Strategic decisions are the decisions that are concerned with whole environment in which the firm operates,

the entire resources and the people who form the company and the interface between the two.

Characteristics/Features of Strategic Decisions

a. b. c. d. e. Strategic decisions have major resource propositions for an organization. These decisions may be concerned with possessing new resources, organizing others or reallocating others. Strategic decisions deal with harmonizing organizational resource capabilities with the threats and opportunities. Strategic decisions deal with the range of organizational activities. It is all about what they want the organization to be like and to be about. Strategic decisions involve a change of major kind since an organization operates in ever-changing environment. Strategic decisions are complex in nature. f. Strategic decisions are at the top most level, are uncertain as they deal with the future, and involve a lot of risk. g. Strategic decisions are different from administrative and operational decisions. Administrative decisions are routine decisions which help or rather facilitate strategic decisions or operational decisions. Operational decisions are technical decisions which help execution of strategic decisions. To reduce cost is a strategic decision which is achieved through operational decision of reducing the number of employees and how we carry out these reductions will be administrative decision

2. Strategic Management Process

Strategic management analyzes the major initiatives taken by a company's top management on behalf of owners, involving resources and performance in external environments. It entails specifying the organization's mission, vision, and objectives; developing policies and plans, often in terms of projects and programs that are designed to achieve these objectives; and then allocating resources to implement the policies and plans, projects and programs. There are five major steps for a company to follow when developing a strategy:

Assess its competitors and market. Set goals and strategies based on the company's competitive position. Reassess each strategy annually or quarterly (i.e. regularly) to determine how it has been implemented. Reassess each strategy to determine whether it has succeeded or needs replacement by a new strategy to meet changed circumstances. These include new technology, new competitors, a new economic environment, or a new social, financial, or political environment. Evaluate and control the business and the industries in which the company is involved (Figure 1).
AssessingCompetitorsand MarketConditions

The first step involves performing a situation analysis, self-evaluation, and competitor analysisboth internal and external, and both micro-environmental and macro-environmental. When assessing competitors, consider determining what makes a competitor attractive to its customers and what your company can learn from that competitor's success. Also, consider what your potential customer needs. Do your customers enjoy every aspect of your product or service? What

bothers them about acquiring or using your product? Is there any way that the business can improve the user's experience?
Setting Goals

Concurrent with the competitor assessment, short- and long-term objectives are set. The objectives can cover a variety of different areas, from production targets to how to reach out to potential new customers. These objectives should include completion dates.
Implementation

Implementation plans then detail how the objectives are to be achieved. Implementing a strategy involves organizing, resourcing, and employing change management procedures. This may require organizational changes, such as creating new units, merging existing ones or even switching from a geographical structure to a functional one or vice versa. Additionally, implementation may require significant budget shifts, impacting human resources and capital expenditure. 3. employees implement company strategies in a fast changing competitive environment. They have to make effective tactical decisions. To do this they need a consistent and shared set of values. The company's values are driven by its four passions. Customers marketing products and services responsibly communicating openly and honestly protecting customers. People recruiting and retaining the best people investing in improving skills involving and motivating employees. Results setting clear goals focussing on achieving goals rewarding staff for achievements. Read more: http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/vodafone/developing-andimplementing-a-strategic-approach-to-ethics/ethics-strategy-andvalues.html#ixzz2iMfNAt9h Follow us: @Thetimes100 on Twitter | thetimes100casestudies on Facebook OBT 2 1. A mission statement is a statement of the purpose of a company, organization or person,
its reason for existing.

The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a path, and guide decision-making. It provides "the framework or context within which the company's strategies are formulated." It's like a goal for what the company wants to do for the world. [1]

Contents[edit]
Effective mission statements start by cogently articulating the organization's purpose of existence. Mission statements often include the following information: etc. How the organization provides value to these stakeholders, for example by offering specific types of products and/or services A declaration of an organization's sole core purpose. A mission statement answers the question, "Why do we exist?" Aim(s) of the organization The organization's primary stakeholders: clients/customers, shareholders, congregation,

Characteristic mission statements typically include nine elements.

Function
The mission statement needs to include some description of the function of the business. For example, "to promote industrial excellence," tells customers and employees nothing. A more effective description would be "To provide management consulting services."

Target Consumers
An effective mission statement sets out, in broad terms, the target market. A manufacturer that makes nuts and bolts might set its target market as retail hardware stores, machine manufacturers, or both.

Target Region
The business must determine what region it serves best and relay that information by way of the mission statement. A garage, for example, might limit its target region to the community while a magazine company might target an entire country.

Values
Mission statements typically include a statement of company values. Values such as customer service, efficiency and eco-consciousness often appear on lists of company values. At their best, company values should express principles the company explicitly tries to affirm in day-to-day operations.

Technology
For businesses that rely heavily on technology, the mission statement should include a description of the essential technology the company does or plans to employ. If

nothing else, this directs purchasing agents toward the appropriate vendors for goods and services.

Employees
Every company has a policy regarding its relationship with employees. A mission statement provides an opportunity to describe that policy in brief so employees know the essentials of where they stand.

Strategic Positioning
Effective mission statements also include a brief description of the business's strategic position within the market. For example, the company might excel at serving residential clients and seek to maximize that strategic advantage.

Financial Objectives
For for-profit ventures, businesses require clear financial objectives. A start-up company might set one of its financial objectives as making an initial public offering of common stock within two years. This lets the employees and potential investors know the company intends to go public, with all of the legal and record keeping ramifications that entails.

Image
Like people, companies develop public images. Careful companies craft the public image they want to establish and lay out the major features of it in the mission statement. This helps managers direct employees that stray from the sanctioned public image.

2organizational objectives
DefinitionSave to FavoritesSee Examples
The overall goals, purpose and mission of a business that have been established by its management and communicated to its employees. The organizational objectives of a company typically focus on its long range intentions for operating and its overall business philosophy that can provide useful guidance for employees seeking to please their managers.
Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/organizational-objectives.html#ixzz2iMkJMnmc