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| Learn and adapt | November, 2008 | ||||
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Dear Welcome to the November issue of the e-newsletter. This month sees the launch of an interesting and pertinent survey by strategy consultancy Edengene, entitled 'Credit crunch – winning in a downturn'. The survey, which the SPS has agreed to support, is designed to identify and diagnose the health of British business and assess its readiness for the challenges ahead. You'll find more details below. I hope that you will find participating in, as well as the results of, the survey useful. Following on from the announcement in last month's e-newsletter, the upcoming AGM will be held on 14 January 2009 at the Royal Over-Seas League, London. Finally, we have already received some expressions of interest about the Society's volunteer general manager position. We'll be getting in touch shortly with all those who have contacted us. However, it's still not too late to make an inquiry – see details below. If you're interested, or know anyone who might be, please get in touch with the SPS via email. Until next month, 
James Leaton Gray, Chairman |
» In this issue: SPS news Research and insight Events and workshops Sponsor |
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| » SPS news | ||||
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Manage in the downturn, win in the upturn We encourage members to participate in a thought-provoking survey being supported by the SPS, entitled 'The credit crunch - winning in a downturn'. In 2001, Edengene launched its landmark 'Managing in a downturn' survey in collaboration with the late Sir John Harvey-Jones. Sir John provided a vision for how business leaders should behave in a downturn, in turn producing the 'Ten principles of managing in a downturn' with his legendary flamboyance. In 2008, as the world sits on the brink of potentially a more serious downturn, Edengene will revisit this ground-breaking work taking into account the current circumstances and the 'voices of industry'. To complete the survey visit the Edengene website. All participants will also receive a pragmatic, tailor-made health check that will diagnose your organisation's readiness to manage in the downturn, and ultimately win in the upturn. |
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AGM confirmed The next AGM will be held on 14 January 2009 at the Royal Over-Seas League, Over-Seas House, Park Place, St James's Street, London, SW1A 1LR at 6pm (the nearest tube station is Green Park). All members are welcome to attend. If you are intending to come along we would be grateful if you could let us know in advance by sending an email so we can arrange appropriate catering. |
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Long Range Planning published The October issue (volume 41, number 5) of Long Range Planning incorporates articles that are designed to be both intriguing and useful to the practising manager, as well as to provide material for the thinking academic. The issue begins with Robert Grant's review of The Future of Management by Gary Hamel. Grant's view is that Hamel's claims that the existing paradigm is broken and that we need a revolution are over-simplistic, and that many of his claims as to the need for novelty are incorrect. Sebastian Raisch's article suggests we can learn much from how six large European firms have achieved sustainable balances between growth and profitability, while James Ritchie-Dunham and Luz Maria Puente point out how the map of the world managers carry around inside their heads inevitably influences their strategising. Janez Prasnikar and co-authors examine how firms can identify and then exploit the synergies between technology and marketing, and, finally, Jeffrey Funk offers a coherent explanation as to why incremental improvements in components can be a major source of technological discontinuities that affect whole systems.
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Call for volunteer general manager The SPS is looking to appoint a part-time volunteer general manager (GM). The ideal candidate has probably run a small unit or business, and will likely have experience of running a 'virtual' organisation. Theoretically, he/she could be based anywhere, but would need to be able to travel to London for trustee and other ad-hoc meetings, probably every couple of months. The GM will be the first point of contact between the trustees and the membership services and finance providers, as well as the soon-to-be-appointed sales team. The GM's exact responsibilities will, to a degree, depend upon the candidate's background, but would include: dealing with simple membership inquiries; investigating sponsorship opportunities; and working with individual trustees on special projects, such as the SPS offering to corporate members. The role would be part-time, probably two days a week initially, and is paid by honorarium and any reasonable expenses. If you are interested, or would like more details, please email the SPS. |
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| » Research and insight | ||||
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Learn and adapt To remain competitive in current market conditions, strategic planning needs to be adaptive. Drawing on the experience of Formula One racing – which uses technology to map out literally millions of scenarios and then recalibrates these as a race unfolds – Simon Williams and Caroline Odegaard explain in issue 17 of Strategy Magazine that organisations that respond faster to change, with better insight and greater precision, can achieve sustainable competitive advantage.
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Knowledge management in multinational corporations The idea of a knowledge management system, or KMS, can mean very different things to different firms. Basing their conclusions on in-depth case studies of seven multinational corporations, Bo Bernhard Nielsen and Snejina Michailova have created a typology of four different kinds of KMS. In volume 40, number 3 of Long Range Planning, the authors argue that firms make their choice according to various considerations, including the nature and flow of knowledge, the structure of the firm and the business environment in which it operates.
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The taming of Generation Y After years of generalisation, intimidation and speculation, there are growing signs that the Generation Y monster is firmly back in the closet. Whether the 'taming of Generation Y' is the result of the credit crunch, a new understanding of generational partnership (as evidenced by Barack Obama's campaign) or the 'dulling' effects of globalisation on the cultural domination of the West, the perceptions of Generation Y are changing.
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| » Events and workshops | ||||
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Ashridge Open Programmes The SPS and Ashridge have teamed up to offer SPS members some exclusive benefits, the first of which is a 10% discount on any of Ashridge's open strategy programmes. Ashridge has a wide variety of short, residential programmes to help individuals and organisations to achieve their development needs. These programmes focus on blending the practical experience of their faculty with leading-edge business thinking, to inspire and challenge you. In addition, learning in small classes – typically 12–30 participants – promotes collaboration on your own issues and ensures individual support, enabling all participants to return, better able to transfer learning to the workplace. For more details, visit Ashridge. Please quote your SPS membership number when booking. |
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| » Sponsor | ||||
2GC Active Management and strategy execution 2GC Active Management helps organisations achieve their goals by making it easier for them to manage the implementation of strategy. Recent work has included a 12-month project to help a major energy company improve its execution of strategy using our 3rd Generation Balanced Scorecard approach. 3rd Generation Balanced Scorecard methods make it easier to establish a clear link between strategic plans and the performance conversations used to manage their implementation – by tracking the implementation activities and their consequences separately. This focus on activities and outcomes makes Balanced Scorecard easier to develop and use, and is a key innovation in the 3rd Generation Balanced Scorecard approach. Please refer to our website for full details of the ENERCO case study and our approach to strategic performance management. 2GC is currently undertaking a survey of UK companies' use of Balanced Scorecard. The survey can be completed online or as a PDF by email. Alternatively, contact Gavin Lawrie or William Barney directly on +44 (0)1628 421506. All survey participants will receive a copy of the summary report. 2GC Active Management – Performance Management Experts |
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