The Thinking Strategist

Unleashing the Power of Strategic Management to Identify, Explore and Solve Problems

Vickie Cox Edmondson

Emerald

This book can be opened with

Description
Contents
Reviews
About

The success of any strategic management process within an organization depends greatly on its ability to manage stakeholders. Stakeholders with competing expectations and demands are actively involved in the implementation of strategy, have a vested interest in the success or failure of organizations, and most importantly, can derail your strategic efforts.

As per its title, The Thinking Strategist promotes the strategic management process as a way to identify, explore and solve problems. It succinctly provides useful advice and practical tools to strengthen decision making and problem solving skills to accomplish organizational goals, exceed objectives, and to get top management and other key stakeholder support.

Ideal for business students and aspiring managers who seek to distinguish themselves as people who make success happen, The Thinking Strategist provides key concepts and principles, as well as analytical tools and frameworks used by organizations, to help identify, select, and implement appropriate solutions to problems that can lead to a competitive advantage and long-term success. The book is designed to help develop the skills, confidence, business judgment, and resilience needed not only to be successful but to be a driver of decision making and problem solving. To be an expert – a thinking strategist.

PART I: SETTING EXPECTATIONSSECTION A: SEE YOURSELF AT THE TOP 1. What Is Strategy And Why Is It Important To Anyone Not At The Top? 2. The Process, the Players and the Stakes 3. The Art of Judgment SECTION B: BUSINESS ACUMEN 4. Problem Not Currently Solved 5. Criteria for Good Strategy PART II: THE VAULT SECTION A: TAKING STOCK 1. Gathering Information with a Shared Goal in Mind 2. What Does A Company’s Internal Environment Reveal About Its Strategy - Structure Relationship? 3. Evaluating a Company’s External Environment: The Firm-Industry-Society Relationship 4. Gaining Alignment on What is Happening and Why SECTION B: CRAFTING STRATEGY FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 5. Theory Linking Strategy to Performance Objectives 6. Strategies for Overcoming Constraints 7. Brainstorming and Collaborative Decision Making SECTION C: ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING THROUGH STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION 8. Linking Implementation to Objectives 9. Managing Talent, Time, and Money 10. The Art of Gaining Commitment by Raising the Stakes SECTION D: ASSESSING PROGRESS AND IMPACT 11. Strategy Evaluation and Control 12. Strategic Communications

With an emphasis on professional growth, this guide is written to help those in lower management, and even those who are not yet managers, learn to think strategically and develop judgement to solve problems, make decisions, and rise to more responsible roles in the organization. Part 1 is devoted to organizational structure and decision making; it explains the roles of board of directors and top management and gives advice on developing better judgement, emotional intelligence, and strategic thinking. Part 2 offers advice on areas such as gathering information, strategy-structure relationships, crafting strategy for competitive advantage, managing talent, organizational learning, assessing progress, and strategic communication. The book includes b&w graphics, process diagrams, and summary charts. Its readership includes students as well as practitioners.
- Annotation ©2018

Vickie Cox Edmondson, Professor of Management, has taught strategic management, a business capstone course, since 1994. She most recently taught the course for seven years at Morehouse College where she served as the first Associate Provost for Student Success. Dr. Cox Edmondson taught the course at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in an academic appointment for 15 years, and at the University of Georgia while pursuing a doctorate degree in the discipline.