Assignment: Strategy Formulation Paper
Purpose of Assignment
A strategic management plan addresses the four primary components of the strategic management process: a) environmental scanning, b) strategy formulation, c) strategy implementation, and d) strategy evaluation and control. The individual assignments in Weeks 3, 4 and 5 are integrated to generate a complete strategic management plan.
This individual assignment (part two of the strategic management plan) is designed to help students with the following:
1. Define a mid-term competitive vision for the company selected by the student.
2. Examine competitive markets and value propositions for the selected company.
3. Evaluate a set of suitable corporate, business, and functional strategies (e.g., corporate parenting, globalization, vertical integration, strategic alliances, etc.) for the selected company.
4. Evaluate how proposed corporate, business, and functional strategies will affect the selected company's current resources and capabilities.
5. Design appropriate organizational structure charts that i lustrate the changes needed to realign the selected company.
Recommended Resources
- Textbook Chapters 4, 5, 7 and 11
- Week 1 Course Supplement: Vision Alignment Model
- Week 3 Environmental Scanning paper (part one of your strategic management plan)
- Week 4 Course Supplement: Creating an Organizational Chart
- Appropriate and relevant business and academic Websites
Assignment Requirements
Write a 1,250- to 1,400-word paper that includes the following:
1. Relevant overview of the company that you researched for this assignment (e.g., industry, age, size, scope, and market position) - note it should be the same company as in part one of your strategic management plan, and the overview should be relevant to this part of the assignment, not merely a repeat of the overview from part one.
2. Description of your proposed 3-5 year competitive vision for your selected company (note you are required to identify an enhanced or alternative competitive vision, not merely describe the existing 3-5 year vision of your selected company).
3. Examination of the current and new markets that your selected company will pursue under your proposed vision, and the unique value propositions that your selected company will offer in each of those markets.
4. Evaluation of at least 3 new and viable corporate, business, and/or functional strategies for your selected company, and how each of those strategies will contribute to capturing market value and sustaining competitive advantage over time (note you are required to identify 3 new strategies, not evaluate strategies your selected company is already implementing).
5. Evaluation of how your proposed strategies will affect your selected company's current resources and capabilities, including your proposed strategies' effects on your selected company's production costs, market differentiation, and corporate sustainability.
6. Brief explanatory introduction and presentation of 2 appropriate organizational structural (not process) charts, one illustrating your selected company's current organizational structure, and one illustrating the changes needed to realign your selected company's organizational structure to one that supports the achievement of your proposed 3-5 year competitive vision (note the charts should be presented within the paper as APA-compliant figures).
Format the paper according to 400-level APA standards. An abstract is not required, but the paper must include a Conclusion heading (other headings are recommended). The word count does not include the title and reference pages, nor the figures.