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Dear ,
Welcome to the November e-newsletter.
There's one obvious major event that is preoccupying most people at the moment, but for e-newsletter readers there are plenty of other vital dates for the diary. The AGM in January is an opportunity for all SPS members to help shape the activities of the society, so I would urge you to come along. There are also a number of other events in this month's e-newsletter which should prove invaluable food for thought for strategists.
It's a welcome chance to feed your mind as opposed to your stomach at this time of year.
Mark Wellings
Editor, Strategy Magazine
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SPS News
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Three in ten strategists say strategy workshops could be more effective
Last month's poll on the SPS website asked how effective strategy workshops are. It found the vast majority of respondents held workshops, with only 13% saying they weren't employed within their organisation. But while 26% of respondents felt it was a vital part of the strategic planning process, others were less pleased with the results. A striking 30% felt the organisation wasn't capitalising on them. Meanwhile, 4% say they fail to come up with any new ideas, and a worrying 26% say they come up with plenty of ideas but nothing is implemented.
This month we ask how regularly members update strategic plans. Add your vote »
Announcing the 2010 SPS Annual General Meeting
The next AGM of the Strategic Planning Society will be held on 20 January 2010 in the Mountbatten Room 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).
The AGM is open to all members, so please do try and come along - there will be canapes and wine for all. If you would like to be there please email us so we can ensure all members are catered for.
LinkedIn hot topics: Is the best long-term strategy simply to make GOOD short-term decisions?
Members of the SPS LinkedIn Group have been discussing whether the best long term strategy is to make GOOD short term decisions (goals, opportunities, actions, dynamics), and a fair amount of disagreement has emerged. One member argued that you cannot make good short-term decisions without one eye on the dynamics of change approaching; another agreed, asking how strategists define the cut-off point between short-term strategy and tactics. Others pointed out that short-term strategies should in fact mirror the long-term strategy, so the process should begin from the other end.
Other subjects under discussion include whether there should be an
international standard for strategy, whether
supermarkets are operating in a bubble, how leaders of group level functions develop plans for their functions, and collaboratively developing a Blue Ocean strategy on the internet.
Join the debate with over 750 strategists in the SPS Group on LinkedIn »
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Research and Insight
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Model management
 A management model can be a key driver of competitive edge, deciding where a business is going, and how it will get there. However, in the latest issue of Strategy Magazine, Julian Birkinshaw, Professor of Strategic and International management at London Business School, argues that many organisations fall short by failing to consider their model fully. He points out that the right approach doesn't have to be ground breaking, it simply has to be right for the business.
Read the full article »
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SPS members receive Strategy Magazine every three months
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Strategic planning in unstable environments
In volume 40, number 1, of Long Range Planning Peter Brews and Devavrat Purohit highlight that organisations must adjust their planning to cope with the shifting parameters of the business environment. They consider the four dimensions of planning: generative, transactive, symbolic and rational. They conclude that a range of planning behaviours is required when environmental instability increases, and that planning that encourages innovation (generative) and planning that facilitates ongoing adaptation and incremental adjustment (transactive) display the strongest performance effects.
Read the full executive summary »
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SPS members receive Long Range Planning six times a year (worth GBP120 pa). Non-members can buy and download individual articles at Science Direct.
SPS members enjoy access to the online library, with downloadable versions of over 140 articles published in Strategy Magazine and more than 80 executive summaries from Long Range Planning. Find more information on SPS membership benefits.
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Reality of augmented reality
As augmented reality technology advances, so do its practical applications. Augmented reality is expanding beyond the iPhone and other camera application enabled devices and proving to be useful for more than entertainment or even tourism.
More information about Shaping Tomorrow »
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SPS members enjoy free access to Shaping Tomorrow (worth GBP95 pa) - an organised database of over 25,000 future, strategy and change management resources, plus a weekly newsletter highlighting ten new trends.
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Events and Workshops
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Communicating Corporate Governance - New trends, new ideas, new standards
The corporate governance sections of annual reports in 2010 will look very different. The review of the Combined Code from the Financial Reporting Council, the Treasury's Walker Review, the FSA collective engagement guidance and ratification of the ISC Statement of Principles will all change compliance. But it's about more than rules. In 2010 it's about communication.

This seminar explores the implications for corporate governance, and how it is communicated. The event will be hosted by Clive Bidwell, head of corporate reporting at Radley Yeldar who will be joined by Mark Hynes, a consultant to Radley Yeldar on IR issues and a board member of the Investor Relations Society, Vanessa Jones, corporate governance manager at the ICAEW and Lesley Brownett FCIS.
9 December 2009 3.30pm-5.30pm
Full details on the SPS website »
Deploying Strategy in Uncertain Times: Learning from mobilising a nation for sustainable development
This free seminar will examine key trends and see how organisations are responding by unleashing the innate potential of people to change.
Global Futurist and award winning speaker Rohit Talwar will highlight critical ideas about how the world is changing and how this will shape organisations' thinking over the next few years and beyond.
Global Change Leadership Coach Martin Hazell will lead a discussion on the strategic leadership required in this world and show how you can achieve sustainable benefit from empowering your people to deploy your strategy. Martin will draw on practical examples from work with the Government and people of the Caribbean island of Aruba that engaged the whole population in developing a sustainable development strategy and taking responsibility for deploying it, work that has been shortlisted for Best International Project 2009 by the Institute of Business Consulting.
9 December 2009 3.30pm-5.30pm
Full details on the SPS website »
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 between 12 and 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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