Thinking Strategically
- 13 Courses | 7h 12m 35s
- 26 Books | 36h 56m
- 9 Audiobooks | 42h 46m 45s
Leaders need to think strategically to move the business forward. Learn how to incorporate strategic thinking into your leadership skillset.
COURSES INCLUDED
Welcome to the Leadership Development Program
Whether you're new to a leadership role or a battle-tested veteran, there is always more to learn about leading people, leading teams, or leading your business. Learning is a life-long journey, and leadership development is an ongoing process. In this course, you'll be introduced to Skillsoft's Leadership Development Program. Comprised of thirty modern competency-based leadership channels, this program will help expand your knowledge about what it takes to be a leader and the necessary mindsets and behaviors that enable successful leaders to face and overcome the challenges they encounter every day. This course provides an introductory overview to the program and the rich array of courses, resources, tools, and expert advice available to help you grow your leadership career.
1 video |
9m
Badge
Leading with Strategic Thinking
Charting the future in today's business environment requires leaders to think strategically like never before. Strategic thinking requires analyzing opportunities and problems from a broad perspective, continually assessing your organization and industry, and applying your insights to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. In this course, you'll learn the characteristics that distinguish leading with strategic thinking and the competencies required to do so. You'll learn how strategic management incorporates sound business strategy into your decision making, helping you meet your team's and organization's goals.
6 videos |
49m
Assessment
Badge
PMI PDU
Leadership Insights on Strategic Thinking
Thinking strategically is all about the big picture, not individual brushstrokes. Leaders need to ask lots of questions to gain the new perspectives that are so vital to developing successful strategies. To get it right, get out of the box!
13 videos |
41m
Badge
Using Strategic Thinking as a Manager
Are you a strategic thinker? Do you consider what's going on around you - in your unit, company, industry, and wider business environment? Are you good at visualizing new possibilities or ways of working? Charting the future in today's business environment requires leaders to think strategically like never before. In these times of personal and organizational disruption and change, strategic thinking has become a skill of necessity that will play a key role in determining success or failure. In this course, you'll learn the characteristics of strategic thinking and what a strategic mindset looks like in action. You'll also learn the skills involved in developing two vital aspects of strategic thinking: the creative, innovative, and visionary components that allow you to have and communicate a clear strategic vision and see new possibilities; and the orderly, analytical, and logical skills that help you handle complexity and guide you toward balanced and smart decision making.
6 videos |
25m
Assessment
Badge
Thinking Strategically as a Manager
To resolve many of the threats and challenges that your organization will likely have to face, it's essential that you develop a business strategy that incorporates a clear vision, new ideas, and innovative solutions. This course explores the characteristics of strategic thinking, as well as the traits you need to plan and implement an effective strategy. It also covers how to develop your capacity for thinking strategically through creative thinking, being prepared to deal with complexity, and being aware of what's going on inside and outside your organization.
7 videos |
22m
Assessment
Badge
PMI PDU
Using Strategic Thinking to Consider the Big Picture
Big-picture thinking stretches beyond the short term and considers how an organization can succeed in the long term. By thinking strategically about a problem using the bigger picture, you can elevate your perspective and get a better idea of the forces at play within your organization. This course describes how systems thinking can help you become skillful at making sense out of opposites and contradictions and better understand cause and effect while managing your department according to the business strategy. It explains actions you can take to encourage creative thinking and come up with solutions that take into account the bigger picture. You'll also learn how understanding your organizational value chain can help you connect to the organization's strategy and implement it more effectively.
7 videos |
22m
Assessment
Badge
PMI PDU
Horizon Scanning: Identifying Future Opportunities
The most successful organizations can spot signs of change and adapt to it - or even better - seize change as an opportunity. This capability to scan the horizon of the future is also known as environmental scanning. In this course, you'll learn what horizon scanning is and how it can benefit your business. You'll also learn to recognize key areas of change and understand the steps involved in horizon scanning. In addition, you'll learn how to analyze the data you collect and communicate it so the best decisions can be made.
6 videos |
27m
Assessment
Badge
Identifying Risks in Your Organization
Risk is an inevitable aspect of any business. As a manager, it's important that you mitigate or avoid the potential impact of a risk if it comes to pass, to ensure the long-term survival of your organization. This course focuses on the first step in managing risk, identifying risks to your organization. You'll explore the difference between internal and external risks, and how some risks may actually present a strategic opportunity. You'll also learn how to use some techniques that can help you identify risks and calculate the probability that they will occur, including root cause identification, the Delphi technique, and brainstorming sessions.
7 videos |
18m
Assessment
Badge
PMI PDU
Assessing Your Organization's Risks
Risk is a fact of life for businesses and one that will never just go away. But before you can start managing risk, you need to be able to assess a risk - as well as its probability - in order to create a strategic plan that will enable you to avoid or mitigate its potential negative impact. In this course, you'll learn some common techniques for assessing risk, including opportunity assessment, and threat assessment using FMEA - failure mode and effects analysis.
7 videos |
20m
Assessment
Badge
PMI PDU
Responding Effectively to Risks
The third step to take when managing risk, once you've identified and assessed risks to your organization, is to deal with them appropriately. Some risks may have a higher probability of becoming a reality than others, while others may have more of a negative impact. You'll need to treat each of these types of risks differently. This course covers how to create an effective strategy for responding to risk, such as risk exposure adjustment and contingency planning. It also outlines specific strategic plans for dealing with a risk that may be a threat or an opportunity.
7 videos |
18m
Assessment
Badge
PMI PDU
MIT SMR: Achieving Supply Chain Transparency
A transparent approach to supply-chain strategy could give organizations a competitive edge. Consumers increasingly want to know more about where and how the products they purchase are being made. In many industries, this type of transparency has become a requirement, with consumers actively rewarding companies that provide visibility into their supply chains and punishing companies that do not. Importantly, creating transparency requires companies to not only determine what information to disclose to consumers, but also to gain visibility into their supply chains.
1 video |
59m
MIT SMR: Reshaping Supply Chains for a Post-Pandemic World
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended global supply chains. Civilization depends on supply chains to convert the planet's bounty into the products we need and to deliver those products to 7.8 billion human beings at a price they can afford. COVID-19 has upended supply chains around the world and has cast into doubt the future of the operations landscape. This is a presentation and conversation with MIT professor Yossi Sheffi, author of The New (Ab)Normal: Reshaping Business and Supply Chain Strategy Beyond Covid-19. Sheffi discusses the future of operations in the context of global phenomena like COVID-19, climate change, and economic uncertainty.
1 video |
59m
MIT SMR: Optimize Your Operations for Today - and Tomorrow
Consumer products leaders know they must change how their organizations operate to enable the flexibility required to meet changing consumer needs. But continuing to meet today's demands while planning for tomorrow is a complex process. In this on-demand webinar, Steve Basili of EY and Parth Raval of PepsiCo Foods North America discuss why operational transformation is imperative and offer advice for doing the job well.
1 video |
57m
SHOW MORE
FREE ACCESS
EARN A DIGITAL BADGE WHEN YOU COMPLETE THESE COURSES
Skillsoft is providing you the opportunity to earn a digital badge upon successful completion on some of our courses, which can be shared on any social network or business platform.
Digital badges are yours to keep, forever.BOOKS INCLUDED
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review on Thinking StrategicallyIn this collection of articles from MIT Sloan Management Review, you'll discover that a rigorous process for navigating strategic decisions can mitigate errors and improve judgment. Do you have the tools you need?
50m
By MIT Sloan Management Review
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Disrupt Your Own Business FirstThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review discusses how planning the future for your company begins with knowing how to destroy it. How can companies strategize once they have recognized the limitations of long term planning in an unpredictable world?
9m
By Ian C. Woodward, Ram Charan, Sameer Hasija, V. “Paddy" Padmanahan
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on What Sets Breakthrough Strategies ApartThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review discusses how innovative strategies depend more on novel, well-reasoned theories than on well-crunched numbers.
6m
By Teppo Felin, Todd Zenger
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Modern Business Models Will Drive the Post-Pandemic WorldThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review on how companies and leaders must remain relevant and resilient by building business models using key components for growth. Digitally centric companies can leverage data and machine learning to create valuable insights, intelligence, and capabilities across the organization.
5m
By Barry Libert , Jim Curry, K.D. de Vries, Lanham Napier
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Are You Managing Your Risks From Social Media?This article from MIT Sloan Management Review looks at how many organizations aren't fully aware of the risks posed by social media or taking enough steps to minimize them.
8m
By David Houghton, Emily S. Keenan, Leslie H. Blix, Mark Edmonds
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Who Gets What When Supply Chains Are Disrupted?In this article from MIT Sloan Management Review, learn how when companies cannot meet the full demands of their customers, leaders need to set clear decision criteria and the mechanisms to back them up. But how?
5m
By Yossi Sheffi
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on The Age of Accelerating Strategy BreakthroughsThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review discusses how companies showing the most agility and resilience in their response to the global pandemic are pursuing four main strategies.
6m
By Greg Rung, Hanna Moukanas, John Romeo
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on How to Become a Strategic LeaderThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review reveals that new and experienced managers alike can become better strategic leaders by sting more time in three key activities.
4m
By Julie Zhuo
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Plotting Strategy in a Dynamic WorldThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review discusses how companies can no longer rely on traditional forecasting exercises to spot - and capitalize on - emerging threats and opportunities. To remain competitive over time, a company must be able to move quickly in response to major changes.
10m
By David J. Teece, David R. Cox, Paul G. Raspin
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Don't Let Your Strategy Be HijackedThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review discusses how companies can preempt and manage consumer backlash.
5m
By Carsten Lund Pedersen, Thomas Ritter
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Why Hypotheses Beat GoalsThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review talks about how companies should focus organizational energy on hypothesis generation and testing.
4m
By Jeanne Ross
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on With Goals, FAST Beats SMARTThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review reveals that in order to execute strategy, leaders must set ambitious targets, translate them into specific metrics and milestones, make them transparent throughout the organization, and discuss progress frequently.
15m
By Charles Sull, Donald Sull
Book
MIT Sloan Management Review Article on How Scenario Planning Influences Strategic DecisionsThis article from MIT Sloan Management Review talks about a recent study that sheds light on how the use of scenario planning affects executives' strategic choices.
7m
By Chris Caplice, Shardul Phadnis, Yossi Sheffi
BOOK SUMMARY
Strategic Thinking: A Nine Step Approach to Strategy and Leadership for Managers and Marketers, 3rd EditionStrategic Thinking offers a nine-step approach for becoming a strategic thinker and, consequently, a strong, strategic leader. In this Summary, we discuss the salient points of the book based on our interpretation of its contents.
10m
By Simon Wootton, Terry Horne
BOOK SUMMARY
Learning to Think StrategicallyLearning to Think Strategically provides a theoretical framework that links a continuous cycle of learning to strategic thinking and performance. In this Summary, we discuss the salient points of the book based on our interpretation of its contents.
11m
By Julia Sloan
Book
Strategic Thinking: A Nine Step Approach to Strategy and Leadership for Managers and Marketers, 3rd editionIncluding prompt sheets, objectives, action plans and summaries, this book will enable you to gain a deeper understanding of your market, forecast where your organization is heading, think critically about proposals and write an effective strategic plan.
2h 51m
By Simon Wootton, Terry Horne
Book
The Art of Opportunity: How to Build Growth and Ventures Through Strategic Innovation and Visual ThinkingYour company's goal is to grow, and to turn non-customers into customers. The old ways are becoming less tenable and less cost-effective. This invaluable book outlines the new growth paradigm and gives you a solid framework for putting new ideas into practice.
2h 42m
By Marc Sniukas, Matt Morasky, Parker Lee
Book
Strategic Decision Making: A Discovery-Led Approach to Critical Choices in Turbulent TimesPacked with real world examples and backed up by academic research, this essential resource will allow today's leaders and the leaders of tomorrow to make successful and defensible business choices.
4h 27m
By Ben Shenoy, Simon Haslam
Book
Business Strategy (The Brian Tracy Success Library)Incorporating examples ranging from Alexander the Great to IBM and General Electric, renowned speaker, trainer, seminar leader, and consultant Brian Tracy gives readers proven ideas for increasing their company's ROI and maximizing their strengths and opportunities.
1h 8m
By Brian Tracy
Book
Leading with Strategic Thinking: Four Ways Effective Leaders Gain Insight, Drive Change, and Get ResultsBringing together insights from cognitive psychology, systems theory, and other fields to show that the importance of strategic thought transcends planning, this book will inspire you to have a greater impact, today and into the future.
4h 48m
By Aaron K. Olson, B. Keith Simerson
Book
Demystifying Strategic Thinking: Lessons from Leading CEOsUsing unique and original interviews with six top business leaders, this book examines the key components of successful strategizing, provides a strategy system for managers and helps them develop and implement a winning strategy for their organization.
5h 54m
By Tony Grundy
Book
Strategic Doing: Ten Skills for Agile LeadershipStrategic Doing introduces you to the new disciplines of agile strategy and collaborative leadership - a set of tools specifically designed to harness the power of collaborative networks.
3h 21m
By Edward Morrison, Elizabeth Nilsen, Janyce Fadden, Nancy Franklin, Scott Hutcheson
Book
A Welch Way Playbook on Creating a Winning StrategyIn this Welch Way Playbook, we present the tools and proven techniques you can apply to develop a clear strategy for success. This Playbook is your game plan for success.
1h 1m
By Strayer University
Book
Elevate: The Three Disciplines of Advanced Strategic ThinkingProviding leaders with a framework and toolkit for developing advanced strategic thinking capabilities, this book will enable leaders to finally integrate both strategy and innovation into a strategic approach that drives their profitable growth.
2h 41m
By Rich Horwath
BOOK SUMMARY
Playing to Win: How Strategy Really WorksPlaying to Win clearly outlines the right-and wrong-approach to defining and implementing strategy in the business context by providing clear, actionable advice for establishing the framework and processes that must underpin strategic direction and choices. In this Review, we discuss the salient points of the book based on our interpretation of its contents.
5m
By A.G. Lafley, Roger L. Martin
Book
Scissors and Rock: Game Theory for Those Who ManageThis book introduces readers to basic game theory as a tool to deal with strategic decision problems, helping them to understand the complexity of such problems.
5h 23m
By Barbara Klose-Ullmann, Manfred J. Holler
SHOW MORE
FREE ACCESS
AUDIOBOOKS INCLUDED
AUDIOBOOK SUMMARY
Learning to Think StrategicallyLearning to Think Strategically provides a theoretical framework that links a continuous cycle of learning to strategic thinking and performance. In this Summary, we discuss the salient points of the book based on our interpretation of its contents.
23m 44s
By Julia Sloan
Audiobook
Elevate: The Three Disciplines of Advanced Strategic ThinkingIn this audio edition, author Rich Horwath provides leaders with a framework and toolkit for developing advanced strategic thinking capabilities.
6h 9m 3s
By Rich Horwath
Audiobook
The Strategic Leader's Roadmap: 6 Steps for Integrating Leadership and StrategyThis audio edition offers a 6-point checklist for leading strategically that will help managers strengthen their capacity to develop strategy and to lead its execution.
2h 39m 15s
By Harbir Singh, Michael Useem
Audiobook
Edge Strategy: A New Mindset for Profitable GrowthThis audio edition will help you grow your business by getting more yield from assets already in place, relationships already established, and investments already made.
6h 56m 28s
By Alan Lewis, Dan McKone
Audiobook
Game-Changer: Game Theory and the Art of Transforming Strategic SituationsThis audio edition will empower you with wisdom - not just to win in every strategic situation (or "game") you face but to change those games and the ecosystems in which they reside to transform your life and our lives together for the better.
6h 59m 42s
By David McAdams
Audiobook
Fit to Compete: Why Honest Conversations about Your Company's Capabilities Are the Key to a Winning StrategyThis audio edition provides an innovative and highly effective process for holding honest conversations with everyone in your organization.
8h 32m 3s
By Michael Beer
Audiobook
Building Social Business: The New Kind of Capitalism That Serves Humanity's Most Pressing NeedsThis audio edition traces the development of the social business idea explaining its lessons for entrepreneurs, social activists, and policy makers, and offers practical guidance for those who want to create social businesses of their own.
8h 29m 1s
By Muhammad Yunus
Audiobook
Business Strategy (The Brian Tracy Success Library)Incorporating examples ranging from Alexander the Great to IBM and General Electric, this audio edition gives listeners proven ideas for increasing their company's ROI and maximizing their strengths and opportunities. Read by the author.
2h 27m 7s
By Brian Tracy
AUDIOBOOK SUMMARY
Playing to Win: How Strategy Really WorksPlaying to Win clearly outlines the right-and wrong-approach to defining and implementing strategy in the business context by providing clear, actionable advice for establishing the framework and processes that must underpin strategic direction and choices. In this Review, we discuss the salient points of the book based on our interpretation of its contents.
10m 22s
By A.G. Lafley, Roger L. Martin
SHOW MORE
FREE ACCESS
SKILL BENCHMARKS INCLUDED
Leading the Business
Becoming a successful business leader means more than just directing and motivating your people. It also requires understanding the business you're in and making sure that you're making decisions that will help your company meet its goals. In this Leading the Business Unit Benchmark, you'll be able to make a frank assessment of your current skills in strategic planning and execution, identifying your strengths and recognizing areas of weaknesses that will benefit from further learning and growth. This benchmark evaluates your understanding of this topic. Being aware of potential knowledge gaps allows you to better understand your current competency and areas for improvement, so you can find suitable content and curate your own learning path. The courses recommended at the end of this benchmark can help you fill potential gaps in your knowledge.
14m
| 14 questions