Week 11 Discussion

Respond to two classmate postings

QUESTION:

As leaders make strategic decisions, they must balance the interests of various stakeholders – employees, customers, shareholders, suppliers, unions/activists, and the community. Describe the best approach for doing this. 

Classmate 1:  

he textbook describes strategic leadership as a leader has the ability to anticipate, envision, maintain flexibility, think strategically, as well as work closely with others in order to initiate changes that will help to create a future that is viable for an organization (Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F, 2016, pg. 397).  The best approach for a leader to make strategic decisions they should always figure out what the companies vision and mission is, listing out what the companies long as well as short term objectives

strategy formulation such as who are our competitors and how do they rank against us, as well as confirming that the company is taking an appropriate risk. 

Next is strategy leadership which is confirming that the company has the right people to execute the strategy as well as the right kinds of resources, what is compensation strategy and also what are the performance targets. 

Finally is strategy evaluation and control. This is looking at what the strategy road map looks like as well as confirming that all the parts fit together, confirming that it will satisfy the stakeholders and that the company is on the right track to realizing the vision. 

Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F. (2016). Leadership: Theory, application & skill development. Cengage Learning. 

Classmate 2: 

The best way for leaders to approach making strategic decisions that balance the interests of various stakeholders such as customers, employees’, suppliers, etc. is by using the five-step process that we read about in this week’s chapter. (Pg 401-402)

Step 1 – Crafting a Strategical vision and mission statement

Step 2 – Setting Objectives

Step 3- Strategy Formulation

Step 4 – Strategy Execution

Step 5 – Strategy Evaluation and Control

Each step is very important when approaching decisions that involve all the stakeholders. Crafting a strategic vision is when the business decides the direction, they are going in. Setting Objectives is the step when business goals are set. Strategy Formulation is keeping the focus on satisfying customer needs. Strategy execution is making sure you are executing the strategy according to plan. Strategy Evaluation is collecting your data to determine if you are successful. A successful strategic leader can stick to the five steps and build an effective team that is able to work well together. It is important for a strategic leader to think about the stakeholders when making decisions that will affect them as well.

Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F. (2016). Leadership theory, application & skill development (6th ed.). Cengage