The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (2024)

Sanjeev Bagal (LION) The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (1)

Sanjeev Bagal (LION)

Senior Business Analyst - Certified SAFe V6.0 POPM, SME Logistics, SCM, WMS, Procurement, Source.

Published Feb 26, 2016

A Strategy is a special plan made to achieve a market position and to reach the organizational goals and objectives, but Policy refers to a set of rulesmade by the organization for rational decision making. Many people have confusion regarding the two terms, but they are not alike. You should know that policies are subordinate to strategy. Here, in thisarticle we made an attempt to point out the important differences between Strategy and Policy.

Definition of Strategy

Strategy is a game plan, chosen to achieve the organizational objectives, gain customer’s trust, attain competitive advantage and to acquire a marketposition. It is a combination of well thought intent and actions which lead to the organization towards its desired position or destination. It is aunified and integrated plan made to achieve the basic objectives of the enterprise like:

  • Effectiveness
  • Handling events and problems
  • Taking advantage of opportunities
  • Full resource utilization
  • Coping with threats

Strategy is a combination of flexibly designed corporate moves, through which an organization can compete with its rivals successfully. The followingare the features of the Strategy:

  • It should be formulated from the top level management, however, sub-strategies can be made by middle level management.
  • It should have a long range perspective.
  • It should be dynamic in nature.
  • The main purpose is to overcome from uncertain situations.
  • It should be made in such a way, to make the best possible use of scarce resources.

Definition of Policy

The policy is also regarded as a mini – mission statement, is a set of principles and rules which directs the decisions of the organization. Policies are framedby the top level management of the organization to serve as a guideline for operational decision making. It is helpful in highlighting the rules, valueand beliefs of the organization. In addition to this, it acts as a basis for guiding the actions.

Policies are designed, by taking opinion and general view of a number of people in the organization regarding any situation. They are made from the past experience and basic understanding. In this way, the people who comes under the range of such policy will completely agree upon itsimplementation.

Policies helps the management of an organization to determine what is to be done, in a particular situation. These have to be consistently applied overa long period of time to avoid discrepancies and overlapping.

Key Differences Between Strategy and Policy

The following are the major differences between strategy and policy

  1. Strategy is the best plan opted from a number of plans, in order to achieve the organizational goals and objectives. Policy is a set of common rules and regulations, which forms as a base to take day to day decisions.
  2. Strategy is a plan of action while the policy is a principle of action.
  3. Strategies can be modified as per the situation, so they are dynamic in nature. Conversely, Policies are uniform in nature, however relaxations can bemade for unexpected situations.
  4. Strategies are concentrated toward actions, whereas Policies are decision oriented.
  5. Strategies are always framed by the top management but sub strategies are formulated at the middle level. In contrast to Policy, they are, in general madeby the top management.
  6. Strategies deals with external environmental factors. On the other hand, Policies are made for internal environment of business.

Conclusion

The difference between Strategy and Policy is, a little complicated because Policies come under the Strategies. Apart from that the policies are made to support strategies in several ways like accomplishing organizational goals and securing an advantageous position in the market. Both of them are made by the topmanagement as well as made after a deep analysis.

The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (5)

The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (6)

Rahab Karisa

Environmentalist| ESIA Expert| Commonwealth Scholar

3mo

very informative ,thank you

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The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (7)

Albert G. Udoh

Business Architect II Advisor II Coach

4mo

Very apt. Thanks for sharing

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The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (8)

Umar Jan Ambar Ali

QHSE Professional | Management | Leadership | BSC IDipOSH | GradIOSH | OSHAD

6mo

this is what i was looking for, Thank You.

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The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (9)

Important article..thanks

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The Differences Between Strategies and Policies (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between policies and strategies? ›

Policy is a set of common rules and regulations, which forms as a base to take day to day decisions. Strategy is a plan of action while the policy is a principle of action. Strategies can be modified as per the situation, so they are dynamic in nature.

What is policy and strategic? ›

Policy is the spheres or scope within which decisions are taken by the employees in the organization. Strategy is an action that managers and directors take to achieve one or more of the organizational goals. A policy is a guide to thinking and action for those responsible for making decisions.

What is the difference between strategic management and policy? ›

The central difference between strategic management and business policies is that strategic management is a system that helps guide and direct a firm, while policies, on the other hand, are merely rules to be followed.

What is the purpose of strategy and policy? ›

A policy strategy focuses the work of your organization by aligning it with the policy objectives that you are pursuing. This can help drive the type of work your organization undertakes, direct how resources are used, and how you work with your partners.

What is the relationship between policies and strategic management? ›

Business policy is closely related to strategic management because the policies are essentially the strategies put into action. If the strategy calls for an increased market share, for instance, the business policies would be constructed to match this strategy.

What are the types of policy and strategy? ›

Four types of policies include Public Policy, Organizational Policy, Functional Policy, and Specific Policy. Policy refers to a course of action proposed by an organization or individual.

Which comes first policy or strategy? ›

First you formulate a policy which is the principles or the protocols to guide decisions and next we can make a strategy and finally a detailed plan to achieve the strategy.

What is the nature of strategy and policy? ›

Strategies are the ways to achieve the organisational objectives. Policies are the instructions to achieve the objectives. Strategies are formulated to utilise the available resources to achieve the organisational goals efficiently. Policies are formulated to direct the operations and activities of the organisation.

What is an example of a policy? ›

Examples of company policies include employee conduct policies, dress code, attendance policies, equal opportunity policies, and other areas related to the terms and conditions of employment. Procedures: the processes by which employees should deal with potential breaches of company policies.

What is strategic planning and policy? ›

Strategic planning is a process in which an organization's leaders define their vision for the future and identify their organization's goals and objectives. The process includes establishing the sequence in which those goals should be realized so that the organization can reach its stated vision.

What is the difference between strategic and operational policy? ›

Simply put, your strategic plan shares your vision for the future, while your operational plan lays out how you'll get there on a daily to weekly basis. Both concepts describe your company's plans for the future, but in different contexts.

What is an example of a strategic policy? ›

A strategic policy example is a written statement of an organization's choices in its operating environment. For example, a public or nonprofit agency chooses which of society's problems to address through public services.

What is the main purpose of strategy? ›

The purpose of strategy is to provide direction and scope of an organization over the long-term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder expectations.

What is the main role of strategy? ›

Strategy guides organizational action.

It is meant to give direction to the things that an organization does. Without such direction, organizations would just engage in uncoordinated, fragmented and possibly counterproductive actions.

What is a strategy purpose? ›

The objective of a strategy is to maximize an organization's strengths and to minimize the strengths of the competitors. Strategy, in short, bridges the gap between “where we are” and “where we want to be”.

What is the importance of business policy and strategy? ›

Business policies are an important tool to ensure that the business operates at maximum efficiency. Written in these policies is the blueprint for the whole organization's expected behavior, role, and reporting.

What are the 3 basic strategies? ›

According to Porter's Generic Strategies model, there are three basic strategic options available to organizations for gaining competitive advantage. These are: Cost Leadership, Differentiation and Focus.

What are the 3 basic of strategy? ›

The three levels of strategy are corporate level strategy, business level strategy, and functional level strategy. We explain the differences and how to apply them in your organization.

What are the four main strategies? ›

4 key strategy types
  • Business strategy. A business strategy typically defines how a company intends to compete in the market. ...
  • Operational strategy. Operational strategies focus on a company's employees and management team. ...
  • Transformational strategy. ...
  • Functional strategy.
May 3, 2023

What are the five strategic elements? ›

These five elements of strategy include Arenas, Differentiators, Vehicles, Staging, and Economic Logic. This model was developed by strategy researchers, Donald Hambrick and James Fredrickson.

What is the difference between strategy and policy PDF? ›

The difference between policy and strategy can be summarized as follows1. Policy is a blueprint of the organizational activities which are repetitive/routine in nature. While strategy is concerned with those organizational decisions which have not been dealt/faced before in same form. 2.

What are the benefits of strategy? ›

Strategy provides a vision of the future, confirms the purpose and values of an organization, sets objectives, clarifies threats and opportunities, determines methods to leverage strengths, and mitigate weaknesses (at a minimum). As such, it sets a framework and clear boundaries within which decisions can be made.

What is the concept of strategy? ›

Strategy generally involves setting goals and priorities, determining actions to achieve the goals, and mobilizing resources to execute the actions. A strategy describes how the ends (goals) will be achieved by the means (resources).

Why is strategy important in life? ›

The first reason to develop a strategy is to save yourself time, money, and effort. In other words, by using a strategy, you are using your intelligence and creativity to be clever, instead of just focusing on sheer effort and action steps.

What are the four types of policies? ›

The four main types of public policy include regulatory policy, constituent policy, distributive policy, and redistributive policy. These four policy types differ in terms of what their goals are, and who they impact or benefit.

What do you mean by policy? ›

policy noun [C] (PLAN)

a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has been agreed to officially by a group of people, a business organization, a government, or a political party: They believe that Europe needs a common foreign and security policy.

What is strategy with example? ›

Strategy is a pattern in actions over time; for example, a company that regularly markets very expensive products is using a “high end” strategy. Strategy is position; that is, it reflects decisions to offer particular products or services in particular markets. Strategy is perspective, that is, vision and direction.

What is operations policy and strategy? ›

An operations strategy refers to the system an organization implements to achieve its long-term goals and mission. It involves decisions based on multiple factors, including product management, supply chain, inventory, forecasting, scheduling, quality, and facilities planning and management.

What is an example of a strategic decision? ›

While the products have a shorter shelf-life, they also result in an increased profit margin because dog owners will pay a higher price for freshly prepared food. This is an example of a strategic decision.

What is the difference between a strategy and a goal? ›

Goals are broad, long-term outcomes that are reasonable to achieve within a time frame and with available resources. Objectives are specific and break down goals into more explicit directions by providing quantitative measurements. A strategy is a specific plan you'll use to meet objectives and goals.

What is the difference between a plan and a policy? ›

policy will be defined by a set of pair "state -> action" which should allow from any reachable state. plan will be a a strictly defined sequence of actions leading from the initial state to the goal (well it can be more complex than that if you have concurrency but this is still the basic idea).

What is the most important thing in strategy? ›

Set clear Goals, Targets & Objectives

One of the most overlooked but critical steps in the strategic planning process is to set clear goals, targets, and objectives. These should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).

What is the most important part of strategy? ›

The most essential element of strategic management revolves around the concept of identifying and understanding specific organization goals. Setting short term goals is an ideal way to start, as they act as a direct blueprint in achieving long term objectives.

Who sets the strategy? ›

The board of directors is critical in formulating and executing company strategy. The board sets the overall direction for the organisation and ensures that resources are aligned with strategic objectives.

Who is responsible for strategy? ›

The CEO and executive team play a big role in setting the foundation of a strategic plan by creating guiding organizational principles, articulating the strategic areas of focus, and creating the long-term goals that guide the organization to create aligned goals and actions to achieve its vision of success.

Who are involved in strategy? ›

those who will be implementing the plan (e.g. management, staff, volunteers) those who will be affected (e.g. members, users, etc) those who will monitor its implementation (e.g. Management Committee) others who can contribute to its development (e.g. community activists, funding bodies, etc)

What is a good strategy statement? ›

The statement consists of three components: objective, scope and competitive advantage. All three components must be expressed as clearly as possible. A well-written strategy statement will help employees and the organization to understand their roles when executing the company's strategy.

What is the core of all strategies? ›

Agility is at the core of every good strategy.

Which comes first strategy or policy? ›

First you formulate a policy which is the principles or the protocols to guide decisions and next we can make a strategy and finally a detailed plan to achieve the strategy.

What are the three main types of strategies? ›

Within the domain of well-defined strategy, there are three uniquely different and crucial strategy types:
  • Business strategy.
  • Operational strategy.
  • Transformational strategy.

What are the 5 parts of strategy? ›

These five elements of strategy include Arenas, Differentiators, Vehicles, Staging, and Economic Logic. This model was developed by strategy researchers, Donald Hambrick and James Fredrickson. To achieve key objectives, every business must assemble a series of strategies.

What are the five steps of strategy? ›

What is strategic planning?
  • Define your vision.
  • Assess where you are.
  • Determine your priorities and objectives.
  • Define responsibilities.
  • Measure and evaluate results.
Aug 19, 2022

What are the basic policies? ›

Basic Policies: Those policies of the firm which are pursued by the top management level are regarded as basic policies. General Policies: General Policies are for middle-level management, as they are related to the company's day to day operations and dealings.

What is one sentence for policy? ›

Use “policy” in a sentence

I don't agree with the government's policy on education. I don't agree with their policy. The government adopted a new policy.

What is strategy and example? ›

Strategy is a pattern in actions over time; for example, a company that regularly markets very expensive products is using a “high end” strategy. Strategy is position; that is, it reflects decisions to offer particular products or services in particular markets. Strategy is perspective, that is, vision and direction.

What is the purpose of a strategy? ›

The purpose of strategy is to provide direction and scope of an organization over the long-term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder expectations.

What is a strategy explained? ›

Strategy generally involves setting goals and priorities, determining actions to achieve the goals, and mobilizing resources to execute the actions. A strategy describes how the ends (goals) will be achieved by the means (resources).

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