~ MANAGING INTERNAL OPERATIONS: ACTIONS THAT PROMOTE GOOD STRATEGY EXECUTION ~

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

Managing for continuous improvement:

• Benchmarking
• Process reengineering
• Six sigma quality programs
• Total quality management (TQM)
• Best practices

Business Process Reengineering

- Involves radically redesigning and streamlining work effort, flows and processes to achieve dramatic improvements in performance.

- Uses cross-functional teams, cutting-edge technology and information systems to reset and refocus the organization's strategy.

Total Quality Management (TQM)

Creating a total quality culture bent on continuously improving the performance of every task and value chain activity.

Is a long-term race without a finish in which success comes slowly in small steps forward ( kaizen )

Six sigma programs: utilize statistical methods to improve quality by reducing defects and variability in business process.

Six sigma principles: 

• All work is a process.
• All processes have variability.
• All processes create data that explain variability.

~Building Organization Capable of Good Strategy Execution:~

People, Capabilities, and Structure

NUR FILZAH BT SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

Before we start this chapter, we do some revision about previous chapter we have learned before.

''If we have an bombastic idea, but we don't have an efficient employees, thus, we can't apply that ideas.'' 

The 10 basic tasks of the strategy execution process:

Paramount Actions are :

• Staffing the organization
• Acquiring, developing, and strengthening key resources and capabilities.
• - develop capabilities internally : first, strengthen the firm's skills, knowledge, and intellect. Second,  coordinate and integrated the efforts of work groups and departments.
• - acquire capabilities through mergers and acquisitions
• - access capabilities via collaborative partnerships : First, outsource the function requiring the capabilities to a key supplier or another provider. Second, collaborate with a firm that has complementary resources and capabilities. Lastly, engage in a collaborative partnership for the purpose of learning hoe the partner does things.
• Structuring the organization and work effort.
• - decide which value chain activities to perform internally and which ones to outsource.
• - align the organizational structure with the strategy.
• - decide how much authority to centralize at the top and how much to delegate to down-the-line managers and employees.
• - facilitate collaboration with external partners and strategic allies.

Matching Type Of Organizational Structure To Strategy Execution Requirements.

• Simple structure ( line-and-staff ) 
• Functional structure ( departmental or unitary ) - chosen strategy
• Multidivisional structure ( divisional M-form ) - capabilities and competencies
• Matrix structure ( composite or combination ) - centralized or decentralized control

1. A simple structure consists of a central execution who handles all major decisions and oversees all operations all operations with the help of a small staff.
2. A functional structure is a organized into functional departments, with departmental managers who report to the CEO and small corporate staff.
3. A multidivisional structure is a decentralized structure consisting of a set of operating divisions organized along business, product, customer group, or geographic lines, and a central corporate headquarters that allocates resources, provide a support functions, and monitors divisional activities.
4. A matrix structure combines two or more organizational forms, with multiple reporting relationships. It is used to foster cross-unit collaboration.

~ CORPORATE CULTURED AND LEADERSHIP: ~

KEYS TO GOOD STRATEGY EXECUTION

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

Corporate culture refers to the shared values, ingrained attitudes, core beliefs and company traditions that determine norms of behavior, accepted work practices, and styles of operating.

Perpetuating the culture by :

• Systematic indoctrination of new members.
• Vocal support by senior managers.
• Rewarding those who display cultural norms.
• Ceremonies honoring employees.
• Telling and retelling of the firm's legends.
• Screening and selecting new employees.

Causes of cultural change are :

1. New or revolutionary technologies.
2. Diversification into new businesses.
3. Rapid growth of the firm.
4. Merger or acquisition of another firm.
5. Shifting internal conditions.
6. New challenges in the marketplace.

In a strong-culture company, deeply rooted values and norms of behavior are widely shared and regulate the conduct of the company's business.

The development of a strong culture with founder or strong leader with strong values and commitment by the firm to ethical behavior.

Changing the culture of an organization.

Top executive and upper management behaviors.

Ceremonial events to honor exemplary employees.

Physical symbols that represent the new culture.

MAKING CORRECTIVE ACTIONS SUCCESSFULLY REQUIRES:

A through analysis of the situation.

Good business judgment in deciding what actions to take.

Good implementation of the corrective actions.

CORPORATE STRATEGY

DIVERSIFICATION AND THE MULTIBUSINESS COMPANY

NUR FILZAH BT SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

In this chapter we learned about corporate strategy and actually the diversification strategy must have or entail four (4) steps which is:

First in step 1, picking new industries to enter and deciding on the means of entry.

Step 2, pursuing opportunities to leverage cross-business value chain relationships and strategic fit into competitive advantage.

Step 3, establishing investment priorities steering corporate resources into the most attractive business units.

Lastly in step 4, initiating actions to boost the combined performance of the cooperation's collection of business.

After that, we look into the options of strategic diversification such as:

- sticking closely with the existing business lineup and pursuing opportunities presented by these business.

- broadening the current scope of diversification by entering additional industries.

- divesting some businesses and retrenching to a narrower collection of diversified businesses with better overall performance prospects.

-restructuring the entire firm by divesting some businesses and acquiring others to put a whole new face on the firm's business lineup.

About the testing:

• The attractiveness test: Are the industry's profits and return on investment as good or better than present business ?
• The cost of entry test: is the cost of overcoming entry barriers so great as to long delay or reduce the potential for profitability ?
• The better-off test: how much synergy will be gained by diversifying into the industry ?

The advantages and disadvantages Acquisition of an Existing Business are:

Advantages: - Quick entry into an industry.

                       - Barriers to entry avoided.

                       - Access to complementary resources and capabilities.

Disadvantages: - Cost of acquisition.

                             - Overestimating the acquisitions potential to deliver added shareholder value.

                             - Underestimating costs for integrating acquired firm.

The core concept an acquisition premium is the amount by which the price offered exceeds the preacquisition market value of the target firm.

The advantages of new venture development are avoids pitfalls and uncertain in costs of acquisition and allows entry into a new or emerging industry where there are no available acquisition candidates.

The disadvantages of intrapreneurship are must overcome industry entry barriers, requires extensive investments in developing production capacities and competitive capabilities, may fail due to internal organizational resistance to change and innovation.

STRATEGIES FOR COMPETING IN INTERNATIONAL MARKETS

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

110820

Why companies decide to enter foreign markets ?

- To gain access to new customers.

- To achieve lower costs through economies of scale, experience, and increased purchasing power.

- To further exploit core competencies.

- To spread business risk across a wider market base.

- To gain access to resources and capabilities located in foreign markets.

Why competing across national borders makes strategy making more complex.

• Different countries have different home-country advantages in different industries.
• Location-based value chain advantages for certain countries.
• Differences in government policies, tax rates, and economic conditions.
• Currency exchange rate risks.
• Differences in buyer tastes and preferences for products and services.

The Diamond of National Advantage:

Home Country Advantages: 

Demand conditions - Home market size and growth rate, buyers' tastes.

Related supporting industries - Proximity of suppliers, end users, and complementary industries.

Factor conditions - Availability and relative prices of inputs.

Firm strategy, structure, and rivalry - Different styles of management and organization, degree of local rivalry.

The core concept,

-Political risks stem from instability or weaknesses in national governments and hostility to foreign business.

-Economic risks stem from the stability of a country's monetary system, economic and regulatory policies, the lack of property rights protections.

-Greenfield venture is a subsidiary business that is established by setting up the entire operation from the ground up.

Collaborative strategies involving alliances or joint ventures with foreign partners are a popular way for companies to edge their way into the markets of foreign countries.

Cross-border alliances enable a growth-minded company to widen its geographic coverage and strengthen its competitiveness in foreign markets, at the same time, they offer flexibility and allow a company to retain some degree of autonomy and operating control.

COMPETING INTERNATIONALLY: THREE STRATEGIC APPROACHES

1. Multidomestic strategy
2. Global strategy
3. Transnational strategy

Build competitive advantage in international markets

• Use international location to lower cost or differentiate product.
• Share resources and capabilities.
• Gain cross-border coordination benefits.

Core concepts for profit sanctuaries are country markets that provide a firm with substantial profits because of a strong or protected market position.

Core concept for cross-market subsidization is supporting competitive offensive in one market with resources and profits diverted from operations in another market.

DUMPING AS A STRATEGY:

Dumping - selling goods in foreign markets at prices that are either below normal home market prices or below the full costs per unit.

Dumping is not a fair-trade practice:

Governments can be expected to retaliate against such practices by foreign competitors.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) actively polices dumping to discourage such practices.

~STRENGTHENING A COMPANY’S COMPETITIVE POSITION: STRATEGIC MOVES, TIMING, AND SCOPE OF OPERATIONS~

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

The strategic offensive principles are:

• Focus on relentlessly building competitive advantage and then converting it into sustainable advantage. 
• Apply resources where rivals are least able to defend themselves.
• Employ the element of surprise as opposed to doing what rivals expect and are prepared for.
• Display a strong bias for swift, decisive and overwhelming actions to overpower rivals.

We can see that the best offensive use a company's most powerful resources and capabilities to attack rivals the areas where they are weakest. We also can chose which rivals to attack through the best target for offensive attack such as:

1. Market leaders that are in vulnerable competitive positions.
2. Runner-up firms with weaknesses in area where the challenger is strong.
3. Struggling enterprises on the verge of going under.
4. Small local and regional firms with limited capabilities.

Blue-Ocean strategy- A special kind of offensive

The business universe is divided into two which is, an existing market with boundaries and rules in which rival firms compete for advantage. 
A ''blue ocean'' market space, where the industry has not yet taken shape, with no rivals and wide-open long-term growth and profit potential for a firm that can create demand for new types of products.
The examples of blue ocean are 1 malaysia for youth (im4u), ebay, and FedEx.

A blue-ocean strategy offers growth in revenues and profits by discovering or inventing industry segments that create altogether new demand.
Good defensive strategies can help protect a competitive advantage but rarely are the basis for creating one.

Purpose of Defensive Strategies

1. Lower the firm's risk of being attacked.
2. Weaken the impact of an attack that does occur.
3. Influence challengers to aim their efforts at other rivals.

The core concept is about because of the first-mover advantages and disadvantages, competitive advantage can spring from when a move is made as well as from what move is made.
Horizontal scope is the range of product and service segments that a firm serves within its focal market.
Vertical scope is the extent to which a firm's internal activities encompass one, some, many or all of the activities that make up an industry's entire value chain system, ranging from raw-material production to final sales and service activities.

Horizontal Merger And Acquisition Strategies
- Merger: Is the combining of two or more firms into a single corporate entity that often takes on a new name.
- Acquisition: Is a combination in which one firm, the acquirer, purchases and absorbs the operations of another firm, the acquired.

SPAC is the acronym for special purpose acquisition company. SPAC is a company that is initially listed with no operations but formed exclusively to make acquisitions using cash raised based primarily on the prior track record of the individuals forming the management team who promote the venue.

Vertical Integration Strategies

• Vertical integrated firm - is one that participates in multiple segments or stages of an industry's overall value chain.
• Vertical integrated strategy - can expand the firm's range of activities backward into its sources of supply or forward toward end users of its products.

Types of Vertical Integration Strategies

1. Full Integration: a firm participates in all stages of the vertical activity chain.
2. Partial Integration: a firm builds positions only in selected stages of the vertical chain.
3. Tapered Integration: Involves mix of in-house and outsourced activity in any stage of the vertical chain.

Benefits of a vertical integration strategy are add materially to a firm's technological capabilities, strengthen the firm's competitive position, and boost the firm's profitability.

The core concepts of 

• Backward integration involves entry into activities previously performed by suppliers or other enterprises positioned along earlier stages of the industry value chain system.
• Forward integration involves entry into value chain activities closer to the end user.
• Outsourcing involves farming out value chain activities to outside vendors.
• Strategic alliance is a formal agreement between two or more separate companies in which they agree to work cooperatively toward some common objective.
• Joint venture is a partnership involving the establishment of an independent corporate entity that the partners own and control jointly, sharing in its revenues and expenses.

~ THE FIVE GENERIC COMPETITIVE STRATEGIES ~

WHICH ONE TO EMPLOY ?

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

MGB4013 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

Why strategies differ ?

The key factors that distinguish one strategy from another :

1. Is the firm's market target broad or narrow ? or
2. Is the competitive advantage pursued linked to low costs or product differentiation ?

The Five (5) Generic Competitive Strategies.

• Low-Cost Provider : Striving to achieve lower overall costs than rivals on products that attract a broad spectrum of buyers. ( give a lower price to buyers )
• Broad Differentiation : Differentiating the firm's product offering from rivals' with attributes that appeal to a broad spectrum of buyers. ( the unit factors that different from other companies )
• Focused-Low Cost : Concentrating on a narrow price-sensitive buyer segment and on cost to offer a lower-priced product. ( focus more on target market )
• Focused Differentiation : Concentrating on a narrow buyer segment by meeting specific tastes and requirements of niche members.
• Best-Cost Provider : Giving customers more value for the money by offering upscale product attributes at a lower cost than rivals.

Figure 5.1  The Five Generic Competitive Strategies

Major avenues for achieving a cost advantage.

Low-cost advantage : A firm's cumulative costs across its overall value chain must be lower than competitors' cumulative costs.
How to gain a low-cost advantage :
- Perform value chain activities more cost-effectively than rivals.
- Revamp the firm's overall value chain to eliminate or bypass cost-producing activities.

Cost driver is a factor with a strong influence of a firm's costs. Its can be asset or activity-based.

Figure 5.2  Cost Drivers : The Keys to Driving Down Company Costs

Core Concept :

• The essence of a broad differentiation strategy is to offer unique product attributes that a wide range of buyers find appealing and worth paying for.
• A uniqueness driver is a factor that can have a strong differentiating effect.

Figure 5.3  Uniqueness Drivers : The Keys to Creating a Differentiation Advantage.

Revamping the value chain system to increase differentiation.

• Approaches to enhancing differentiation through changes in the value chain system.

1. Coordinating with channel allies to enhance customer perceptions of value.
2. Coordinating with suppliers to better address customer needs.

When the differentiation strategy work best ?

Pitfalls to avoid in pursuing a differentiation strategy :

• Relying on product attributes easily copied by rivals.
• Introducing product attributes that do not evoke an enthusiastic buyer response.
• Eroding profitability by overspending on efforts to differentiate the firm's product offering.
• Offering only trivial improvements in quality, service or performance features deal than the product of rivals.
• Adding frills and features such that the product exceeds the needs and use patterns of most buyers.
• Charging too high a price premium.

Focused ( or market niche ) Strategies.

Focused strategy approaches :
- Focused low-cost strategy

- Focused market niche strategy

Core Concept : Best-cost provider strategies are hybrid of low-cost provider and differentiation strategies that aim at providing desired quality, features, performance, service attributes while beating rivals on price.

~ Evaluating A Company's Resources, Capabilities, and Competitiveness ~

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

MGB4013 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

Firstly, we discussed about MacDonald. After that, we also discussed about the specific indicators of strategic success. 

• Growth in firm's sales and market share.
• Acquisition and retention of customers.
• Strengthening image and reputation with customers.
• Increasing profit margins, net profits and return on investment.
• Growing financial strength and credit rating.
• Leadership in factors relevant to market or industry success.
• Continuing improvement in key measures of operating performance.

The Key Financial Ratio.

The core concept are :

A resource is a competitive asset that is owned or controlled by a firm.

A capability or competence is the capacity of a firm to perform and internal activity competently through deployment of a firm's resources.

A firm's resources and capabilities represent its competitive assets and are big determinants of its competitiveness and ability to succeed in the marketplace.

Identifying Capabilities : An Organizational Capability

• Is the intangible but observable capacity of a firm to perform a critical activity proficiently using a related combination ( cross-functional bundle ) of its resources.
• Is knowledge-based, residing in people and in a firm's intellectual capital or in its organizational processes and functional systems, which embody tacit knowledge.

- Competitive advantage means that, there is a something that people can't imitate.

- Tacit knowledge means that, people indirectly learned something.

A resource bundle is a linked and closely integrated set of competitive assets centered around one or more cross-functional capabilities.

The VRIN tests for sustainable is Valuable, Rare, Inimitable, and Non-substitutable.

Casual ambiguity means that very hard to figure out how a complex resource contributes to competitive advantage.

Dynamic capability is the ongoing capacity of a firm to modify its existing resources and capabilities or create new one.

SWOT Analysis is a powerful tool for sizing up a firm's :

• Internal strength 
• Internal weaknesses
• Market opportunities
• External threats

SWOT Analysis involves :

• Drawing conclusions from the SWOT listing about the firm's overall situations.
• Translating these conclusions into strategic actions by the firm that :

1. Match its strategy to its internal strengths and to market opportunities.
2. Correct important weaknesses and defend it against external threats.

Figure 4.2 The steps involved in SWOT Analysis : Identify the four components of SWOT, draw conclusions, translate implications into strategic actions.

We move to the concept of a company value chain.

1. Identifies the primary internal activities that create and deliver customer value and the requisite related support activities.
2. Permits a deep look at the firm's cost structure and ability to offer low prices.
3. Reveals the emphasis that a firm places on activities that enhance differentiation and support higher prices.

A company's value chain identifies the primary activities and related support activities that create customer value.

Figure 4.3  A Representative Company Value Chain

Figure 4.4  A Representative Value Chain System

Benchmarking is a potent tool for improving a company's own internal activities that is based on learning how other companies perform them and borrowing their '' best practices ''

As a conclusion, I think that all I have learned from this topic. Basically its not hard to understand if I keep focus on the lecture and always do a revision. Thank you.

~ EVALUATING A COMPANY'S EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ~

Now, we continue to the Competitive Pressures Associated With The Threat Of New Entrants. The entry threat considerations are expected defensive reactions of incumbent firms, strength of barriers to entry, attractiveness of a particular market's growth in demand and profit potential, capabilities and resources of potential entrants, and entry of existing competitors into market segments in which they have no current presence.

Basically, company also have their problem in Market Entry Barriers Facing New Entrants. 

• Incumbent cost advantages related to learning and experience, proprietary patents and technology, favorable locations, and lower fixed costs.
• Strong brand preferences and customer loyalty.
• Strong ''network effects'' in customer demand.
• High capital requirements.
• Building a network of distributors or dealers and securing adequate space on retailer's shelves.
• Restrictive government policies.

Figure 3.5 Factors Affecting The Threat of Entry

Competitive Pressures From The Sellers of Substitute Products.

1. Substitute Product Considerations :

• Readily available and attractively priced ?
• Comparable or better in terms of quality, performance, and other relevant attributes ?
• Offer lower switching costs to buyers ? ( variable costs between the two goods. )

2. Indicators of Substitutes' Competitive Strength :

• Increasing rate of growth in sales of substitutes.
• Substitute producers adding new output capacity.
• Increasing profitability of substitute producers.

Figure 3.6 Factors Affecting Competition from Substitute Products

Competitive Pressures Stemming from Supplier Bargaining Power. It's depends on :

1. Strength of demand for and availability of suppliers' products.
2. Whether the suppliers provide a differentiated input that enhances the performance of the industry's product.
3. Industry member's costs for switching among suppliers.
4. Size of suppliers relative to size of industry members.
5. Fraction of the cost of the supplier's product relative to the total cost of the industry's product.
6. Number of suppliers relative to the number of industry members.
7. Possibility of backward integration into suppliers' industry.
8. Availability of good substitutes for suppliers' products.
9. Whether industry members are major customers of suppliers.

Figure 3.7 Factors Affecting the Bargaining Power of Suppliers.

Competitive Pressures Stemming from Buyer Bargaining Power and Price Sensitivity.

• Strength of buyers' demand for sellers' products.
• Degree to which industry goods are differentiated.
• Buyers' costs for switching to competing sellers or substitutes.
• Number and size of buyers relative to the number of sellers.
• Buyers' knowledge of products', costs and pricing.
• Threat of buyers' integration into sellers' industry.
• Buyers' discretion in delaying purchases.
• Buyers' price sensitivity due to low profits, size of purchase, and consequences of purchase.

Figure 3.8 Factors Affecting the Bargaining Power of Buyers.

Factors that driving industry change, and the impact will they have.

• Driving forces analysis has three steps :

1. We must identify what the driving forces are.
2. After that, assessing whether the driving forces are, on the whole, acting to make the industry more or less attractive.
3. Lastly, determine what strategy changes are needed to prepare for the impact of the driving forces. 

The industry rivals can be position in the market with a Strategic Group. That consists of those industry members with similar competitive approaches and positions in the market such as :

• Having comparable product-line breadth.
• Emphasizing the same distribution channels.
• Depending on identical technological approaches.
• Offering the same product attributes to buyers.
• Offering similar services and technical assistance.

The Core Concepts are a Strategic Group is a cluster of industry rivals that have similar competitive approaches and market positions. Besides that, the Strategic Group Mapping is a technique for displaying the different market or competitive positions that rival firms occupy in the industry. The strategic group maps reveal which companies are close competitors and which are distant competitors.

Comparative Market Positions of Producers in the U.S Beer Industry : A Strategic Group Map Example.

Footnote : Circles are drawn roughly proportional to the sizes of the firms, based on revenues.

Some strategic groups are more favorable positioned than others because they confront weaker competitive forces and or because they are more favorable impacted by industry driving forces.

The next strategic moves that rivals likely to make is Competitive Intelligence, which is collect information about rivals that is useful in anticipating their next strategic moves and Signals of the likelihood of strategic moves such as rivals under pressure to improve financial performance, rivals seeking to increase market standing, public statements of rivals' intentions, and profiles developed by competitive intelligence units.

Figure 3.9  A Framework for Competitor Analysis

The Industry's Key Success Factors ( KSFs) are the strategy elements, product and services attributes, operational approaches, resources, and competitive capabilities that are necessary for competitive success by any and all firms in an industry. Second, the vary from industry to industry, and over time within the same industry, and in importance as drivers of change and competitive conditions change.

~EVALUATING A COMPANY'S EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT~

NUR FILZAH BT SULAIMAN

TMA 2 

1110820

MGB4013 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

Dr. Syadiyah was talking about communism before we start our lecture. what is a communism? It is actually about an ideological thinking, that actually they want to liberate Malaysia from be accused of being a colonial.  After that, we learned chapter 3, which is about Strategy External Environment.

What we must do ?

Firstly, we have to thinking strategically about a firm's external environment. 

Second, form a strategic vision of where the firm needs to head.

Third, identify promising strategic options for the firm.

Lastly, select the best strategy and business model for the firm.

CORE CONCEPT:

- Macro-environment -) encompasses the broad environmental context in which a company's industry is situated that includes strategically relevant components over which the firm has no direct control. 

- Pestel analysis -) actually pestel analysis focuses on SIX (6) principal components of strategic significance in the macro-environment. ( What are the strategically relevant factors in the macro-environment ? )

• political : tax policy, fiscal policy, tariffs, political climate, and the strength of institutions such as federal banking system. 
• economic : interest rates, exchange rates, unemployment rates, also include conditions in the markets for stocks and bonds. 
• social : societal values, attitudes, cultural factors and lifestyle, demographic factors such as population size, growth rate and age distribution.
• technological : such as genetic engineering and nanotechnology, patent and copyright laws, and the government control over the internet.
• environmental : such as weather, climate, climate change, and associated factors like water shortage. 
• legal : consumer laws, labor laws, antitrust laws, and occupational health and safety regulation.

The Five (5) competitive forces ( How strong are the industry's competitive forces ? ) :

1. Rival sellers.
2. New entrants.
3. Substitute products.
4. Supplier bargaining power.
5. Customer bargaining power.

How to use the Five-Forces ?

Step 1 : Identify the different parties involved, and the specific factors that bring about competitive pressures.

Step 2 : Evaluate how strong the pressures stemming from each of the five forces.

Step 3 : Determine whether the collective strength of all five competitive forces is conducive to earning attractive profits in the industry.

Step 4 : Lastly, we do a conclusion. 

Competitive Pressures that Increase Rivalry among Competing Sellers.

Figure 3.4 Factors Affecting the Strength of Rivalry

~Nature of Strategic Management & Vision and Mission Company~

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA2

1110820

MGB4013 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

In this class, I have learned about Strategic Management. Strategic Management is actually like art and science of Formulating, Implementing, and also Evaluating. It's important to make sure an organization can achieve their objectives. It's also synonym with term ''Strategic Planning'' which the results come from choices among numerous good alternatives.

Three stages of Strategic Management:

• Strategy Formulation, which is the organization, must develop mission and vision. Identify external opportunities, also threats and another resources.
• Strategy Implementing, also call as an action stage which is help the firm to establish annual objective, device policies, motivate employees and allocate resources.
• Strategy Evaluation, which is reviewing external and internal factors that are bases for current strategies, measuring performance, and taking corrective actions. 

3 Hierarchical Levels of Startegic Management:

1. Corporate Level.
2. Divisional / Strategic Business level.
3. Functional / Department Level.

After we learned about chapter 1, we also move on chapter 2. Basically, that topic touches about vision and mission of the company. From what I have learned in lecture, this topic only covered little things about vision and mission, but I have know more about chapter 2 in tutorial classes. This topic actually explained how the employees of the company arrange strategy from all sector of the company, not only from one side. Besides that, people who arrange big company must look into their mission and vision when they are planning something. They also have to see and think about Threat, Opportunity, Weaknesses, and Strengths (TOWS). Thus vision can changed from 3 to 5 years or when change their leader of the company. Planning also divided into 3, which are short-term, below 1 year, mid-term, 1 to 3 years, and long-term, above 3 to 5 years.

~Newspaper Activities~ :)

NUR FILZAH BINTI SULAIMAN

TMA 2

1110820

MGB4013, STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

In first class, we do some of activities. The activities are doing with newspaper where we must to build a high building. We are divided into groups and we must to build the high building as fast as possible with any material that we have. From this activity, I have learned how to manage our group members, and we must make sure for each of group members do their job that the instruction given by the team leader. At the end of this activity, we know that if the building is strong or not. From this, we have learned about is not easy to manage a company, and we must think very deeply and make a best decision and also make a strategic planning through the company mission and vision.