the 70’s. Companies experienced such great expansion which ultimately resulted in their business units becoming more complex. This growth created a need for more formalized methods for managing each business unit. Longer planning and budgeting cycles were now required to accommodate the longer operating period. In the past, managers only used financial planning as their primary framework for managing but eventually realized that these companies required a more intense strategic planning. It is during this stage that the focus would be on the process of strategic planning. It was evident by the elite companies that started implementing strategic planning.
In the 1980’s the strategic planning and implementation trend started to wane as companies experienced less than satisfactory results from certain strategies. As with any business application, literature began to reflect both the pros and cons of strategic planning. Upon review of strategic applications, the consensus was that overall the methods were in itself not problematic, but the failures that resulted were clearly due to the following: (1) Less than enthusiastic support from management, (2) Not enough focus on data collection, (3) Procedurally, inept without follow through on initial goals, (4) Not considering a budget while preparing strategic plan and (5) Failure to implement strategic goals.
Strategic planning in the late 1980’s graduated from simply being applications processed to more technique driven. On the one hand, most practitioners of strategic planning recognize the value of the process as a means of disciplining their planning activities and applying critical thinking to their business situation. Strategic planning has become more valuable simply from continued use of the current tools and methods by managers with more sophisticated analytical skills. The strategic planning process itself provides a basis for answers by the through the use of...
