In business, it is important to set a goal. It is also important to achieve that goal. The attainment of business goals is possible through effective business strategies. Business strategy is the plan that defines the following aspects of your business plan:
- Direction. Every strategy should be geared towards the identification and attainment of long-term goals. The direction of the business plans that you will formulate should be consistent to the realization of these long-term objectives.
- Market or Scope. It is also important to include the market in the evaluation of your strategies. In this manner, you will be able to determine your competitors and perform the activities needed in maintaining the competition in the market.
- Advantage. This involves the determination of the things that will make you stand out against you competitors and how you can use them well toward the attainment of your business goals.
- Resources. This includes every single factor that will serve as your asset in the market. Skills, expertise, finance, relationships, manpower, and facilities are part of the resources that you can utilize in your strategy.
- Environment. This refers to the external factors that are involved in the market's competition. This can be broken down into two groups: the macro factors which involve the political, legal, social, and cultural factors and the micro factors which involve customers, competitors, and suppliers.
- Stakeholders. These are the people who have the power and influence in the market. Their values and expectations play a big role in the competition and in the formulation of your strategy as well.
You can see that in the formulation of your business strategy, most of the aspects that you have to deal with are concerned with the market and the competition. More importantly, strategies are created in order to create a substantial effect in the organization of the business. Business strategies are created in accordance to the levels of the business. Strategies can be formulated in the corporate, business unit, and operational level.
In the corporate level, the strategies are formulated in accordance with the overall purpose and scope of the enterprise. Corporate strategies are those that you normally see in the mission statement of businesses.
In the business unit level, strategies are created to achieve competitiveness in the market. These are strategic decisions influencing the product choices, customer needs, market competition, and new opportunities in the market.
In the operational level, the strategies are concerned with the organization of the business and its parts. This is the application of the corporate and business unit strategies in the operations of the business.
A business strategy can influence the overall performance of your enterprise. Because strategies are created at all levels of the organization and imposed to achieve business objectives, it is imperative that the formulation of these strategies should be directed toward its implementation in the organization.
An effective strategy is possible by understanding the nature of each aspect that influences the market. More than the formulation of these strategies, it all boils down to how they can be implemented within the organization and how they can affect the actual and potential marketplace.