Please read the case study below and answer the following questions and please make sure to number your responses.

1. What types of strategic issues are likely to be most significant at each stage and level of the planning process? (3 marks) 2. Why might a different approach to strategy development be appropriate in a different type of industry such as the fast fashion industry? (3 marks) 3. Compare the Unident planning process to the planning process which might occur in a small business. Take care to identify who would be involved in each stage of the process?(4 marks)

Strategic Planning at Unident

Unident is a multinational industrial engineering firm with headquartered in the USA and has businesses involved in power generation, power distribution and the application of electrical energy. It operates through ten divisions and 40 business units throughout the world.

The corporate strategy of Unident forms the basis of a more detailed strategic plan that shows how the strategy is to be put into effect across the divisions and businesses and the projected financial outcome of this. The corporate strategy identifies and defines businesses and markets that Unident should be in and sets target ranges and five-year growth aspirations. This corporate strategy is developed and decided by the Managing Board supported by the Corporate Strategy Department. More detailed strategic planning occurs at the business unit level with the Corporate Strategy Department working with the divisions to help coordinate.

The planning process is summarised in Figure 1 below and has the following stages:

1. Corporate strategists, consulting with divisions and external experts including market research companies, examine global market developments to assess and identify market aspirations for Unident for the next five years and propose five-year goals by market.

2. Growth aspirations are then passed to divisions together with guidelines on what is required from the businesses to develop a strategic plan for Unident. This includes prompts on key strategic issues that need addressing such as enhancing performance, fostering growth, strengthening performance, the identification of key market trends, how synergies will be achieved between businesses and a summary SWOT analysis.

3. Combined strategic and financial plans are then developed at the business level with the assistance of divisional strategists who are also responsible for coordinating these to produce divisional strategic plans.

4. Towards the end of stage 3 the Corporate Strategy Department facilitates an interim alignment meeting between the divisions and the most important countries on the growth plans of the divisions in the respective countries.

5. The final strategic plans and budget proposals are presented by division and business unit CEOs for review by the management board.

The final stage is the agreement by the Unident managing board. Here an annual agreement of the budget is necessary. An agreement by the supervisory board is only required if extensive changes in strategy and/ or the portfolio of the company are planned.