Creating and Situating an Integrative Strategy Process 69
Drawing again on the relational model of leadership, we become sensitive to
dimensions of strategic leadership that we otherwise might not see. An effective
strategy process can itself embody a sense of collegiality and procedural fairness
that creates trust and mutual commitment among and between participants and
the formal leaders of the process and of the organization (cf. Kezar 2004; Tyler
2005). When it is projected against the needs and values of human beings, we
can understand how the work of strategy becomes leadership as it establishes
background conditions that empower and motivate participants.
When practiced systematically as an applied discipline, the strategy process is
inherently integrative. It connects the internal and external contexts as well as
heritage with change, plans with actions, and needs for resources with a rationale
for attaining and using them. It integrates planning with budgeting, data with
meaning, and goals with measurements. As used here, strategy is an integrative
and collaborative process of sense making and direction-setting that designs and
implements initiatives, goals and actions based on an analysis of organizational
strengths and weaknesses, and the threats and opportunities of the wider context.
It creates a vision of the best possibilities to create educational value and institu-
tional advantage for the future. The framework presents a comprehensive model
of strategy that includes both the activities to prepare for the process and its major
steps and procedures. As I shall try to show in the following chapters, when trans-
acted through a method of engaging leadership, the content becomes integrated,
the method flexible, and the implementation systematic. Each institution will
find ways to customize the process to fit its needs, touching lightly on some steps
under some circumstances, and emphasizing others as appropriate. In some cases,
the environmental scan may be a dominant feature of the work, while in others it
will be the analysis of identity and vision that will be central. On some occasions
the academic program will receive the predominant focus, while at other times it
may be financial issues that are the preoccupation. Strategy is intended to serve
the institution, not the reverse. In all cases, institutions will choose carefully the
number of strategic initiatives and projects to develop in each of the intensive
phases of planning lest the process become overwhelming. The framework can
serve as a preliminary checklist to sort out topics that deserve attention in an
upcoming round of planning. Each entry should bring to mind the issues, policies,
and programs that are or could be of strategic significance in that area.
An Integrative Strategy Process- Situating the Strategy Process
Strategy and Models of Thought: Thinking about Strategic Thinking
Strategic Diagnostics: The Elements of Strategy - Designing the Mechanisms and Tools of Strategy
Strategic Governance, Strategic Leadership, and Strategic Management
Role and Responsibilities of a Strategic Planning Council