Shermeen khan

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Being a Strategic Leader

Table of Contents

1.1 Impact of Organization’s Culture and Values on Strategic

Leadership………………………………………………………………………………2

1.2 Legal, Regulatory and Ethical Requirements and Strategic

Leadership………………………………………………………………………………2

1.3 Contemporary Social Concerns Impacting on Strategic

Leadership………………………………………………………………………………2

2.1 Relationship between Strategic Management and

Leadership……………………………………………………………………………..3

2.2 Leadership Style and Their Impact on Strategic

Decisions………………………………………………………………………………..4

2.3 Need to Adopt Different Leadership Styles in Different

Situations……………………………………………………………………………….9

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3.1 Two Different Leadership Strategies: An

Evaluation………………………………………………………………………………..9

3.2 Situational Variables and Changes in Leadership

Strategies………………………………………………………………………………11

3.3 Leadership Strategies and Organizational

Structures………………………………………………………………………………..12

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Being a Strategic Leader

1.1 Impact of Organization’s Culture and Values on Strategic Leadership

Strategic management has emerged as one of the most critical and valuable filed

necessary for the survival of an organization. Recent studies and anecdotal

evidences provide that almost every successful company around the globe is

implementing the methods and process of strategic management and leadership.

These methods enable the strategic leaders to pool and pull the assets of the

organizations into particular directions and achieve the set objectives. In this way,

such assets and resources are used and managed effectively and efficiently.

Therefore, it can be stated that the tools of the strategic management and

leadership today are making key to the benefit and success of a company.

Strategic leaders are different from strategic managers in a variety of aspects.

Following discussion highlights and provides an insight into differing traits of being

a strategic leader.

1.2 Legal, Regulatory and Ethical Requirements and Strategic Leadership

Strategic leader have to comply with both the local laws, regulations and other

ethical requirements for smooth operation of their companies. For becoming more

global they need to understand the sensitive elements of a particular society and

culture. Therefore, the importance of ethical behaviors cannot be ignored in the

modern world. The leaders need to develop a positive self-regulation of moral

behaviors as compelling norm. Further, they also need to develop a ethical

atmosphere at firm level just as a matter of routine.

1.3 Contemporary Social Concerns Impacting on Strategic Leadership

Strategic leaders always need to take care of a number of societal and cultural

parameters in order to achieve their objective and vision of their company. Also,

they need to appreciate the environmental complexities in the given society. It is

only then they can fully understand and exploit political and social flux of the

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society. Also, it is seen that corporate social responsibility is becoming an essential

feature of today’s businesses. Hence, strategic leader needs to be aware of social

concerns found in the surrounding society (Amato, Henderson, Florence, 2009).

2.1 Relationship between Strategic Management and Leadership

Followings models provide a description of leadership and strategic management

(Milum, 2011):

Direct Leadership: The first level of strategic leadership is direct leadership

which is actually a first line, face to face management of the company.

Basically, it is applied in such companies where subordinate staff level is

always in direct or fact to fact contact with leaders almost all the times. Such

companies may consist of handful to hundreds of employees. Most of the

time, direct leadership provides for a structure of one on one interaction with

between leaders and their subordinate staff.

Organizational Leadership: This form of leadership and management

provides for an influence and control over several hundred employees. They

may be in a direct or indirect control of them. Strategic leaders usually interact

with them through the medium of their immediate staff level managers. This

staff also helps the managers to carry on and implement their strategies. The

basic level of influence of strategic leaders for this purpose is found in policy

making for both short term and long term for the company, instead of face to

face contact.

Strategic Leadership: This level of leadership is found in multinational

organizations. Strategic leaders generally control thousands of people

through establishing organizational structure, resource allocation, and

communicating their strategic visions. Strategic leaders are generally working

on high complex and uncertain environments that are crucial to the survival

and growth of the company.

Leadership writers opine that strategic leadership developed from the ground

of scheduling. During the industrial revolution, as setting up labors at main -4-

corporations raised and turned into more dignified at business height in the

1970s and early 1980s, center moved from highlighting economic preparation

to additional concern – leaning scheduling. It is noticed that as the 1980s

developed, there was a more move from centering on plan growth to

centering on plan completion, and from central preparation to decentralized

preparation. With the changes in importance, Mockler (1997), gives advice

that the name “strategic leadership” instead of “strategic management” was

utilized much more in trade to explain this developing progression, particularly

as better concentration was rewarded to completion kindness. It highlights

concern and continuous welfare of groups and it does so due to the following

reasons.

According to Thompson and Strickland (1996), strategic leadership:

1. Offers assistance to the whole association on the vital tip of “what is that,

we are trying to act and to get”.

2. Build administrators much attentive to the fast developments, fresh

occasions, and alarming growths

3. Giving administrators with a basis for estimating opposing financial plan

needs for savings wealth and fresh employees – a underlying principle

that disagrees powerfully for routing funds into plan – helpful,

consequences – creating parts.

4. Serving to unite the many plan - connected conclusions by administrator

across the group.

Making a more practical administration bearing and offsetting bents for

choices to be hasty and suspicious.

2.2 Leadership Style and Their Impact on Strategic Decisions

Leadership style means a number of things which includes but not limited to

managerial style, personal effectiveness, communication skills, efficacy role, team

building, and partnership building. Every strategic leader possesses specific

leadership style. However, most common traits include a wider perspective of the

business of his or her company in such a way that the company could progress in -5-

a particular and clear direction. Strategic leader always looks for a big picture of

the company at all levels of its business.

2.3 Need to Adopt Different Leadership Styles in Different Situations

Need to Adopt Different Leadership Styles in Different Situations as given under:

Vision and Organization: This is the 1st job. The task declaration clarifies

what a corporation look for to do and to turn out to be. It explains a deal and

gives an obvious sight of what the corporation is trying to achieve for its

clients. On the other side, a planned idea symbolizes administration’s sight of

the type of corporation it is trying to make and its intention to watch a specific

trade place. By rising and talking a trade assignment and planned idea,

administration introduces the labor force with wisdom of reason and a

convincing basis for the company’s expectations track. It gives out as a sound

basis for assigning capitals. Especially, administration should make sure that

the association works together on their planned way declarations.

The Creation of Administrative Goals: This is the 2nd job. Administrative

declarations of trade task and corporation way are interpreted into exact

presentation aims, a bit the organization’s progress can be measured by.

Objectives which are temporary, average – period or extended –can be set to

get better the economic act of the organization, its trade place in the business

and makes it more deliberate and attentive in its events (Harrison, 1998).

Immediate goals make obvious the instant developments and results

organization needs at the same time as lasting goals punctual boss to think

what to do now to place the association to do well over the longer period.

According to Thompson and Strickland (1996), assembling demanding but

attainable goals (high to low level or participative advance) thus assists

protector in opposition to satisfaction, flow, and inner perplexity over what to

achieve and rank quo managerial task.

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There are two kinds of presentation yardsticks from a companywide viewpoint

(Thompson and Strickland, 1996): economic goals and planned goals.

Economic goals recount to such events as wages increase, arrival on asset,

money flow and saver income. These are significant since lacking satisfactory

economic presentation an association risks being starved of the capital it

wants to produce and flourish. Planned goals on the other side are wanted to

timely administrative labors to make stronger a company’s in general trade

and spirited place. Models of planned goals comprise: rising quicker than the

manufacturing standard; passing main contestants on result value, client

check or marketplace share and training technical management. Planned

goals give out notice that administration not only mean to bring high-quality

economic presentation but also to recover the organization’s spirited power

and extended trade forecast.

The following are some examples of planned goals:

General Electric: To turn into the biggest cutthroat activity around the

globe by getting a first or second position in the share of the market in

each and every industry the corporation is in.

Apple Computer: To propose the top promising PC equipment & to place

that equipment in as many people’s hands as doable.

Making a Policy/Plan: It is the 3rd job in strategic leadership. It needs

that the administration properly examines the in-house and outside

situation of the company. Equipped with firm examination & a

comprehensible idea of the planned apparition and trade mission of the

company, administration develops strong approach to accomplish the

economic and tactical goals for the company. (Thompson and Strickland,

1996), comments that the policy of an organization is normally a merge of:

intentional and focused measures

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as-required feedback to unexpected advances and new cutthroat

stresses.

Latest situation always come out, whether significant hi-tech progress,

competitor’s victorious innovative manufactured goods openings, lately

passed government policies and further more. There will be constantly

sufficient ambiguity related to the upcoming that managers won’t be able

to prepare in advance each and every tactical act and practice their

planned approach with no modification. Corporation plans finish up,

consequently being a combination of calculated measures (planned

approach) and as-required feedback to unexpected circumstances

(unplanned approach reactions). As a result, plan is most excellent

visualized as a blend of deliberate measures and at the scene of action

best suited responses to new emerging business and cutthroat measures.

Therefore making a policy is training in private enterprise and external - in

planned philosophy.

Dangers Encountered by a Company: (Thompson and Strickland, 1996)

recommends that when the managers of an organization do not succeed

to work out policy, a corporation comes across two threats.

Out Of Date Approach: The first one is out of date approach. The

quicker the trade of an organization is varying, the further dangerous it

turns out to be for managers to detect changing circumstances and

introducing planned modifications. The policy of going alongside the

existing conditions has a tendency to turn out more dangerous than

producing alterations. Plans becoming more and more out of contact

with marketplace realism craft a corporation a first-class applicant for

routine catastrophe. A vision joint with Gibson (1998).

Inside-Out Tactical Philosophy: Inside-out tactical philosophy is the

2nd threat. Managers having feeble industrial talent are frequently afraid

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of taking risk and doubtful to get on an innovative planned track till the

current policy generates satisfactory outcomes. They give merely

dutiful consideration to marketplace tendency and take note of the

clients rarely. Frequently, they allow going fresh external progress as

insignificant or learning them to passing away prior to doing any action.

As they are at ease with current policy, they center their power plus

concentration on in-house crisis resolving, managerial procedures and

measures, information and time limits, corporation affairs of state, and

the organizational load of their work. As a result, the planned

measures they start have a tendency to be inside-out and

administrated by conventional advances of the organization, what is

satisfactory to a variety of domestic opinionated unions, supposedly at

ease, & is not dangerous, together managerially & job wise (Thompson

and Strickland, 1996). The more feeble a manager’s industrial impulse

and ability, the more a manager’s tendency to connect with inside-out

planning, a result that lifts the prospective for compact competitiveness

and diluted obligation of the company to entire client contentment.

Plan Realization and Completion: This is the 4th job. It stresses working out

what to do to set the plan in position, carry out it expertly and generate first-

class outcomes. The plan – employing job is simply the greatest complex and

lengthy element of strategic leadership. It slices across practically each and

every one aspects of organization and have to be started from numerous

positions within the association. Key features contain as conversed by

Thompson and Strickland (1996):

constructing a business that is skillful of functioning the policy effectively

making financial plans that guide capital into those inner actions dangerous to planned achievement

setting up plan – helpful guidelines

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inspiring public in such methods that persuade them to follow the goal aims actively and, if required, altering their responsibilities and employment actions to suit the necessities of victorious plan implementation in a better manner.

fastening the incentive configuration to the accomplishment of targeted outcomes

building a corporation society and job environment favorable to victorious plan completion

setting up in-house assist structures that facilitate corporation staff to perform their planned jobs efficiently every day over a long period

establishing the most excellent exercises and plans for constant development

exercising the domestic headship required to compel execution in front and to continue making improvements for carrying out the plan.

In view of above, it is seen that strategic leadership is the most dynamic area at

organizations. They are master at organizational and direct leadership skills.

However, they are very capable of doing more integrated and complex functions,

such as creating network of information, fastest processing of information, decision

making even if the data and information are incomplete and generate viable

support systems. It is therefore seen that strategic leader possess qualities to act

on incomplete information in different situations. However, it is to be noted that

strategic leaders usually plan for long term and their policy and decisions may take

a year or more to be fruitful.

3.1 Two Different Leadership Strategies: A Case of McDonald’s Corporation

Fundamentally, there are four strategies of leadership managements. It is always

necessary to find out the key drivers while constructing a sound leadership

strategy. These are Cost Leadership Strategy, Focus Strategy and Differentiation

Strategy and any combination of afore mentioned strategies.

Cost Leadership – Strategy: This strategy is useful for the low cost producers in

the industry. Under this strategy, companies sell their products usually at

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average price in the prevailing industry to earn competitive profits, or they sell

their product on below with the purpose to earn their market share instead of

higher degrees of profits. Here, strategic leaders develop cost effective

leadership strategies in order to keep targeting broader markets and bigger

sales. It must be noted that each leader strategy has its own risks. For instance,

the companies may be able to lower their costs, and technologically improve on,

thus eliminating the rivals in the market.

Focus Strategy: Strategic leaders can develop focused strategies by aiming a

specific group of consumers. For instance, economic, cultural, geographical,

political, or other age related groups, like children, teen, men and elderly. Within

their specific target consumers, strategic leaders employ either differentiation

focused, or cost focused strategies. SAGA Holidays, for instance, always try to

focus on a limited and particular consumer group i.e. people over 50 years of

their age. This turns into brand loyalty and the customers take SAGA Holidays as

specialist in its products.

Porter states that all generic strategies cannot be mixed, however, combining

market segmentation with differentiation strategy is possible and most of the times

it works. However, other combinations, for instance, value-added differentiation

and reduction of cost is hardly possible. It is therefore, he suggests that a company

should keep one in general strategy to sustain its competitive advantage in the

long run (Pasmore, W. 2009).

In the context of McDonald’s Corporation it is seen that it is found that McDonald

has a persistent focus on customer care, speedy service and neatness. Further,

McDonald’s Corporation also takes its product value as one of its greatest

strengths. Further, as to McDonald’s culture at their outlets, customers know what

they are going to expect. On the other hand, it is also seen that McDonald also

takes care of customer’s need and changing trends. It is seen that the key secret

of McDonald and its marketing strategy to focus on its targeted customers. It

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chooses its target customer carefully by taking into account demographic, social,

cultural, psychological and financial aspects of the customer (Vijayarani, N. 2011).

3.2 Situational Variables and Changes in Leadership Strategies

Like any business strategy, leaders also formulate their strategies after taking

detailed information and thorough analysis of the prevailing situations keeping in

view the ongoing trends. These strategies entail a series of proposals and

recommendations in order to fill the gap between the surrounding circumstances

and the objectives of future. It is stated that vision is something which could be

described as a core of leadership and the most essential component required for

assessing strategies. A good leader is always ready to make the necessary

changes and alternative plans to achieve its objectives. According to Thompson

and Strickland (1996) fresh conditions require remedial modifications. Long-lasting

route may require the change, the trade redescription, and idea of company’s

upcoming track tapered or widened.

As groups’ features unsure, disordered, and intolerant trade surroundings, these

subjects summarized above by Thompson and Strickland can only be understood

by corporations with sound managerial control. The management that is serious

here is transformational management as opposite to transferable management. In

transformational management, leaders are expected to accurately interpret the

goings on in the environment and take appropriate actions to exploit the

opportunities created by uncertainty. These boss are threat takers, love alter, live

in front of the transform bend, telling again their production (Gibson, 1998), great

talkers, group of actors, skill masters, difficulty resolvers, change creators and

overseas representatives. They are not the experts of the rank quo as it is with the

transferable boss. This proposes that the task of management (transformational) in

the strategic leadership procedure is unifying and thus victory or crash axis on “the

handler of the association”. Experiential proofs appear to propose that associations

that track the strategic leadership structure with alteration management are high

players. Since high - performing associations, they start and guide in their own -12-

business, they do not just respond and protect. They start planned assailments to

out –bring in and out – plan competitors and sheltered believable spirited benefit,

then use their market border to attain better economic presentation according to

Thompson and Strickland (1996).

Strategic goals may require elevating or lessening considering history incident and

upcoming scenario (Cooper, 2005). Plan may require to be altered due to alter in

long-standing track, as latest aims have been made, or as alterations in the

atmosphere. It was observed by the researchers that comprehending progress in

the surroundings is different than getting the suitable reaction. Consequently,

identifying alteration is not enough, reacting in advance to deal with an unexpected

difficulty is vital. Here comes the requirement for battle wits and daring headship to

cope up with the matters face-to-face and not desire the dares gone. Leadership is

course of persuading an association (or grouping inside an association) in its hard

work for accomplishing an objective or target. Though, needed in our day’s

complicated working atmosphere is revolution headship, the headship that

motivates company victory by deeply touching supporters’ viewpoint of what an

association supposes to be, plus their morals, for example integrity and honesty.

Revolution headship is needed due to the remarkable alteration that numerous

associations are facing and the serious significance of Revolution headship in

altering or shifting associations effectively. An example of the revolution leader is

Lee Iacocca. He had a great success in changing Chrysler Corporation from an

organization on the edge of failing into to a victorious company.

3.3 Leadership Strategies and Organizational Structures

Today, organization have gone far to depend upon leaders and the strategies

developed by them. Strategic leaders act through their subordinates at firm level,

so they are required to choose their teams in such a manner that could develop a

good, efficient and reliable network of second tiers managers (Milum, 2011). It is

important that strategic leader must have a clear vision and policy of the

organization. Further, they must keep on checking the environment of firm as well -13-

as market for any potential threat and cope with these changes around. Strategic

leadership is the key and it is demonstrated as a procedure in the course of which

organizations investigate and study from their inner and outer surroundings, set up

planned way, make plans that are proposed to aid get recognized objectives, and

carry out those objectives, all in an attempt to suit key directorial stakeholders.

Strategic leaderships dissimilar from other parts of organization. It highlights the

rising worth of ecological crash on associations and the requirement for strategic

management to respond suitably to them. It is noticed that there is a rising

sentiment that the more related principle of managerial value is not, as once it was,

that of effectiveness, but slightly that of adoptability to adjust in the surroundings.

References:

1. Milum. 2011. Strategic Leadership. [Online] Available at:

http://www.milum.net/strategic_leadership.htm Accessed on 23 October 2011.

2. Vijayarani, N. 2011. McDonald’s Business Analysis. [Online] Available at:

http://ezinearticles.com/?McDonalds-Business-Analysis&id=687438 Accessed on

23 October 2011.

3. Amato, AD., Henderson, S., Florence, S., 2009. Corporate Social Responsibility

and Sustainable Business: A Guide to Leadership Tasks and Functions. [Online]

Available at:

http://www.ccl.org/leadership/pdf/research/CorporateSocialResponsibility.pdf

Accessed on 23 October 2011.

4. Pasmore, W. 2011. Developing a Leadership Strategy: A critical ingredient for

Organizational Success. [Online] Available at:

http://www.ccl.org/leadership/pdf/research/LeadershipStrategy.pdf Accessed on

23 October 2011.

5. Mockler R. J. 1997. “Strategic Management: The Beginning of a New Era,”

Rethinking Strategic Management; John Wiley & Sons,

6. Thompson Jr. A.A and Strickland J.A. 1996. Strategic Management - Concepts

and Cases, Irwin-14-

7. Gibson R. 1998. Rethinking The Future; Nicholas Brealey Publishing, London

8. Finlay P. 2000. Strategic Management, Prentice Hall

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