Working with the IfM

Business strategy tool

A business tool for creating vision and action for small and medium-sized manufacturing companies.

Overview

Every business needs clear direction and a good strategy in order to thrive. In manufacturing a good strategy is particularly important since markets can change faster than companies can adapt their assets and capabilities. Managers of small and mediumsized manufacturers are often too busy with day-to-day issues, or lacking in experience of strategy formulation, to develop an effective strategy.

The IfM’s business strategy tool has been developed to help such companies analyse the environment in which they operate, examine their capabilities and develop a clear strategy,together with an action plan to put the strategy into effect.

Key benefits

The business strategy tool is practical, straightforward and efficient, making strategy formulation accessible to all small and medium-sized manufacturers. Key benefits include:

• a viable strategy is created by considering both the firm’s opportunities and resources
• the process is efficient and makes good use of the management team’s time
• the output of the tool includes an action plan to translate the strategy into business results
• an experienced, trained facilitator guides the management team through the process,allowing the participants to focus on substantive issues and resolve any differences
• the tool is thorough, based on a comprehensive analysis of existing strategy tools and techniques such as decision making, action planning, performance measurement and visualisation

Methodology

The tool consists of an initial data collection phase, followed by four workshops:

• Data is gathered via structured interviews with each manager. This process can be shortened if the IfM’s prioritisation tool has been applied recently.
• Workshop 1 an external analysis of the competitive market environment in which the firm operates. This includes identifying stakeholders and their influences, defining business aims,the relationships between products and markets, and identifying customer requirements as the basis of competition. A threats and opportunities analysis is used to generate a list of potential strategic objectives.
• Workshop 2 an internal analysis of the firm’s capability and performance to understand strengths and weaknesses and identify the core competencies of the company. This could highlight different combinations of capabilities, revealing new strengths or competitive opportunities.
• Workshop 3 exploration of strategic choices – using inputs from the first two workshops, the management team is helped to explore alternative markets and different operating models. This list is then reviewed to find the most practical and attractive options for the company.
• Workshop 4 preparation of action plans to ensure the company achieves its goals. This includes identifying key projects to deliver clear objectives. Each project is defined in terms of its critical success factors, key performance indicators, and timing and resource requirements.

Email: ifm-enquiries@eng.cam.ac.uk or phone + 44 (0)1223 766141 for more information