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Introduction to Strategy

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Introduction to Strategy

This course is part of multiple programs.

Instructor: Edson Ito

1,898 already enrolled

Included with

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5 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Beginner level

No prior experience required

2 weeks to complete

at 10 hours a week

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

5 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Beginner level

No prior experience required

2 weeks to complete

at 10 hours a week

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

What you'll learn

Understand a business scenario
Use strategic tools
Identify another player’s strategy

Skills you'll gain

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

5 assignments

Taught in English

91%

of learners achieved a positive career outcome

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

Learn more about Coursera for Business

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Build your subject-matter expertise

This course is available as part of

When you enroll in this course, you'll also be asked to select a specific program.

Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
Earn a shareable career certificate

There are 5 modules in this course

This course was developed for professionals from any area who wish to improve their knowledge of strategy and who intend to apply this knowledge to their personal and professional life.

The art and science of strategy is important because it offers tools to support decision making in volatile, uncertain, chaotic, and ambiguous scenarios. As a strategist, you will need to make decisions with information incomplete and often contradictory. The lack of access to information can be partially addressed with the analysis techniques that you will learn in this course. This course will be focused and will offer some of the most important tools for the elaboration of the strategy and will develop your ability to use them.

Module details

This week's goal is to introduce the concept of strategy. We will discuss how strategy is an ancient concept, whose basic principles are the same since ancient times until today. We present the mission, vision, and values and describe the importance of understanding the external environment in which the company is inserted.

What's included

10 videos5 readings1 assignment1 peer review

10 videosTotal 172 minutes

Introduction to the Course6 minutes
Course Organization5 minutes
Strategy Concept12 minutes
Mission, Vision, and Values10 minutes
Elements of Strategy13 minutes
External Analysis: STEP11 minutes
External Analysis: 5 Forces32 minutes
Online Education post-COVID8 minutes
Analysis Step-by-Step13 minutes
Recording of Introduction to Strategy Live Session on 21-11-11 20:07:49 [03:45]64 minutes

5 readingsTotal 170 minutes

Syllabus10 minutes
What is Strategy?60 minutes
Mission, Vision, and Values30 minutes
STEP, PEST or PESTEL analysis30 minutes
The five competitive forces that shape strategy40 minutes

1 assignmentTotal 25 minutes

Practice quiz: Introduction to Strategy25 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 180 minutes

Strategy and its shaping forces180 minutes

In this week we will discuss the internal analysis techniques, that is, the activities directly and indirectly related to the company's purpose, and the VRIO technique, which helps us understand which of the internal resources determine the sources of competitive advantage.

What's included

5 videos3 readings1 assignment

5 videosTotal 38 minutes

Internal Analysis - Introduction2 minutes
Internal Analysis15 minutes
Value Chain Analysis: Primary Activities5 minutes
Value Chain Analysis: Secondary Activities8 minutes
VRIO Analysis9 minutes

3 readingsTotal 90 minutes

Internal Analysis15 minutes
How to map your industry's profit pool30 minutes
VRIO Analysis45 minutes

1 assignmentTotal 25 minutes

Practice quiz: Internal Analysis25 minutes

This week is dedicated to the study of the SWOT - TOWS technique, which allows you to identify how to use internal resources (both strengths and weaknesses) to deal with the opportunities and threats generated by the external environment. The student will realize that this technique is different from the traditional SWOT technique.

What's included

4 videos1 reading1 assignment

Week 4 is dedicated to the discussion of Strategic monitoring techniques. Strategic monitoring is important because macro-environment variables change frequently. Therefore, it is important to use a professional system to identify changes, understand what they mean and how they affect the company's business.

What's included

7 videos4 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt

7 videosTotal 179 minutes

Strategic Monitoring - Introduction1 minute
Strategic Monitoring9 minutes
Industry Drivers7 minutes
Surprise Avoidance6 minutes
Response and Adaptation3 minutes
Recording of Introduction to Strategy Live Session on 21-12-02 20:08:48 [05:04]65 minutes
Recording of Live Session - Introduction to Strategy on 22-11-23 12:05:27 [27:10]87 minutes

4 readingsTotal 145 minutes

Strategic Monitoring30 minutes
The next normal arrives: Trends that will define 2021—and beyond30 minutes
Anticipating disruptive innovation45 minutes
Leadership and Decision-Making40 minutes

1 assignmentTotal 25 minutes

Practice quiz: Strategic Monitoring25 minutes

1 discussion promptTotal 10 minutes

Strategic monitoring system10 minutes

Week 5 is dedicated to the study of generic strategies, as presented by Porter. A generic strategy is a way for the company to position itself within the industry, and each of the generic strategies indicates how to use company elements to avoid direct competition against other companies that use other generic strategies.