Foundations of Strategy:
Chapter 1
MGT 4380-095, GROUP 1
JACOB FELTY
SABREA HEBB
ALEXANDRA HILL
SHAADY IBRAHIM
CALLIE MYERS
COLBY WULF
The Role of Strategy in Success
 1) Simple, Consistent and Long Term Goals
 2) Profound Understanding of the Competitive
Environment
 3) Objective Appraisal of
Resources
 4) Effective Implementation
Goals
Simple
Consistent
Long Term
Competitive Environment
Brand
• Simple and
exclusive
• Staying
connected
Rival Products
• MySpace
• Friendster
New Realities
• Revolutionized
social
networking
Objective Appraisal of Resources
Positioning
Product Protection
Utilizing Talents
A Brief History of Strategy
Origins
Military strategy
and business
strategy share
common
concepts
Evolution
of
Business
Strategy
Driven by
practical needs
of the business
Origins
 Military Strategy is a Precursor to Modern Business
Strategy

Three common characteristics between them
Evolution of Business Strategy
1950s & 1960s:
Corporate Planning
1970s & 1980s:
Strategic
Management
1990s :
Competitive
Advantage
2000s:
Strategic
Innovation
Social Legitimacy
 TOM’s shoes exemplified Corporate Social
Responsibility in their Business Model
 “1 for 1” Strategy
Describing a
Firm’s
Strategy
Identifying a
Firm’s
Strategy
What is
Strategy?
Strategy Today
Making
Strategy:
Design vs.
Emergence
Shareholders
vs.
Stakeholders
Roles
Strategies
Perform
Strategy Today
 What is Strategy?
 Corporate Strategy
 Business Strategy
 Describing a Firm’s Strategy
 Identifying a Firm’s Strategy
 Statements of mission, principles (or values), vision, and
strategy
 Checked by questions of investments, development, and
released products/projects
Strategy Development
 Design vs. Emergence
 Intended strategy
 Realized strategy
 Emergent strategy
 Planned Emergence
Roles of Strategy
 Decision Support
 Coordinating Device
 A Target
 Animation and Coordination
 In whose interests?
 Stakeholder approach
Whose Interests Should be Prioritized?
 Balancing Interests of Shareholders, Customers and
Employees
Profit and Purpose
 Most successful companies are not motivated by
profits alone
 Becoming the best at what they do
 A sense of purpose is needed
Corporate Social Responsibility
 The Property Conception vs. The Social Entity
Conception
VS
.
Discussion Questions
 Which companies could you think of that have a
really good strategy? Bad strategy?
 According to Great by Choice, great leaders often
emerge from extreme environments. What strategies
help Target survive in its environment?
 In the long-run, will focusing on the social entity be
enduring?