Strategic Management Syllabus - MBA (PU)

Course Objectives:

This course aims to familiarize the students to concepts of strategic management. The course explores the issues of defining corporate mission, objectives, and goals. Students focus on the analysis of firm’s external internal environment to identify and create competitive advantage and to provide a systematic and effective approach for developing a clear strategic plan. It focuses on the methods of strategic management and business analyses that utilize the entire cross-section of skills that have been developed in the previous trimesters of study. After completion of this course, students should be able to pull together what they have learned in separate business fields and utilize this knowledge in analysis of complex business problems and formulate strategies accordingly. The use of case studies and their analysis will be the special feature of this course.

Course Contents:

1. Overview of strategic management 3 hours

Defining strategic management; Nature and value of strategic management: Dimensions, formality, benefits, and risks of strategic management; Strategic management Process: components of the strategic management model.

2. The Business vision and mission 3 hours

     Vision versus mission; Process of developing mission statement; Importance of vision and mission statements; Characteristics of mission statement: declaration of attitude, customer orientation, declaration of social policy; Mission statement components; Writing and evaluating mission statements; Strategic intent.

3. Overview of external environmental analysis and forecasting 3 hours

     Components of remote environment: economic, socio-cultural, political, legal, technological, and ecological. (This would be just an overview as the students would have covered this portion in detail in Business Environment course).

4. Assessment of industry attractiveness competitive environment 4.5 hours

   Five forces model of competitive attractiveness; Strategic groups and competitive environment: definition of strategic groups, implications of strategic group analysis; Alternative ways to examine industry structure and dynamics; Ethical dimensions: legal requirements, long run consequences.

    

   5. Internal assessment 7.5 hours

        The nature of internal audit: key internal forces, the process of performing internal audit; resource based view (RBV); Management functions audit; Marketing capabilities audit; Finance/ Accounting functions audit; Production/operation audit; Management information system audit; Research and development capabilities audit;  Value Chain analysis (VCA) and Benchmarking; Internal Factor Evaluation (IFE) matrix.

    

   6. 6. Strategic options 5 hours

        Long-term objectives: nature, financial versus strategic objectives; Why to avoid not managing by objectives; the balanced scorecard.  Types of strategies: integration strategies, intensive strategies, diversification strategies, defensive strategies; Michael Porter’s five generic strategies; Means for achieving strategies: joint venturing/partnering, mergers/acquisitions, first mover’s advantage, outsourcing; Strategic management in non profit and governmental organizations; Strategic management in small firms; Strategies for international businesses.

    

   7. Strategic analysis and choice 6 hours

        Strategy formulation framework: input stage; matching stage: SWOT matrix, SPACE (strategic positioning and action evaluation) matrix, BCG matrix, GE nine cell matrix, IE (internal External) matrix, Grand strategy matrix; The Decision stage: quantitative strategic planning matrix (QSPM) – its positive features and limitations.

    

   8. Implementation of strategies: Management and operations Issues 4.5 hours

        Concept and nature of strategy implementation; Annual objectives; Policies; Resource allocation; Managing conflicts; Matching structure with strategy; Restructuring, reengineering and E-engineering; managing resistance to change; Creating strategy supportive culture.

    

   9. Implementation of strategies: Functional Issues 3 hours

        Nature; Marketing issues: Market segmentation, Impact of internet on segmentation; Product positioning; Finance/Accounting issues: acquisition of capital for strategy implementation, projected financial statements, financial budgets, evaluating worth of business; R&D Issues; MIS issues. 

    

   10 Strategy review, evaluation and control                                                                3 hours

        Concept of control in strategic management; Establishing strategic controls: premise control, special alert control, strategic surveillance, implementation control; Total quality control; Problems of measuring performance; Guidelines for proper control; Strategic audit to evaluate and control performance.

Text Books

1. Pearce, John A. and Robinson, Richard B: Strategic Management, AITBS, New Delhi.
   Thomson, Arthur A. and Stickland III, Strategic Management, Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi.
   1. David, Fred R., Strategic Management: Concept and Cases, Prentice Hall of India, New Delhi.
   2. Pitts, A. Roberts & Lei, David, Strategic Management: Building and Sustaining Competitive Advantage, Thomson, New Delhi.