Business strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Business strategy - Essay Example In the strategy review and evaluation phase, the company’s project managers determine whether the chosen strategy is meeting its objectives. In the process, the managers should give particular emphasis to the internal and external factors based on which the strategy was developed. The process of strategy evaluation generally consists of four steps including setting benchmark of performance, performance measurement, assessing variance, and taking corrective actions (‘Strategy Evaluation Process..’). In order to clearly review and evaluate the current performance of the chosen strategy, Cath Kidston Ltd should periodically measure and assess the outcomes identified. It would be a better strategy for the managers to compare the actual outcomes against industry benchmarks, and corporate, operational, and individual targets. A close assessment of outcomes in the light of industry benchmarks would assist the company to determine whether or not the strategy performs up to the industry standards (Aswathappa, 2010, p.346). If appropriate tools are available for measuring the performance and the standards were set in the right manner, then it is really easy for the company to evaluate the strategy implemented. However, sometimes it is a cumbersome task to measure managers’ contributions and divisional performance as there is no single defined tactic to do this. For measuring the outcomes and evaluating the performance of the strategy, it is advisable for the Cath Kidston Ltd to prepare financial statements such as balance sheet and profit and loss account for interim periods. While comparing with actual outcomes with industry benchmarks and other standards, the variance observed must be thoroughly evaluated. Managers must check whether the variance between actual and standard performance lies within the degree of tolerance limits set during the strategy formation. A positive deviation indicates that the strategy performs better than planned. At