Handout
Sustainable Solutions Paper—Applying Traditional Strategic Thinking Tools, Part II
This handout will serve to guide you through the following types of strategic thinking tools:
Analyzing the Company Strategy Type
Analyzing the Company Strategy Moves
Alignment & Goals Analysis
Note: The questions in this document are for your reference. While you are not required to turn them in to your Instructor, you are encouraged to make use of them in the preparation of your Application Assignments that are due in Week 4 and Week 7.
Analyzing the Company Strategy Type
Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your Business (specifically pages 29–46), identify the general strategic type that your analysis company is likely pursuing—given your understanding of the competitive environment. Make an argument, rooted in evidence, to support your conclusion. Should this be the strategy the company ought to be pursuing? Discuss any implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses—especially those that may not be congruent.
Analyzing the Company Strategy Moves
Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your Business (specifically pages 47–60), identify what you think the future strategy moves should be for your analysis company—given your understanding of the competitive environment. Make an argument, rooted in evidence, to support your conclusions. Discuss any implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses—especially those that may not be congruent.
Alignment & Goals Analysis
Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your Business (specifically pages 61–93):
Complete an “alignment checklist” (on page74) for your business—given your understanding of the competitive environment. Discuss any implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses—especially those that may not be congruent.
Complete a “unit goals, metrics, and action plan” table (figure 6-1), for your business—given your understanding of the competitive environment. Discuss any implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses—especially those that may not be congruent.
Action Plan Analysis
Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your Business (specifically pages 77–93, and especially the sample action plan on page 90–101), identify what you think ought to be an action plan for your company. Make an argument, rooted in evidence, to support your conclusions.
Discuss any implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses—especially those that may not be congruent.
Congratulations— at this stage, you have completed the “traditional strategy analysis” portion of your Sustainable Solutions Paper.