Introduction
The word ‘Strategy’ is a Greek word, which is made with the combination of two words, Stratos and ago. Stratos refers to the army and ago means to guide and lead. In general, the meaning that comes out from these words is guidance and leading that comes from the high military rank or it simply means the command of the army. A strategy is a set of actions, goals, and plans that are developed by the Manager which helps the business organization to compete in the highly competitive market and to grab a large share in the market. Management refers to the planning, organizing, directing, and controlling of the activities so that it leads to achieving the organizational goals and objectives.
Strategic Management refers to the planning, analyzing, evaluating, monitoring, and assessment of all the requirements of the business organization that helps to accomplish the stated objectives and goals. In other words, Strategic Management is said to be the bundle of actions and decisions that is taken by the Manager, which decides the overall performance of the business. It basically refers to how an organization’s resources can be used and managed, so that it helps to achieve the goals and objectives of the business firm (White, 2017). This essay is going to describe about methods and importance of strategic planning in organization to manage crisis.
Literature Review
According to (Hunger, 2020) Strategic management consists of setting an organization’s goal, identification of market demand, analyzing the external and internal factors of the firm, and selecting the suitable and appropriate strategies, that help the business to grow in the market. Strategic management is said to be those decisions and actions that are undertaken by the manager to compete with the rivals that are existing in the market. An organization’s growth and goodwill depend upon the decisions and actions that are taken by the manager. An organization’s actions and procedures to perform the tasks decide how long a business survives in the highly competitive market. For taking crucial decisions regarding the operations of the business, a manager should have a thorough knowledge of the particular field and area. To know the market trend and business environment, market research should be conducted, so that a good decision can be made that results in the growth and profits of the business.
As per words of (Wheelen, et al., 2017) to frame the right policies and implement the correct procedures to perform the task in the organization, a manager should conduct a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats). SWOT analysis helps the manager to identify the weak areas of the organization that needs improvements and also helps to know the opportunities in the market that gives them a chance to grow and enhance their business operations and performance. SWOT analysis gives warning signals to the managers that can adversely affect the business. The manager can be warned and take precautions and backup plans so that the adverse market change cannot affect their performance. SWOT analysis plays a major role in the strategic management of business organizations. By conducting a SWOT analysis, a company can identify its strengths and it got to know what are the things and qualities of business activities that are most likely by the customers.
In the opinion of (Parakhina, et al., 2017), Strategic management involves creating a plan for future uncertainties and contingencies. Strategic Management is not limited to only large-scale organizations, but it is also undertaken in medium-scale and small-scale business organizations. Strategic management is pervasive in nature, as it is needed in every type of business organization irrespective of its nature, size, and operations. Every type of organization has its competition in the market. By developing and implementing strategies, business firms can achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. Strategic Management is not an activity that is performed only one time but is a continuous process. An organization has to perform the strategic management process continuously. Company’s goals and target changes from time to time. If a business achieves one goal, then, the next goal is set, and all the subordinates and employees are directed towards the stated goal. So, the process of strategic management is not on time, but it is a continuous process.
According to (Hunger, 2020) Strategic management has four components or the steps that are carried out by the manager in chronological order to perform strategic management. The strategic management process is said to describe the strategies of the organization. It can also be defined as the process through which the managers of the business organization formulate and develop the strategies for the firm that will help to improve the performance of the business. The four steps and components of strategic management are Environment Scanning, Formulation of strategy, Implementation of strategy, and Evaluation of strategy. Environment scanning consists of assembling, gathering, and collecting all the information from the market that is helpful in formulating the strategies. The market information fulfills the strategic purposes of the business. Environmental scanning helps the manager to identify the external factors as well as internal factors of the business environment. Environmental scanning is a never-ending process because the environment is changed drastically and quickly. So, to identify the environmental changes and trends, environment scanning is important.
In this process, the next step is the formulation of strategy. After scanning the business environment, the next step is to develop and formulate the strategies. Formulation of strategy is the process of selecting the best alternative and best method to accomplish the organizational goals and objectives. After scanning the environment, managers develop and formulates business strategies, functional strategies, operational strategies as well as corporate strategies. To formulate the strategies, the manager needs to be highly skilled and has good knowledge of the market. The manager needs to be very careful while he is formulating the strategies for the business. As the performance of the business organization depends upon these strategies. If the manager formulates the wrong strategy, the performance of the business can be adversely affected (Parakhina, et al., 2017).
The next component and step of strategic management are to implement the strategy. The strategies are of no use until and unless they are not implemented in the organization. Implementation of the strategies involves designing the structure of an organization, distributing of organization’s resources, creating a decision-making process, and effectively using human resources. All these come under the process of strategy implementation. At the end of the process of strategic management, the last component is the evaluation of the strategy. Evaluation helps the manager to know whether the strategies implemented are right or suitable for the business organization or not. If the implemented strategies are not going in the right direction, then, corrective measures are taken. These components are important for strategic management in the organization (Chang, et al., 2016)
Faith or Spiritual Values in Organization
Spiritual values and faithfulness are important in an organization. Organization spirituality consists of the feeling of belongingness, love, and respect towards co-workers and colleagues. Spirituality in an organization develops trust and faith among the employees which leads to better performance of the business. Spiritual and religious values provide proper direction and guide the employees toward a sustainable lifestyle. The main purpose and meaning of spirituality are not limited to temples, churches, and mosques. But, it also defines the relationship with nature, environment, work, and fellow human beings. Values are the essence of any business organization. A business that works with keeping in mind the values, will never fail in the market. A business with values and faith will retain its customers very long. Values and faith help the organization and employees to develop trust and a sense of direction for day-to-day behavior. Spiritual values help the employees to combine their minds, emotions, and hearts towards the purpose of the business organization (Stokes, et al., 2016).Spiritual values develop faith, trust, love, affection, honesty, integrity, etc in the employees. These values help the employees and the individuals working in the organization to be faithful and honest and always try to work hard for the business. The spiritual values help them to think first for the company and be loyal to the organization and not seek their personal and individual interest. Spiritual Values are a way of showing humanity and loyalty. It recognizes and remembers the employee’s own beliefs.
A cultured and religious individual cannot do anything that hurts the emotions of fellow employees and co-workers. Spiritual beliefs and values also lead to creativity and patience. An employee with spiritual values and beliefs always has a creative mind and thoughts. These employees and individuals have a positive mind and also have a positive approach to facing any challenge and problem in an organization. There are some major elements of spiritual values that are necessary to develop in the employees working in an organization. These elements are Integrity and honesty among the employees, coordination, and cooperation, patience, unity, respect for each other, trustworthiness, a sense of authority and responsibility, and flexibility in the actions and decisions that are taken for the achievement of business goals. To grow a business successfully, spiritual values are important to develop in the employees (Ali & Zaky, 2018).
Integration
Integration refers to combining and coordinating the activities that are interdependent in the workplace to create a whole. Organizational integration can be achieved when the goals and objectives of the business are affiliated and associated with internal and external influences. As the name suggests, Integration provides an organization with an option to control over kinds of processes. It includes competitors, distributors, and suppliers. Sometimes, a businessman has to play a crucial role to get things in systematic order o in a proper line. Integration strategy helps the business to control the business operations. Integration is one of the most important aspects of a business organization. The market is very competitive and drastic changes in the market can be seen. To survive in a highly competitive market, a business organization integrates its business activities with other businesses to mitigate the competition in the market. Integration strategies help the manager to perform this task. There are various integration strategies that help the business to grow. By using their spiritual values and beliefs, the managers can perform integration activities in the business or in the workplace (Tehseen, & Ramayah, 2015).
The spiritual values of the employees help them to integrate their thoughts and minds with other employees and co-workers. Integration helps the business in the strategic management process. Integration can be said when one business, merges and acquires another business. The business integrates its business operations and activities with other business organizations. Business integration is not only limited to the operations and other activities but it is also an integration of values, beliefs, and morals. The beliefs and spiritual values of the business organization help the business to integrate with others. The integration helps the business to enter the new market. When a business merges with another, it is easy for them to enter in a new market and face competition. Economies of scale are another advantage of integration. When two organizations integrate their activities and business operations, their skills, beliefs, and cultural values are also integrated, which helps in the mass production and it automatically decreases the overall cost. Integration also helps the business to increase its revenues and profits. It allows the business organization to have a smooth flow of goods and services (Tehseen, & Ramayah, 2015).
Conclusion
At the end of this report, it can be concluded that to improve the performance of the business organization, strategic management is important. The managers of the business firm have to make crucial decisions and formulate strategies that help to enhance the business operations ad also help to build a positive image and goodwill in the market. Strategic Management provides a wide perspective to the subordinates or all the employees in an organization and they can better identify their job roles and the responsibilities and duties for which they are accountable. Strategic management is an art and a creative approach to managing the human resources of the business organization in an effective manner so that it can contribute to the organization. In other words, it can be said that the effective use of human resources helps to achieve organizational and business goals.
One of the great roles of strategic management is to consolidate and integrate the various kinds of functional areas of the business organization. It also ensures that these functional areas of the firm are well managed and harmonized. In this report, the importance and role of spiritual and cultural values of the business organization are also discussed. The firm, which follows its moral values, and spiritual and cultural values, grows in the market. The spiritual values include loyalty towards the company, integrity, honesty, companionship, a sense of belongingness, and respect towards the organization as well as towards fellow employees and co-workers. All of these play a major role in strategic organizational management (Tapera, 2014).
References
Ali, Z., & Zaky, M. (2018). Spiritual values and spiritual practices: Interactive effects on leadership effectiveness. Etikonomi, 17(1), 123-134. http://download.garuda.kemdikbud.go.id/article.php?article=1343401&val=339&title=Spiritual%20Values%20and%20Spiritual%20Practices%20Interactive%20Effects%20on%20Leadership%20Effectiveness
Chang, J., JENNINGS, D., TO, C., & SUN, L. (2016). Strategic management. Payoungsa.[printed in Korean]. https://incoming-iep.nccu.edu.tw/sites/all/course/S10/355002001-%E4%BC%81%E6%A5%AD%E6%94%BF%E7%AD%96.pdf
Esmaeili, N. (2015). Strategic management and its application in modern organizations. International Journal of Organizational Leadership, 4, 118-126. https://sci-hub.hkvisa.net/https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3331801
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Parakhina, V., Godina, O., Boris, O., & Ushvitsky, L. (2017). Strategic management in universities as a factor of their global competitiveness. International Journal of Educational Management, 31(1), 62-75. https://sci-hub.hkvisa.net/10.1108/IJEM-03-2016-0053
Stokes, P., Baker, C., & Lichy, J. (2016). The role of embedded individual values, belief and attitudes and spiritual capital in shaping everyday postsecular organizational culture. European Management Review, 13(1), 37-51. https://sci-hub.hkvisa.net/10.1111/emre.12065
Tapera, J. (2014). The importance of strategic management to business organizations. http://197.221.241.74/bitstream/123456789/521/1/Tapera_Julius%20%2810%29.pdf
Tehseen, S., & Ramayah, T. (2015). Entrepreneurial competencies and SMEs business success: The contingent role of external integration. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(1), 50-50. https://sci-hub.hkvisa.net/10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n1p50
Wheelen, T. L., Hunger, J. D., Hoffman, A. N., & Bamford, C. E. (2017). Strategic management and business policy (Vol. 55). Boston: pearson. https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/56442363/strategic-management-business-policy-globalization-innovation-sustainability-14th-edition-wheelen-solutions-manual-with-cover-p
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