After the impressive eight weeks of learning, I think the first thing that came to my mind is that normally I thought strategies are like solving puzzles. You think and you come out with a solution. That's all. However, I was wrong. Business Strategy is a continuous clear set of plans, actions, and goals that outlines how a business will compete in a particular market, or markets, with a product or number of products or services. Moreover, it is also associated with the demand and supply model and also the POLC model(Plan, Organizing, Leading, and Controlling). In addition, there is a concept that I was confused about before. Strategy and tactic. A strategy refers to an organization’s long-term goals and how it plans to reach them and it shows the path to achieve the defined vision. A tactic refers to the specific actions taken to reach the set goals in line with the strategy.
Business strategy can also be understood as the course of action or set of decisions that assist the entrepreneurs in achieving specific business objectives. It outlines how businesses should be carried out to reach the desired ends. The success of any business is determined by the effectiveness of the strategy it follows. A strategy explains how a company plans to compete in a market and how it intends to grow at a profit. I think business policies and strategies are like the components of a car. How you design it, build it, or what kind of fuel it would consume, depends on what you want it to be. Business Policy offers guidelines for managers to take appropriate decisions. Strategic Management is a means of putting a policy into effect within certain time limits. Business Policy is a general course of action with no defined time limits.
The idea behind strategic management is that organizations will be better equipped to satisfy the goals and objectives of the owners and managers adopt a clear business philosophy. For many businesses, that philosophy will be to increase their share of the market. Generally, the generic term business policy refers to all of an organization's processes and procedures that range from human resources policies to the company's marketing agenda and its plans for growth and development.
What I learned that was new to me or things that changed my understanding is that the policies are essentially the strategies put into action. For example, if a strategy calls for an increased market share, the business policies would be constructed to match this strategy. The two terms are so closely intertwined that they are often used interchangeably. I reckon that for a business owner, strategic management is a mindset or philosophy for doing business. Business policies, however, are the specific methods for running the organization on a day-to-day business.
Personally, I always carry a notepad with me because of the inseparable relationship between a notepad and PDCA
Good product plan to introduce PDCA(Plan, Do execution, Check, Action improvement) into all systems. Notepad is not only a good helper for implementing plans but also a powerful tool to promote circulation. Follow up and check after I made a plan. Simplifying the content can increase the freedom of thinking. The principle of the plan is to record it immediately after any decisions.
Finally, I would like to share an example. Suppose that you are running a coffee chain like Starbucks or Dutch Bros, and there is a store located near a beautiful landscape with an amazing view that attracts many Instagram users to take photos and share posts or stories. However, this particular store does not earn as much as expected. It costs more money to transport the necessities that it's needed for daily operation. You also have to pay more for hiring baristas to work there. What would you do? Keeping its operation to get the reputation of your brand and earn these free advertisement, or just close it to open another more profitable store? Here is where the strategy comes in. With an organization’s long-term goals, how it plans to reach them, and the path to achieving the defined vision in mind, companies can make better decisions. In this case, we can estimate whether it is worth doing it or not.
References
What is business strategy and how to devise it in 2022? IMD business school. (n.d.). Retrieved May 29, 2022, from https://www.imd.org/imd-reflections/reflection-page/business-strategy/
Strategic Management, by N. Ritson
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