CBAP Curriculum
Strategic Management Module
Management through Applied Planning® is a proven growth and improvement system that will enable you, with the ongoing training and support of the Program, to implement a strategic planning process.
Performance Outcome:
A strategic growth and improvement system, organized by major activities within the company with performance measures linking strategy to department, individual and team performance.
Strategic Management – Planning and Leadership Sessions
Managing Growth
"Growing the company" is frequently a choice made by many entrepreneurs. Setting goals and objectives and developing strategies that consider the opportunities and implications of growth will be critical to future success. Often firms "grow broke" not only because they are financially ill-prepared for growth but also because the entrepreneur has not properly planned for its organizational and management pitfalls and challenges. This session will provide a framework from which growth can be integrated into the strategic planning process.
Conducting a Company Environmental Scan
This session encompasses the first part of the CBAP, where the strategic planning process is introduced to the company as well as the dynamics of managing teams, project development, process improvement and key human resource development tools.
In this team-based and hands-on session, the team conducts a systematic review of the major internal and external factors facing the organization in order to begin to discover what differentiates their firm from competitors.
Developing your Strategy
This session emphasizes the need to clearly identify the major strategic issues facing the firm, the importance of preparing a written vision and mission statement and helps the participant define the firm’s overall long-term strategy. By focusing the planning process on the major strategic issues facing the firm, the learner is better prepared to precisely define specific growth and improvement priorities to be the heart of the implementation plan.
Goal Setting
This session emphasizes the practical understanding of the process and content of strategic management. It uses participants' real world examples of strategic planning to reinforce the concepts learned in this and previous strategic management sessions. Finally it helps participants understand and develop goals that will help link everyone in the company to the overall vision.
Building and Managing a Dynamic, Adaptive Enterprise
Understanding the implications of change in a technologically turbulent and growing economy is crucial to not only setting the direction of the firm, but also in installing those changes demanded by growth. Knowing their own personal leadership strengths and weaknesses along with the new skill sets demanded by change and growth, participants will have a much better chance at leading the implementation of their CBAP plan.
Developing Your Strategic Direction
In this session, the participant is introduced to a systematic review of the major internal and external factors facing the organization. The objective of this investigation is to begin to discover and construct a business model that differentiates his/her firm from competitors. Participants begin to formulate what products/services to provide in the future; who these products/services should be targeted toward; and in what geographic area marketing efforts should be concentrated.
Marketing Management Module
Performance Outcome: A marketing plan with realistic goals, and a step-by-step sales process to achieve these goals.
Strategic Market Planning
Before formulating strategies, it is essential to fully understand who customers are, where they are located, and the product to create or market position to maintain. In this session, participants will hear that "Marketing is Everything". This theme emphasizes the fact that during the important work conducted in the Strategic Management sessions, customer focus should be preserved and used to better develop a "laser-like" focus on the customer. A marketing mentality, as opposed to a purely "sales" orientation, is crucial to contributing to the overall growth of a business through more competitive organizational strategies.
The Marketing Mix
These sessions involving the four P's build on the previous sessions through a further investigation of how the instruments of marketing work, specifically the creation of marketing strategies for pricing and distribution and promotion methods for products and services.
Marketing Communications
Now that the participant has determined what product and/or service to offer, where it will be offered and to whom (the company's mission statement), it's time to communicate the positioning of the company within the market place via the communications strategy. This session provides the context and techniques needed to gain a better understanding of how to effectively communicate benefits and uses for a product or service to a customer in order to accomplish a variety of objectives.
Product Strategy
Now that the participant has determined what strategy to pursue, what to offer and to whom it's time to improve the positioning of the company within the marketplace via the product strategy. This session provides the context and techniques needed to gain a better understanding of how to improve product benefits and uses to customers.
Operations Management Module
This Program uses a proven process management methodology that will help you put into practice strategic planning to solve critical day- to-day problems in your company.
Performance Outcome: Reduce key operating costs by implementing a continuous improvement plan to achieve lean operations.
Lean Sales Process
This session provides an introduction to the Lean Process Oriented Management focus of the overall program. Participants gain an introduction and practical insight into Enterprise Process
Architecture and the importance of a "Lean" Sales Process.
Planning and Managing the Virtual Lean Enterprise
In prior sessions, participants have performed a "SWOT" analysis in order to develop understanding of the competitive advantages and disadvantages of their current products and markets strategies, as well as Vision Statements and updated Strategies to improve competitive advantage. In this session, participants will deploy a Strategy to a process in need of improvement.
Lean Principles, Tools and Practices
Whether you are a manufacturer or a service organization, lean principles are a key to understanding how continuous improvement efforts throughout your organization can be better integrated with your organizational strategy, people, and processes. This session is presented at this stage of the program as participants begin to more fully understand the importance of managing your organization as a system of processes in order to gain and sustain a competitive advantage.
Lean Performance Workshop
In prior sessions, participants have utilized the Lean Cultural Principles to deploy Strategy to a Process in need of improvement, developed a perspective on the Lean Processes present in their enterprise, selected a process for improvement that links to their Strategy, and utilized lean tools in order to improve their process. The workshop session reinforces and expands the use of lean tools in the development, maintenance, and improvement of the Process Standard.
Converting Processes into Roles
This session focuses squarely on implementation by providing practical tools for translating processes into clearly definied individual roles. It also provides a simple approach to defining organizational structure and career paths.logy.
Designing Human Resource Systems
Learners will see several real life examples of human resource systems that support clearly defined roles. At the end of the session, participants will be capable of participating in developing human resource systems that support their strategies and processes. Tools and example from this session will enable participants to improve their organization’s ability to attract, retain, and develop employees. Having well-trained and motivated employees will enhance the execution of the strategic plan.
Financial Management Module
A fundamental basis of financial analysis is the historic data generated by not only the firm's accounting system, but also by the marketing department and the firm's operations. Unless Company’s management is able to accurately record, report and analyze financial information, the manager will not be able to make sound financial decisions -- decisions which form the basis for the goals and objectives of a strategic plan.
Performance Outcome: More effective acquisition and allocation of funds, integration of cash flow with operational activities, quantifying the financial impact of non-financial activities, and identifying financial performance measures.
Business Accounting Fundamentals
This introductory financial management session is designed to build the foundation for future financial management by developing a proficiency in compiling, reading and analyzing financial statements.
Understanding Financial Statements
This session continues to develop an understanding and competency around financial statements through classroom presentation and case study exercises.
Operating Funds Management
This session covers a fundamental management control technique – cash management and budgeting. This analytical control enables the manager to assess actual operational trends, pointing to possible problems in business processes, such as credit management, inventory, etc., and to avoid crisis management.
Managerial Accounting Concepts and Techniques
This session concentrates on reporting accounting information to management and understanding and use of break-even analysis. The feedback achieved through budgeting, performance reporting and establishing standard costs, establishes the link of evaluation and control necessary to keep the manager's strategic plan current and useful.
Financial Analysis
This session concentrates on financial analysis, including time value of money, capital investment analysis, ratio analysis and business valuation. Financing options will also be discussed. The manager's strategic plan may include proposals for making and funding various capital investment projects. The materials presented in this session will enable the participant to perform an analysis of these projects in order to gauge their impact on the financial goals and objectives of the strategic plan.
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