Strategy Maps as Management Tools and Systems - Essay Example

Strategy Maps as Management Tools and Systems Business of the 12 June Table of Contents 0 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 3 2.0 Advantages of Strategy Maps .......................................................................... 3 2.1 Systematic Organization of Strategy ......................................................... 3 2.2 Capturing and Conveying the Crux of the Contrived Business Strategy ........ 3 2.3 Elevating Business Discussion from Operations to Strategy Level ................. 4 2.4 Better Management of Business Performance ................................................. 4 3.0 Limitations of Strategy Maps ................................................................................ 5 3.1 Do not catch the Complexity of Business Processes ......................................... 5 3.2 Not an Ideal Tool for Contriving the Right Strategy .......................................... 5 4.0 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 6 Reference List ................................................................................................................. 7 1.0 Introduction The contemporary business environment is something that is marked by an array of ambiguities, uncertainties and confusions emanating from a range of local and global sources. Therefore, more than ever, in the current times, the crux of business management is to evolve and convey business strategies in a way that dispels the immanent ambiguities and makes the incumbent business strategy clear to all the salient stakeholders in an organization or a business unit (Dinsmore & Rocha 2012, p. 44). Herein comes in the immense utility and importance of strategy maps. Strategy maps could effectively be used as a management tool and system to monitor and control the performance of business or organizational units (Meyer 202, p. 184). In the current business environment, strategy maps do have an immense advantage in the sense that they help in a systematic organization of strategy and the commensurate allocation of budgetary resources, they help in capturing and conveying the quintessential crux of the contrived business strategy, help elevate the overall business discussion in an organization from the level of operations to strategy and they facilitate a better management of business performance. 2.0 Advantages of Strategy Maps 2.1 Systematic Organization of Strategy Strategy maps allow the managers to contrive a visual and structured organization of the contrived business strategy and help the managers decide as to in a given strategic scenario, what are the actual drivers of performance in a business or organizational unit (Ward, Tripp & Maki 2013, p. 227). Strategy maps help in the identification of objectives imminent in a business strategy and thereby they allow the managers to decide as to which objectives need to be optimally developed before the salient business measures are taken. Using the strategy maps in the management of a business or organizational unit assures that the concerned managers will chose only those measures that happen to be optimally appropriate and that are poised to aid the achievement of salient business goals. 2.2 Capturing and Conveying the Crux of the Contrived Business Strategy Strategy maps do assure the success of any contrived strategy as they help the managers to capture, convey and manage the overall strategy to the salient stakeholders in a business or organizational unit in an optimal and better way (Fitz-enz 2010, p. 27). A well contrived strategy maps is an effective tool in the sense that it immaculately captures the thought process and vision of a management team in any viable business or organizational unit. Strategy maps help the managers effectively convey to the incumbent stakeholders as to how an envisioned strategy will impact the overall business and as to what they could expect from a particular strategy in the short and long run. A strategy map is nothing but a snap shot of the overall organizational strategy in a concise and illustrative format. 2.3 Elevating Business Discussion from Operations to Strategy Level Strategic maps are an important tool in the overall business management in the sense that they help elevate the level of discussion in an organization from the level of operations to business strategy (Williams & Hummelbrunner 2011, p. 78). While business operations deals with the immediate issues and challenges incumbent on a business unit, the strategy has to do with the envisaging of short term and long term goals and the steps taken by the management and the associated stakeholders to achieve those goals. Thereby bringing in strategy maps in the overall business planning and management helps the managers and associates elevate their concern from the imminent business operations to the larger business strategy (Earl, Carden & Smutylo 2001, p. 17). 2.4 Better Management of Business Performance Strategy maps allow the managers to manage the overall strategy in a better way and shift the thrust of organizational management from status quo to change (Vangundy 2007). In addition the operational details imminent in a strategy map do streamline and facilitate the process of organizational change and assure a better and effective business performance. Strategy maps allow the unit members to graduate the level of organizational inputs and discussion from sequestered and isolated thinking to collective and joined up discussion and thinking (Vangundy 2007). Strategy maps endow the business and organizational teams with a sense of ownership and allow for optimal employee participation. It makes the organizational thinking adaptive and pliable and helps the managers adapt the organizational strategy to the ongoing alterations and changes. 3.0 Limitations of Strategy Maps 3.1 Do not catch the Complexity of Business Processes Strategy maps take it for granted that the business strategy happens to be incremental and linear in its scope and ramifications (Kaplan & Norton 2004). However, in the actual business environment, things do not happen be that simple and linear. The web of business operations in any business or organizational unit happens to be very complex and is vulnerable to an array of external and internal influences and factors. Relying totally on strategy maps in such scenarios may give way to much confusion and chaos. Strategy maps may give trouble if the cause and effect relationship in a business or organizational unit does not happen to be linear. 3.2 Not an Ideal Tool for Devising the Right Strategy It does need to be taken into consideration that strategy maps are not an ideal tool for contriving and formulating an effective strategy in a business or organizational unit. Strategy formulation is something that needs to take into consideration an array of visible and invisible factors and aspects into consideration (Kaplan & Norton 2001). Thereby the actual utility of strategy maps lies in conveying and revising the contrived strategy, rather than formulating a strategy right from the scratch. 4.0 Conclusion Yes, it is indeed true that the strategy maps are not the right medium to grasp the overall complexity incumbent in the business processes. Yet, if taken in a pragmatic and practical sense, strategy maps do help the managers convey the contrived strategy to the salient organizational stakeholders and bring in a measure of predictability and clarity in the larger business operations. Sure, like other management and organizational tools, strategy maps are not a panacea for all business problems, yet within a limited sphere they do command an immense utility and importance. Reference List Dinsmore, PC & Rocha, L 2012, Enterprise Project Governance, AMACOM, New York. Earl, S, Carden, F & Smutylo, T 2001, Outcome Mapping, International Development Research Centre, London. Fitz-enz, J 2010, The New HR Analytics, AMACOM, New York. Kaplan, RS & Norton, DP 2001, The Strategy Focused Organization, Harvard Business Review Press, New York. Kaplan, RS & Norton, DP 2004, Strategy Maps, Harvard Business Review Press, New York. Meyer, MW 2002, Rethinking Performance Management, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Vangundy, AB 2007, Getting to Innovation, AMACOM, New York. Ward, DL, Tripp, R & Maki, B 2013, Positioned, AMACOM, New York. Williams, B & Hummelbrunner R 2011, Systems Concepts in Action, Stanford Business Books, Stanford, CA. Read More