Business strategy

Strategy crafting and implementing is a core activity of the strategic management. The term "strategy" does not have a unique interpretation. This notion is a bit ambiguous and abstract as well as there is no unique receipt of a successful strategy as every successful strategy is individual. Furthermore, the successfulness of the chosen strategy can be revealed only after its implementation and the process of the strategy crafting does not bring any momentary benefit for the firm. On the contrary, the process demands for big financial resources and is time-consuming.

The greater part of the authors defines the strategy as a general programme of planned actions aiming to reach an objective through objective adapting to each momentary situation of the process. Ansoff defines the strategy as a set of rules for decision-making process, which an organization uses in its activities. Characteristic features of a strategy are:

1. The process of the strategy Grafting, as a rule, ends basically with establishing general directions of the future company development rather than with elaborating some immediate action.

2. The mapped out strategy is a basis for future strategic programmers and projects which will be made by the search method; that is the strategy allows to concentrate the management attention to certain opportunities and moves cutting out those not compatible with the chosen strategy.

3. The strategy is considered to be fulfilled if the desirable for a company objective is gained.

4. The strategy always has a forecasting character; during the strategy. Grafting process is impossible to foresee all opportunities, which will come later when working out programmers of specific actions. A very generic, inexact and incomplete information on possible alternative ways is an underlying basis of a strategy.

Principles of strategic management

Strategic management is a system of handling, conducting and controlling of affairs of an institution (company, enterprise, firm) aimed at Grafting strategies and developing organization conforming with the ways of their implementation and execution. And as a result of a correct strategic management, the company always has competitive products, rational system of resource supply, organizational structure, information system and such controlling and conducting processes which provide company's high sensitivity to changes in external environment. Strategic management can be fulfilled as at the level of single manufacturing unit (plant) so as at the level of single company (firm) or group of companies (corporation). Strategic management process implies that chief executive officers and managerial staff support group can simulate situations, reveal necessary changes to implement, craft strategy of changes implementation and use reliable and trustworthy managerial methods and techniques. The Core of strategic management is the strategic planning.

Strategic planning supposes the existence of new functions of company's management. Planning and implementation of strategic initiatives became an activity of staff managers, strategy-makers. But the success of strategy implementation and execution will depend on line managers of different functions. It means that managers of all organisational levels normally have a hand in the process.