Introduction

Strategic planning is key to long-term organizational success but requires vision beyond past trends. This seminar focuses on preparing organizations for a dynamic future by setting focused, competitive goals. Participants will explore strategy concepts, formulation approaches, and real-world case studies, with hands-on group work and practical insights from expert-led examples. Position your organization for sustained success in an ever-changing environment.

Objectives

• Understand how to design visionary strategic plans

• Work out how to translate strategic plans into action plans

• Examine a model for organizational and individual assessment

• Provide insights into strategic planning problems to avoid

• Identify and learn from examples of strategic success and failure

• Understand the nature of the organizational life cycle

• Provide insights into productive contingency planning

Target Audience

This seminar is designed for:

• Senior Managers and Executives
• Strategic Planning and Business Strategy Professionals
• Business Unit Leaders and Department Heads
• General Managers and Operations Managers
• Project and Program Managers involved in strategy execution
• Business Development and Transformation Managers
• Management Consultants and Analysts
• Entrepreneurs and Business Owners
• Functional Managers (Finance, HR, Marketing, Operations) involved in planning
• Middle Managers preparing for strategic leadership roles
• Professionals seeking to develop strategic planning, execution, and organizational transformation skills

Outlines

Day 1: The Strategic Planning process

• Introduction to the seminar – structure, and content

• Strategy - concept, and significance

• “Competitive Positioning” versus “Blue Sky” approaches

• Achieving competitive advantage through flexibility and agility

• The interaction of strategy, structure and business processes

• Gathering information and intelligence for the SWOT analysis

• Mini-cases and group discussion – “Cost versus Differentiation”

• Review of Day One

Day 2: The Strategic Planning process

• Vision and mission statements - preparing for the future

• Business analysis and contingency planning

• Strategic choice

• Converting the SWOT analysis into the “Strategy Matrix”

• Strategy formulation – programs, projects, policies

• Transforming the organization - strategy implementation and managing change

• Mini-case and group discussion – major strategic re-orientation

• Review of Day Two

Day 3: Assessing the current state of the organization

• Leadership and management in relation to strategy

• Customer and market focus

• Human resources and knowledge management

• Building a strategic planning team

• Effective process management to achieve business results

• Monitoring and measuring business performance

• Mini-case and group discussion - a market entry problem

• Review of Day Three

Day 4: Avoiding the pitfalls of strategic planning

• The strategy life-cycle and the problem of strategic drift

• Getting innovative thinking into the organization

• The potentially negative dimensions of success

• How to avoid “paralysis by analysis”

• Overcoming inability to evaluate fresh ideas, denying the truth and thinking inside the box

• The critical importance of team building and teamwork

• Mini-case and group discussion - how and why a good organization can go bad

• Review of Day Four

Day 5: Personal strategic planning

• Applying strategic tools and techniques to the individual

• Personal goal setting, creating a personal strategic plan

• Implementing change – achieving progress as a strategic manager

• The mix of competencies and personal skills required in 21st-century business

• Executing strategy – how to break it down and get it done

• Developing inspiration and gathering support

• Overcoming adversity by leveraging your skills and building on success

• Conclusion – a personal role in the strategic planning and goal setting processes