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The Concept of Strategic Management

      Most of business organizations endeavor / seeking  to make the success in its operations and activities, and struggle continually for building distinguished strategy and competitive position ,  guaranteed growth, and improvement of performance. And for making these objectives , it’s required from these organizations to have a long term vision , and don’t look to gaining profit just for the time being, and it has to think deeply and comprehensiveness by how this activities will be especially to making the perspective profit .

      So the process of the organization's future thought, studying, and analyzing the decisive environmental changes that affect processes , is the core of the strategic planning  . When that realization by practically ways and methods, it means the strategic management.

First : Concept of strategic management

Kuthler 1980 : It’s a development process and drafting the relationship  between the Org .  and  environment , through determining Org. mission &objectives , and development   business plans of   strategies  for all processes and activities that is the Org .  exercised .

Quluike and Jowesh 1988 : It’s a chain of decisions and manners that conduce / guide to development or making up effected strategy or strategies help to achievement the Org.  objectives, hence, the strategic management is a method which through it  we can specify objectives and make the strategic decisions.

Sampson-1994 :   It’s process which the Org. through it , can laid down / specify / determine  its objectives, and determine the necessary business  to accomplish that objectives in a appropriate time , and try to carry out business  and activities, and evaluate the progressing  and the output was achieved .

Roe 1994 :  The strategic management focuses on internal and external environment of Org.  , and it’s main objectives its to be realized between strength and weakness elements in the Org.  and the external environment (opportunities and threats) in order to draft the strategies which conduce to realize the main objectives that preserve of the Org.  values.

What is Strategic Management?

       The set of decisions and actions that result in the formulation and implementation of plans designed to achieve a organization’s objectives.

Secondly : Historical development of strategic management concept

      It was clear that the origins of the strategic concept dating back to Greeks, and it means the "General science," also means the warfare art of that General. The transfers of the terminology to business field, means to us clearly (the art of the leadership and management) the strategy is artistic expression about management skill in the Top Management level , or it is the practically methods that lead to realize the desired objectives.

      In 1951 started applying the strategy conception in business field by (Newman) , when he clarified the nature and importance of strategy in planning for the economical project . The strategic thought of management began to appear in sixtieth of the twentieth century, and that in syllabus of most business management colleges , and what’s known by business policy and it  included the following :

1.    Regard the business problems that can not earlier classified by considers them as marketing and financial  problems….etc.

2.    Focus on improving skill to determine, analyze and solve problems in suggested situation similar to far extent the real business world. 

3.    The chance to consider the problems that occurred in fields of business that of less importance.

4.    The chance to consider the outside effects unrelated to the market and that must be taken vis-a-vis inside decision.

5.    Recognize the situations that make the student trains on how to issue judgment.

6.    Development the other mental capacities that were not  developed at any subject yet.

      In sixtieth (Androz Christia Nazem) and (Ansour) they clarified the major basics of strategic planning concept , and that by determining the need to combine and meet  the business opportunities with organizational resources . In 1962 (Alfred Chandler) he issued a book about the organizational structures for the biggest firms in America , and he came out of four strategies related to development and growth, and he proved that the development and growth of the organizational   structure depend mainly on the strategy. In 1965 the management’s instructor in Ashton University (Juan Wood Word) prepared a research linked between the organizational changes with technology and the confirmed strategy.

      In sixtieth (Androz) issued a book of (the concept of corporate strategy) he defined the strategy as it conformity between what the Org.  can do (i.e. determine the strength and weakness elements) and between what must can do ( opportunities and environmental threats). (Kenth Androz) perspective developed to what was known   by “Design School” or “Fit School” , the core idea of that school was to view strategy by consider it as melting pot of Org. capabilities and opportunities inside the competitive environment.

      After that appeared a model of industry structure that is determined the competitors situation , and set a context  for firms attitude ( its strategy ).

Borter considered the analysis of strategic competitive characteristics and its components and the competitive strategy that running after realizing competitive characteristics confirmed and continued , in analyzing context of industrial structure and study industrial phenomenon .  

      In ninetieth :  By the  beginning of ninetieth of the last century , a new concepts appeared , such as the central  capacities of decisions competitive , resources approach , these concepts  changed direction of applying business strategies through focusing on skills and resources in the Org.  and on managerial qualification to conducting  resources.

 Approach resources concept   Depends on the accurate evaluation for resources and the Org.  capacities by consider them as a basic for competitive characteristics , and the competitive position of the Org. , in the light of basic factors impact such as : demand, scarcity and suitability .

       In 1992 (Mohsin Mokhamra) issued a book  of modern concepts, whereas adopted the definition of (Alfred Chandler ) for the strategy (( it's a specification            of the major objectives of the long term for the establishment and to demonstrate the operating style, distribution of essential potentials to attain  objectives)) . According to that he clarified plan's structure on the following form :  The mission , goals ,                strategies , policies , procedures , rules , programs , and  estimative budgets.

     The development which occurred in strategic management concept , related to developing the concept and instruments of application of planning function ,which conduced to develop  the strategic planning, then, to the strategic management concept.

      The strategic management concept can be summarized in accordance with passing through several stages as the following :

Financial planning stage .

1.    It's the stage that top management level begin with budgets proposals of the next year.

2.    These budgets include proposed projects without studying and deep analysis.         

3.    Data that taken from the reality of the internal environment of organization , and most of it running around the sales size and expected profit.

Strategic planning stage .  This stage imposes to the high management level containment, overcoming  of political impacts, holding the rein of planning process, starting of strategic planning  and improving the Org.  potentials to ask for help by the foreign experiences and what they provide from up- to- date technology and planning styles .

Thirdly : The strategic management and the strategic planning

      planning is considered important function from management functions, and it comes at the first in the sequence of the managerial process. The strategic planning is an speculation of the organization ideal form in the future, so the strategic planning :

1.    Prediction of the future that concerns the Org.  form .

2.    Speculation of the organization's features in the future.

3.    Envisage / imagine directions and path of the   Org.   in the future.

4.    Imagine the business field and the activities that the Org.  will do it.

strategic planning Features 

1.    Complete system done by steps that agreed upon.

2.    It’s a system for determine the Org.  path in the future.

3.    That done through determining fields that severalty Org.  and the field of business of special concern in the future.

4.    It’s a reaction of the Org.  for the strength and weakness points in the Org.  management.

5.    It’s a work pattern on the board of Administrative council  level and Top Management.