Evaluating your Options II

You can devise your own set of criteria, but it may be better to rely on established measures.

Assess how valuable each of the options you are evaluating is to your organization by testing each one against some consistent criteria. You can devise your own set of criteria, but it may be better to rely on established measures. For example, a classic work on strategic management by Johnson, Scholes, and Whittington sets out three criteria for evaluating strategic options: suitability, acceptability, and feasibility.

Steps for planning and evaluating strategic options include:

• Gathering information - Analyze your resources and competencies. Look at the the business environment--growth, market structures, and broader economy.
• Develop Options - Identify possibilities for development--for example, can yo make profit from idle cash? Can you make better use of floor space?
• Assess the suitability of each option - Screen the options on the basis of whether they improve the competitive advantage of your organization.
• Assess acceptability - Ask if the option fits with your and your stakeholders expectations.
• Assess feasibility - Assess how possible it will be to put the strategy into action. What will be the barriers to implementation?
• Select the best fit strategy.

ACTION POINT: Evaluate your strategies, suitability, acceptability and feasibility.