Strategic Support for Decision Makers


Book Description

Citizenship and human rights education are among society's strongest defences against the rise of violence, discrimination and intolerance. However, their aims, objectives and approaches are not always understood and their implications for policy and practice only partially recognised. This policy tool explains what citizenship and human rights education are about and what they mean in terms of policy making in a lifelong learning perspective, namely, In the different phases of education and training - whether formal, informal or non-formal - from general education to vocational training and higher education to adult education. it sets out a policy cycle involving policy design and implementation, As well as policy review and sustainability. This tool aims to provide support to key decision makers in member states - ministers, parliamentarians and government officials. it can, however, be used by anyone involved in designing, implementing and reviewing relevant policies, whether in government and international organisations, education and training institutions, non-governmental organisations and youth organisations.




Strategic Decision Making


Book Description

Strategic Decision Making provides an effective, formal methodology that provides help with decision making problems, especially strategic ones with high stakes involving human perceptions and judgements. Focusing on applying the AHP to decision-making problems, Strategic Decision Making covers problems in the realms of business, defence and governance. Using case studies drawn from years of experience, the book discusses decision making for real life problems and includes many worked examples and solutions to problems throughout. The reader will gain comprehensive exposure to the extent of assistance that a formal methodology, such as AHP, can provide to the decision maker in evolving decisions in complex and varied domains.




Strategic Decisions


Book Description

Over the past ten years, there has been growing interest in the process of strategic decision-making among both managers and researchers. Strategic decisions are important for five main reasons: They are large-scale, risky and hard to reverse; they are a bridge between deliberate and emerging strategies; they can be a major source of organizational learning; they play an important part in the development of individual managers and they cut accross functions and academic disciplines. Strategic Decisions summarizes the current state of the art in research on strategic decision-making, with chapters prepared by leading strategy researchers. The editors also present implications for current application and proposed directions for future research.







Business Strategy


Book Description

The effectiveness of a good strategy well implemented determines a business' future success or failure. Yet history is full of strategic decisions, big and small, that were ill-conceived, poorly organized and consequently disastrous. This updated guide looks at the whole process of strategic decision-making, from vision, forecasting, and resource allocation, through to implementation and innovation. Strategy is about understanding where you are now, where you are heading and how you will get there. There is no room for timidity or confusion. Although the CEO and the board decide a company's overall direction, it is the managers at all levels of the organization who will determine how the vision can be transformed into action. In short, everyone is involved in strategy. But getting it right involves difficult choices: which customers to target, what products to offer, and the best way to keep costs low and service high. And constantly changing business conditions inevitably bring risks. Even after business strategy has been developed, a company must remain nimble and alert to change, and view strategy as an ongoing and evolving process. The message of this guide is simple: strategy matters, and getting it right is fundamental to business success.




The Fundamental Elements of Strategy


Book Description

This open access book clarifies confusions of strategy that have existed for nearly 40 years through the core thoughts of three fundamental elements. Unlike the traditional definition of strategy as "a plan to achieve a long-term goal from overall considerations”in a linear view, this book defines strategy from non-linear viewpoint as it is in the real world. The art of a strategy lies not only in the determination of development goals, but also in the identification of development problems and putting forward overall guiding ideology of solving problems. Rich illustrations as well as numerous business and military cases are presented in helping readers to understand the fundamental elements of strategy.The general scope of the book includes introductions to the three fundamental elements of strategy, three-sub decisions of a complete strategic decision, incomplete strategies, relationship between tactic and strategy, three elements of competitive and corporative strategies. There may be biases in company-level, real strategic decision-making which makes a complete strategy not necessarily a perfect one. The book introduces biases and reasons for the biases, helping industrial strategic decision-makers understand the importance of knowing the nature of the company, the industry and its environment. In addition, this book also presents principles and evaluation approaches of strategic decisions, explores the reasons for the excessive definitions of the strategy concept, and discusses directions of future’s research tasks.The book will benefit business managers who are interested in knowing what a complete strategic decision is and how to avoid errors or biases in strategic decision-making. It also benefits students in business schools (especially in MBA/EMBA programs) who are (or will be) on executive positions. Academic researchers may find it is interesting to understand strategy from the view of the three elements. The new view provides a novel insight into strategy and promotes several research directions in the future. The three elements of strategy are also applicable to military strategies and readers who are interested in military and may find its value as well.




Complex Strategic Choices


Book Description

Effective decision making requires a clear methodology, particularly in complex, globally relevant situations. Institutions and companies in all disciplines and sectors are faced with increasingly multi-faceted areas of uncertainty which cannot always be effectively handled by traditional strategies. Complex Strategic Choices provides clear principles and methods which can guide and support strategic decision to face modern challenges. By considering ways in which planning practices can be renewed and exploring the possibilities for acquiring awareness and tools to add value to strategic decision making, Complex Strategic Choices presents a methodology which is further illustrated by a number of case studies and example applications. Dr. Techn. Steen Leleur has adapted previously established research based on feedback and input from various conferences, journals and students resulting in new material stemming from and focusing on practical application of systemic planning. The outcome is a coherent and flexible approach named systemic planning. The inclusion of both the theoretical and practical aspects of systemic planning makes this book a key resource for researchers and students in the field of planning and decision analysis as well as practitioners dealing with strategic analysis and decision making. More broadly, Complex Strategic Choices acts as guide for professionals and students involved in complex planning tasks across several fields such as business and engineering.




Decision Making Theories and Practices from Analysis to Strategy


Book Description

The vast amount of information that must be considered to solve inherently ill-structured and complex strategic problems creates a need for tools and techniques to help decision-makers recognize the complexity of this process and develop a rational model for strategy evaluation. Decision Making Theories and Practices from Analysis to Strategy is a definitive focus on analytical strategic decision-making. This work is comprised of sophisticated tools and methodologies developed by researchers and vendors to improve decision making for business strategy. Extracting from a wide range of disciplines, including accounting, finance, information systems, international management, marketing, organizational management, operations research, production and operations management, and strategic management, this volume provides a conceptual and a utilitarian guide to decision making, perfect for both researchers and practicing professionals alike.




Smart Decisions


Book Description

Today's world is complex and getting more so each day. Huge multinational corporations, international crisis and fast breaking events require most people to make decisions on a daily basis without the tools to understand the long term impact that today's decision might create. Because most people have never really been trained in how to make important complex decisions most people rely on experience, and 'gut reaction' which is okay for many decisions, but not okay for decision that will have meaningful impact on organizations and individual. Decision makers need to develop the art and science of strategic decision making. Here, Professor Thomas Martin explains the need for decision makers to modify their thinking about how they deal with acquiring and analyzing information in each of the decision-making process steps. This approach requiring thinking modification will lengthen the process, make it more complex, and to some more arduous, but the comprehensiveness of the new thinking approach should lead to improved and more effective decision making. In this book, Dr. Martin presents a thinking modification framework that asserts that in the decision-making process, there are three situational states — a current state, future state, and a transitional state that one must deliberate in finding a solution. For each of these situational states, Martin develops an identical five-step process to determine the best decision to make. The steps of this process include: • Change-Needing Situational Analysis • Challenge Framing & Causal Analysis • Generating Solution Ideas • Choosing a Solution Set • Implementation and Aftermath Planning This book will appeal to decision makers, leaders, and students of management who want a specific framework that details the process behind making strategic, well-informed decisions.




Managerial Decision Making Leadership


Book Description

The modern manager faces a bewildering range of challenges every single day. Their ability to make critical decisions, often under pressure, can directly determine the future success of the company and their career. It is therefore surprising that so few managers take the time to learn the art of decision making. In this groundbreaking book from Caroline Wang, readers will learn that quality decision making is a competence that can be acquired according to a simple framework. The framework is practical and easy-to-remember, consisting of two acronyms: GPA and IPO. GPA for decision content quality (Goal, Priority, Alternatives); and IPO for decision process quality (Information, People, Objective reasoning). The book places emphasis on leading a team to make decisions, even though the framework can be used for personal and individual decisions. By using this common decision-making framework, managers and leaders will gain credibility and team support for the decision, will confidently articulate, promote, and defend the decision, and will have made the necessary preparations for successful implementation when the decision-making process is complete. This proven framework from one of Asia's most dynamic leadership experts will improve the quality of your decisions and change the way you do business.