Exploring Different Types of Strategic Management

The definition of strategic management could be concluded from a twin perspective, which is a process of planning, execution, control, and review of an organisation’s strategy in the context of the business environment to achieve its objectives in a competitive marketplace. Examples are the ability to envision and understand an organization’s vision and mission, strategy formulation, and evaluation of those strategies. For this reason, there are several types of strategic management that will provide the reader with several perspectives on the general problem area and the tools that are needed for the management of the business and the outer world. This is an analysis of the different strategies of strategic management and others in an effort to seek to understand how firms could manage their future, given the dynamism of the business environment.

What is Strategic Management?

Strategic management refers to the formulation and implementation of strategy in organizations and how strategies are controlled and evaluated for performance. A critical activity that is engaged in is assessing the organizational internal and external environment, the strengths and weaknesses of the organization together, and the opportunities and threats in the environment. Strategic management involves the structuring of decisions to affect change and allocate scarce resources in a way that will help an organization attain a competitive advantage. It includes strategy formulation, where the planning of goals and the activities to be undertaken are determined, and strategy implementation, where the formulated plans are executed. Strategy control is where the efficiency of the formulated strategy is measured and, when necessary, modified. Finally, through strategic management, an organisation remains relevant to its environment, achieves its stated goals and objectives and remains on a route to achieving its strategic vision.

Also read: Understanding the Importance of Strategic Management in 2024

Businesses can incorporate five types of strategic management across industries to drive sales, growth, and long-term success.

1. Linear Strategic Management:  Linear Strategic Management is a straightforward, logical method used in the operationalisation of strategies such that each phase follows specific procedural steps. This approach is often characterized by the management making strategic decisions regarding the future of the organization, followed by a series of deliberate stages to put those decisions into motion. The first process is called environmental screening, in which the organization assesses its internal strengths and weaknesses as well as external opportunities and threats. From there, specific objectives are defined that aim the organization at its intended results, followed by strategy formation in which leadership creates a plan for achieving those objectives. As the above table shows, once the strategy has been developed, it is actioned through specific programmes and resources. Lastly, the organization evaluates and controls compliance, monitors achievements, and makes appraisals and corrections. The linear approach is a straightforward approach with a set plan to follow and little chance of change in that plan. Although it can be very useful in organizations operating in slowly evolving environments, in other words, where change is gradual and linear, strategic management only works well when the environment is volatile because the future is assumed to be fully predictable. However, this approach continues to be relevant where goal definition and a set procedure are required for attaining organizational goals.

2. Theoretical Foundation: Chaffee (1984) described strategic management in three forms: strategic management, which includes Linear strategic management, adaptive strategic management, and interpretive strategic management. Cope (1987) later extended both of these forms of strategic management into an expressive kind. Writing about how the management of language learning could be understood from the perspective of a continuum of strategic management types, Clough (2001) synthesized the work of Chaffe, Cope and other authors into four strategic management types. Subsequently, Clough (2013) developed the newest type of strategic management continuum by incorporating field experience with multiple organizations.

3. Interpretive Strategic Management:   Interpretive Strategic Management is an approach to strategic management that seeks to interpret the social production of the business environment and, in doing so, asserts the significance of organizational culture, individual perspectives and socially constructed frameworks in the management of organizations. Whereas cognitive or systemic methods of formulating a strategy that is logical, analytical, endpoint-orientated, and data-dependent using clear forms are in stark contrast, interpretive strategic management is based on the subjective fashioning of the situations and if the strategy is defined as ‘the process of creating order in the form of patterned activity through systems of meaning’, then it must be viewed as a form of sense-making. The fundamental concern of interpretive strategic management is that it is much more than a carefully planned sequence of actions supported by various executive decisions of managed organizations. Instead, it is a process that is active and social and is influenced by the culture that is prevailing in the organizations and the image that the members of the organization hold. It entails identifying the way people and organizations construct their perceptions of events, threats and opportunities and how these perceptions affect strategic choices.

Also Read: Stages & Process of Strategic Management

4. Expressive Strategic Management: Expressive strategic management is an evolved version of both adaptive and interpretive strategic management. It prioritizes a proactive approach to adapting to changes in an organization’s internal and external environments while remaining committed to upholding and communicating the mission and vision behind the larger organization. Expressive strategic management can be challenging to implement effectively, but organizations that manage to do so are positioned to regularly take advantage of emerging trends while remaining true to the mission, values, and vision that drive their company.

5. Transcendent Strategic Management:  Transcendent strategic management is a concept that is above the traditional strategic management concept, whereby companies integrate other greater, more profound values into their strategies’ planning and implementation. They stand up for the critics of the shortsighted approach to generating profits and promoting the values of sustainability, ethical compliance, and the generation of positive impact metrics. When we read or hear the term ‘transcendent’, it really means going the extra mile, moving to a level above the normal par to greater heights that will have an impact that is positive not just on the company but on the world.

Strategic Management Strategy

Strategic management can be defined as the process by which an organization determines its overall strategies, plans out how to achieve these strategies, and effectively coordinates resources to enable the various departments to work towards the achievement of the goals. An important general prerequisite for strategic management is, therefore, a strict focus on the constant process of learning and adjusting strategies based on its observations of the market and customers. Due to this, strategic management gives organizations a competitive edge in this world of ever-changing business operations.

Also Read: Top 12 Benefits of Strategic Management

Conclusion

Strategic management is crucial as far as organizations are concerned because of the many forces that operate in the business world today and the sustainable development of any organization. Corporate, business, functional, and global strategic management, as well as innovation strategies, are the types of DSMs, and they all pertain to different aspects of managerial goals within an organization.c management corporate, business, functional, global, and innovation strategies– each address different aspects of an organization’s operations and goals.

Whereas corporate strategy is concerned with the general management of the company, business strategy assists firms in managing their activities within particular industries. Operational strategies are simple and applied at the functional level, while global strategies are fundamental when the company wants to go out into the international markets. To learn more about the strategic management and business. Check out the Certificate Program in Strategic Management and Business Essentials With INSEAD by Hero Vired to learn more about strategic management.