Strategic Challenge in Business Operations Assignment Sample

• Subject Name : Management

Reflective Journal Topic Week 2: Organisational Culture

From the workshop I have learnt that the organisational culture is formed because of the beliefs, ideologies, principles and values of the management of the organisation (Elsmore, 2017). It is the guiding force which guides and controls the actions and behaviours of the employees of the organisation within the organisation and outside the organisation. It is the culture which governs how the people interact within and outside the organisation. I have learnt that organisational culture is the shared value which the employees of an organisation have. An example of an organisational culture would be management supporting the growth and responsibilities of their employees.

References for Organisational Culture

Elsmore, P. (2017). Organisational Culture: Organisational Change? Organisational Change? United Kingdom: Routledge.

Reflective Journal Topic Week 3: External Environment

According to my understanding, understanding the external environment is an important strategic tool which is used by organisations to understand the environmental factors which can have a positive or a negative impact on the organisation. The analysis of external environment helps an organisation to identify the potential threats and opportunities that are present in the environment which can help the company to gain competitive advantage by taking steps for eliminating the steps and by making use of the opportunities provided (Shtal et al. 2018). An example would be use of the demographic data by the company for marketing.

References for External Environment

SHTAL, T. V., BURIAK, M. M., AMIRBEKULY, Y., UKUBASSOVA, G. S., KASKIN, T. T., & TOIBOLDINOVA, Z. G. (2018). Methods of analysis of the external environment of business activities. Revista ESPACIOS, 39(12).

Reflective Journal Topic Week 4: International Strategy

From the workshop on the topic of international strategy, I have learnt that in this global competitive world, companies want to take advantage of the global opportunities which are presented for them for increased and enhanced presence of their products in new markets (Hitt, Li & Xu, 2016). These strategies help them to enhance their current technologies and products to suit the new international market. And this would eventually help them to gain increased market share and expansion. Additionally, the potential of their products and services reaching the people in the developing countries or new markets is an advantage for the companies to adopt international strategies.

References for International Strategy

Hitt, M. A., Li, D., & Xu, K. (2016). International strategy: From local to global and beyond. Journal of World Business, 51(1), 58-73.

Reflective Journal Topic Week 5: Corporate-Level Startegy

According to my understanding, corporate-level strategies are strategies which impact the entire organisation. It is utilised by the organisations to develop a competitive advantage over their competitors and offer unique and exceptional products and services to their customers (Furrer, 2016). These strategies are important because they plan the future of the company taking into considerations the threats and opportunities present in the environment. These strategies are growth-oriented they seek to retain the existing customers of the company while attracting new customers. For example, vertical integration being adopted by the company, such as, a gas-station company acquiring an oil refinery.

References for Corporate-Level Startegy

Furrer, O. (2016). Corporate level strategy: Theory and applications. United Kingdom: Routledge.

Reflective Journal Topic Week 6: Acquisition Strategies

A methodology which can be used by the main company for acquiring other company is described as acquisition strategies. Using an acquisition strategy can prevent a management team from purchasing companies for which a profitable outcome is not possible. An acquirer must consider how their acquisition strategy creates value rather than basic production. An acquirer could be willing to leverage one of its strategic powers to purchase in a competing business (Koi-Akrofi, 2016). A market environment, for example, may fluctuate dramatically with economic change, and a company acquires another company with more predictable revenue.

References for Acquisition Strategies

Koi-Akrofi, G. Y. (2016). Mergers and Acquisitions: Post-Merger and Acquisition Integration Strategies. International Journal, 5(2).

Reflective Journal Topic Week 7: How Are Structure and Strategy Reciprocally Related?

According to me, the structure and the strategy are reciprocally related in the following manner: the structure influences or follows the development of the strategy of the organization, but once defined, the structure will affect current strategic activities and potential strategic decisions (Albers, Wohlgezogen & Zajac, 2016). This is because, the structure of a company is a tool for achieving its goals. Because the goals originate from the overall strategy of the organisation, it is only rational to have a strong correlation between the strategies and structures. For example, a company requiring an increase in human resource to meet the increasing demands of the customers.

References for Structure and Strategy Reciprocally

Albers, S., Wohlgezogen, F., & Zajac, E. J. (2016). Strategic alliance structures: An organization design perspective. Journal of Management, 42(3), 582-614.

Reflective Journal Topic Week 8: Main Function of Board of Directors - in Terms of Corporate Governance

The primary aim of the Board of directors is to maintain the stability of the company, by its joint control, while honouring its shareholders and stakeholders' relevant interests (Madhani, 2017). They have to understand how their staff, clients, vendors, societies and shareholders would be impacted with any vote that the Board takes. For example, it is important for the Board of Directors to be answerable to their stakeholders as their decisions would affect them greatly. Thus, according to me, the mail role of the board of Directors is oversight, planning, and taking responsibilities for their actions.

References for Corporate Governance

Madhani, P. M. (2017). Diverse roles of corporate board: Review of various corporate governance theories. The IUP Journal of Corporate Governance, 16(2), 7-28.

Reflective Journal Topic Week 9: Describe One Strategic Leadership Quality You Believe Is Vital to The Effective Management of An Organisation (give 1 Example).

Strategic leaders have the ability to articulate and inspire and convince people to achieve the vision, and a strategic objectives of the company (Covin & Slevin, 2017). According to me it is very important for the leader to have efficiency of delegation. They know the act of delegation. They know very well that delegations should not overburden the members with obligations. They have good understanding of the fact too that it will be very motivating to authorize subordinates to take decisions. They understand that, when both the judgments and choices are taken by the employee or employees of an organisation they then assume accountability and become more responsible towards the work.

References for Strategic Leadership Quality

Covin, J. G., & Slevin, D. P. (2017). The entrepreneurial imperatives of strategic leadership. Strategic entrepreneurship: Creating a new mindset, 307-327.

Reflective Journal Topic Week 10: Discuss at Least 1 Core Competency of A Strategic Leader and Give an Example of A Person You Believe Demonstrates at Least This Competency or Another Core Competency.

One of the core competency of a strategic leader, according to me, is efficiency in change management. A leader should be able to facilitate change in the organisation seamlessly without causing a lot of stir, commotion, distress, and insecurity among their followers and subordinates. A leader understands even though a change is for the betterment of the organisation and its stakeholders, it will not be possible without the support of all the stakeholders (Norzailan, Yusof & Othman, 2016). Thus, leading the entire team to embrace change is one of the core capabilities that a leader should possess. As, this would help the organisation to reach its desired objectives.

References for Core Competency

Norzailan, Z., Yusof, S. M., & Othman, R. (2016). Developing strategic leadership competencies. Journal of Advanced Management Science Vol, 4(1).

Reflective Journal Topic Week: Final Topic: Strategic Competitiveness

Strategic competitiveness has been described as the result reached when an organization effectively formulates and executes a value-generating strategy that cannot be duplicated or too expensive to replicate by another corporation or person in the short term (Hanson et al., 2016). According to me, the goals of the business strategies is to achieve competitiveness against the business rivals. Thus, when a firm has been able to achieve profits above the industry average, then the firm is said to achieve a competitive advantage. For example, McDonalds is able to utilise economies of scale and produce the products at low cost which helps them the prices of their products low, attracting more customers than the competitors.

References for Strategic Competitiveness

Hanson, D., Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., & Hoskisson, R. E. (2016). Strategic management: Competitiveness and globalisation. Australia: Cengage.

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