Module 1: Orientation

Study Map: The Reinventing Strategic Planning the systems thinking approach®

Module 1: Orientation:

Learning objective

Students will understand the rationale for the course and be able to use the study map to navigate through the learning objectives and the Watch-Try-Do simulations for each module.

Learning objective

Students will be able to understand the difference between systems thinking, strategic planning and strategic management.

Learning objective

Students will be able to use the 5 systems elements and associated strategic questions and see how they relate to specific sequence of steps within the 10-step model.

Learning objectives

Students will be able to develop a concise plan that addresses all 4 phases in order to make your overall strategic plan.

Learning objective

Students will be able to conduct a future environmental scanning exercise that is forward looking and engages key stakeholders in identification of relevant key future trends for the business and its customers and consideration of their implications and what to do about them.

Learning objective

Students will be able to vision, mission, values and competitive positioning of products and services that are superior to the competition in the eyes of the target customer.

Learning objective

Students will be able to develop quantifiable measurements of success for achieving an organization’s vision, mission, and core values on a year-by-year basis as the culmination, on paper, of all your previous work on your organization's vision, mission, and values.

Learning objective

Students will be able to undertake a CURRENT STATE ASSESSMENT, where internal and external analyses are conducted of the organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Learning objective

Students will be able to create core strategies to bridge the gap between the Ideal Future Vision and the Current State.

Learning objective

Students will be able to understand how core strategies are to be implemented by the different strategic business units.

Learning objective

Students will be able to develop annual unit action plans with prioritized actions and names the resources you will need to actually implement your core strategies.

Learning objective

Students will be able to develop an implementation game plan that incorporates the key concepts for successful implementation and transformation, specifically the iceberg: Content, Processes, and Structures; and the rollercoaster theories of change and how they interact.

Learning objective

Students will be able to transforms the strategic plan into a multitude of individual plans and ties a rewards system to it.

Learning objective

Students will be able to facilitate an annual strategic review and update to keep pace with and be flexible to changing environments.

Learning objectives

Students will have a good understanding of the process of strategic planning. have a good grasp of how to accomplish strategic goals and objectives for your organization.
By the end of this course, students will be able to use The Systems Thinking Approach® to preparing for, creating, executing and leading the strategic management process.

The Overarching Goal

The overarching goal of this course is to provide managers and strategic planners within organizations with a good understanding of the process of strategic planning. When strategic planning is fully understood by senior management, and when the totality of the high leverage activities that make it effective and practical are known and are applied, an organization will stay relevant and competitive over the long term.

By the end of this course, students will be able to use The Systems Thinking Approach® to preparing for, creating, executing and leading the strategic management process.

For best results, the use of the systems thinking approach® is recommended when implementing a strategy management system. An organization is better equipped to design a system with the right inputs, throughputs, outputs, and feedback within a dynamic and rapidly changing environment when inviting leaders to reflect on five key strategic questions within our 5-phase ABCDE model:

PHASE A: Where do we want to be?
PHASE B: How will we know when we get there?
PHASE C: What are the inputs required for action?
PHASE D: How do we get there?
PHASE E: Ongoing: What will/may change in your environment in the future?

Follow our practical 10-step application of systems thinking which integrates risk, governance and strategy into a single, understandable and flexible management and reporting system.

You will learn

How to apply strategic thinking on a daily basis
How to start the planning and execution processes off correctly
The importance of external environment scanning and how to do it
How to create your unique strategic positioning and use it for competitive advantage
Mitigating risk
Building support for your plan into your process through early key stakeholder involvement
Creating clarity for your long-term vision
Setting and using measures to ensure success
Strategies for cascading strategic plans throughout the organization and aligning all work units in a single strategic direction
Practical tools and techniques for making change stick
How to create an ongoing strategic management system in your organization for long-term business success
The common mistakes of strategic management and how to avoid or overcome them

But you will not become an expert yourself. This course really only taps in on some foundation level skills. As described in the diagram below you are likely to transition across the continuum of competence and over time you will build your confidence in the use of the ABCDE model and the 10 Step approach and work with others in more experienced in the approach as the need arises.

In further masterclass training and through practical application, you will see significant growth in self-mastery and breakthrough thinking skills at the personal, interpersonal, team, and family/community levels.

Structure of the course

This course consists of 15 modules of learning in which we will address the concepts of the systems thinking approach® to strategic planning. We have used adult/experiential learning models in the form of the watch-try-do simulations in most modules. The intent is to encourage you to apply these concepts to a hypothetical case study and within the context of your own work. The course structure is as follows and generally follows the 10-step model in the diagram below in a clockwise motion staring in the top right-hand corner.

Module 1: Orientation

Module 2: Introduction to STATM

Module 3: The ABC Model & Ten Steps

Module 4: Step 1 Plan to Plan

Module 5: Future Scan & Stakeholder Engagement

Module 6: Step 2 Envision the Ideal Future

Module 7: Step 3 Key Success Measures

Module 8: Step 4 Current State Assessment

Module 9: Step 5 Develop Core Strategies

Module 10: Step 6 Develop the 3-Year Business Plan

Module 11: Step 7 Cascade the Strategies into action plans and strategic budgets

Module 12: Step 8 Plan to implement - the iceberg theory of change, the rollercoaster of change and prepare to implement.

Module 13: Step 9 Implementation and change

Module 14: Step 10 Annual Strategic Review and update

Module 15: Course summary and review

Watch-Try-Do Simulations

Adult/experiential learning is learning that occurs naturally when a person engages in some activity, looks back at the activity from a critical stand point, extracts some useful insight or knowledge from the analysis, and puts the result to work through a change in behavior. Of course, this process is experienced spontaneously in everyone’s ordinary life.

People never stop learning. With each new experience, we consciously or unconsciously ask ourselves questions such as, “How did that feel?” “What really happened?” or “What do I need to remember about that?” It is an inductive process, proceeding from observation rather than from a priori “truth” as in the deductive process.

Learning can be defined as a change in behavior as a result of experience or inputs, and that is the usual purpose of training. The effectiveness of experiential learning is based on the fact that nothing is more relevant to us than ourselves. Your own reactions, observations, and understanding of something are more important than someone else’s opinion about it. Research has shown that people learn best by doing. You remember what you do better than you remember what you know.

WATCH (Experiencing)

In the WATCH (Experiencing) mode, we show you how to work with the systems thinking approach®. For this, we have recorded the step-by-step actions that need to be performed in a series of modules. These steps are demonstrated using case studies, examples and whiteboard/flip chart explanations as a video or through a reading in the online course.

TRY (Processing)

Participants are encouraged to try executing the demonstrated steps in the TRY (Processing) mode. They will see options and highlights illustrated in the readings to help them. This acts as reinforcement and facilitates learning by doing.

DO (Generalising & Applying)

In the DO (Generalising & Applying) mode, participants execute the steps in the process on their own, without any hints. If someone gets stuck at any point, there are readings and case studies to refer to. We also include an optional quiz at the end of each module so that you can test if are on track with your self-paced learning.

Practice makes perfect. Participants can view the simulation videos and try any number of times till they gain the confidence to perform the steps in the systems thinking approach®. They can always go back and view the whole strategic management cycle for reinforcement.

Required text

The prescribed text for course is:

Haines, Stephen G. Reinventing strategic planning – The systems thinking approach® / Stephen Haines with James McKinlay, Systems Thinking Press - https://www.amazon.com.au/Reinventing-Strategic-Planning-Thinking-Approach/dp/0977978613

Please refer to the study map in this module as a checklist on the required readings and tasks for each module.

We will also provide additional readings and resources throughout the subject which you will be able to access through the Learning Management System platform.

Want more? – optional readings

See our publications on www.systemsthinkingpress.com

This week we have one recommendation for you if you are interested in learning more about the terminology & notations that are important in this course and this is also a great glossary reference - STASM Glossary of Terms.

Learning Objective

Students will understand the rationale for the course and be able to use the study map to navigate through the learning objectives and the Watch-Try-Do simulations for each module.

WATCH

Optional Readings

Becoming a Strategic Thinker.pdf

Download

Becoming a Strategic Thinker.pdf

STASM_glossary_of_terms.pdf

Download

STASM_glossary_of_terms.pdf

B-RSP-E.pdf

Download

B-RSP-E.pdf

Module Feedback

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Resources

Video 01B.pdf

Video 04.pdf

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