Read this review of “Business Strategy and Training”, and in 3 – 5 sentences for each of the three types, explain in your own words with an example of a company that uses this strategy, why this type of strategy is valuable.
Definition of Business Strategy and Training
Each business has goals. Most want to make money; many want to be the best at what they do.
A business strategy is a plan for how the business will achieve its goals, meet the expectations of its customers, and how it will sustain a competitive advantage in its market. A strategy is important as it outlines what needs to happen and how it needs to happen. The strategy guides the business and employees.
In order to reach its goals, a business will often conduct training, which is teaching or developing skills or knowledge needed to perform the job. Training usually has specific goals such as building competencies, improving performance, and increasing productivity.
Types of Business Strategy
While businesses are varied and may seem to focus on many different things, there really are only three broad strategies a business can choose to follow. These are:
Cost leadership strategy: In a cost leadership strategy, the business tries to keep its costs as low as possible by being efficient. If a business has low costs, it can sell its products at a lower price than competitors. This should result in higher volume sales, which is how the business makes a profit. Examples of businesses with a cost leadership strategy are Costco or Sam’s Club, Netflix, and McDonald’s.
Differentiation strategy: A business with a differentiation strategy tries to differentiate their product in some way: it can be rare, personalized, highly effective, or any other attribute that a consumer finds desirable. Examples of businesses that follow a differentiation strategy are Apple, BMW, and designer clothing.
Focus/niche strategy: The third strategy a business may choose is a focus or niche strategy. A focus strategy can be a combination of cost and differentiation strategies. The business can also focus on a small niche or target market that wants very specific attributes in the product or service. Many small businesses follow a focus/niche strategy. Some examples are Diapers.com and children’s dentists.
Impact of Business Strategy on Training
Let’s look at some examples of the skills or behaviors that drive each strategy and what that means for training.
In a cost leadership strategy, there will be a focus on certain behaviors and values that drive the strategy. These include reduction of waste, streamlining of processes, and continuous improvement. To implement continuous improvement, there are a few things the business can do including training the employees. The training group should work with the business to determine the best way to create a culture of continuous improvement among employees. The plan may include different training interventions. However, because continuous improvement is a behavior change, just training employees is not enough. The change will need to be anchored through various initiatives, and it will need to be a continued effort across the organization.
In a differentiation strategy, there’s a strong focus on the product. Factors that drive this strategy include strong research and development, a focus on brand marketing, and patenting and trademarking. To build the brand marketing skills in employees, the effort should extend beyond the marketing department. All employees need to be brand ambassadors and understand the benefits and key attributes of the brand. Training might build brand details into the onboarding material that new employees receive. The sales people need continuous training on the brand attributes and what differentiates it from other brands.
Factors that affect a focus or niche strategy are customer service, product knowledge, location, and specialization. These skills include knowledge and behaviors. Employees need to understand what good customer service looks like and what customers want, but they also need to practice these skills and be empowered to provide good customer service.
Keeping Training Relevant
Training needs to keep up with the pace of the business. Training groups should create strategies to develop and deliver training quickly.
Existing training materials require continuous updates. After every training session, attendees offer feedback on the effectiveness of the training. Managers can also provide feedback about how employees are able to apply what they have learned back on the job. The feedback provides opportunities for the training group to improve the effectiveness of training programs. Training success should be measured and a return on investment calculated where possible. Reporting on training effectiveness is not easy, but it is a crucial aspect of ensuring that training stays relevant.
Aligning Training & Strategy
There are many ways to check if training is aligned with business strategy.
Ask these questions:
Do we really need training or is there a better way to address this?
What will be the most effective way to deliver the content – informal, on-the-job, classroom, self-study, e-learning, coaching, mentoring, or another way?
Does the training address an element that will help us achieve our strategy?
Are there any other strategic elements that we can build into this training to make it more effective?
Has a business subject matter expert signed off on the content?
Will this training foster behaviors we need to achieve the strategy?
How will we measure the success of this training?
Lesson Summary
Each business has goals, and a business strategy is a summary of the goals and how to reach them. Businesses can have cost leadership, differentiation, or focus/niche strategies. The strategies of a business will determine what skills and behaviors employees need.
It is important that training is aligned with the strategy, both in content and in the way it gets delivered. The effectiveness of the training should be measurable, and the training group should report on training results regularly. The business and the training department must work together to make sure that training addresses strategic needs and is effective. This is not an easy process, but if it means the business meets its strategic goals, then it is worthwhile.
