Strategies 185
Strategic Initiatives at Brown University
Brown University’s “Plan for Academic Enrichment” (2004) discusses ten
themes, called “areas of strategic focus,” that can serve to illustrate our under-
standing of strategic initiatives.
- Enhancing undergraduate education
- Excellence in graduate education
- Faculty excellence in teaching and research
- Leadership in biology, medicine, and public health
- Fostering multidisciplinary initiatives
- Enhancing excellence through diversity
- Building a shared sense of community
- Diversifying and expanding the university’s sources of revenue
- Collaborating with the local community on Iissues of mutual interest and
benefit - Enhancing the quality of our facilities, infrastructure, and administrative
support
In Brown’s lexicon, each of these initiatives is translated into a set of “specific
objectives” (we would call these strategies or goals), which is followed by a set
of illustrative “Proposals” that represent, to us, a mixture of goals and actions.
The different levels in the presentation succeed on the whole in communicating
several differentiated stages of definition, assisting Brown to articulate a clear and
ambitious direction for the future. Yet, because so many of the “proposals” are actu-
ally goals (“ensure competitive staff salaries and benefits,” “enhance and expand
research facilities,”) that are not accompanied by measurable indicators, the plan
loses some of its focus, sense of actionable sequence, and persuasiveness.
It is clear, however, that Brown’s ten areas of strategic focus are intended to play
the critical role of translating the university’s story, mission, and vision into a set
of priorities that define specific strategies, plans, and needs. Brown’s vision is to
maintain and to strengthen its preeminent position among American universities
in fulfillment of its mission as a university-college, and its strategic initiatives play
the pivotal role in giving definition to that ambition (Brown University 2004).
Levels of Strategy at Monnet University
To examine more of the dynamics of strategic thinking in a leadership context,
it will be helpful to look at examples of the way that it can orient decision making
at all four levels of strategic definition, starting with a situation analysis of a given
issue. Then, at appropriate places later in the text, we will examine other illustra-
tions of ways to craft strategic goals and actions. We will use Monnet University,
a hypothetical institution that reflects real-world characteristics and has chosen
to focus on international education as one of its strategic priorities. (This example