Assignment 3: Strategy Presentation
Introduction
“In order for strategy to be effective, it has to be clearly communicated.
Everybody in the organization has to understand why we are doing what we’re doing,
and what they need to do in order to execute the strategy.”
– Jack Welch –
Time to Shine! You’ve done the hard work to evaluate the playing field and competition. You’ve looked
at seven potential strategic moves and assessed the pros and cons of each. Finally, you have arrived at
the game-winning move that can help your company beat competitors, generate significant shareholder
value and create a sustainable competitive advantage. All you need now is a “yes” from your CEO!
You know that one of the most important skills leaders must develop is the ability to sell their ideas. They
need to understand their audience, craft their presentation appropriately, have poise, and communicate
clearly. They also need to show their passion and demonstrate executive presence!
Strategy Presentation
You know your CEO’s time is valuable and you have only five minutes to “sell” your game-winning move
and explain the key rationale. You will synthesize your previous executive briefs to create a succinct,
well-organized presentation based on Jack’s 5 slides and then present these during your five-minute slot.
The presentation is focused on selling the move and your rationale – and this probably means that some
of the slides are going to be more important than others. Your CEO wants you to touch on each slide
during the 5-minute presentation but doesn’t mind if you spend only a brief amount of time on some slides
and more time on others.
You have a great game-winning move. You have been perfecting your executive presence. You have
confidence. You are ready to impress!
Instructions
Strategy Presentation
- Distill the work you have done in Assignments 1 and 2 to create a 5-slide strategy deck. This is
explained in Chapter 11 of Winning and is also included in summary form below.
Be aware that information needed for some of Jack’s questions would be available to a
company’s strategy team leader but may not be in the public domain for our use. Therefore, your
content in each slide will primarily be derived from your research for your first two assignments.
This may mean that you focus on answering some of Jack’s questions, but perhaps not all of
them.
Strategy Presentation
JWI 540: Strategy
Assignment 3
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not
be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University.
This document is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assignment 3 (1244) Page 2 of 5
- You should approach your presentation from a senior executive perspective, with your intended
audience being the CEO of the company. Your presentation should be both informative and
inspirational. Your goal is to persuade the CEO to support your strategic plan.
- You should assume that the CEO has already read your two executive briefs. However, you are
unsure whether there is support or skepticism for of your game-winning move. Thus, you need to
focus on “selling your strategy” and not just regurgitating your first two assignments. Your CEO
will be compelled by an enthusiastic presentation that explains why your game-winning move is
the right one, but that also presents a balanced, cogent understanding of the risks involved.
- Your presentation should have a professional look and feel. It should demonstrate your executive
presence through professional dress, eye contact, clear and confident speech and body language.
Think about Jack’s “4 E’s + 1 P” as you prepare, and use this as a guide for your delivery.
Formatting and Submission Requirements
Strategy Presentation
- Record your presentation using Zoom This will allow you to record your use of a PPT deck and
webcam at the same time. Recording instructions and samples: https://www.kaltura.com/tiny/xgw5h
- Keep your presentation within a 4- to 6-minute timeframe.
- You may only present slides from Jack’s 5-slide methodology, and you must present all 5 slides.
However, you are not required to allocate your time equally on to each of the 5 slides. Instead,
spend your time on the slides that best enable you to convincingly sell your game-winning move.
There are many tactics that allow you to briefly cover a slide that is not essential to sell your
move. An example is to quickly flash the competition slide while noting, “You are well aware that
our two key competitors are Ford and GM, and I shared their recent moves in the executive brief,
so I’d instead like to advance to the Our Organization slide”.
- Submit your Zoom video in mp4 format only. Note: Zoom offers several formats, so make sure you save
to your computer and then upload only the mp4 formatted version.
- You do not need to submit a separate PPT file for grading because each slide should be visible in your
Zoom video.
JWI 540: Strategy
Assignment 3
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not
be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University.
This document is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assignment 3 (1244) Page 3 of 5
5-Slide MethodologyQuestions
Slide questions are not set in stone. Focus your content on the most important and relevant questions for
your company and industry. You are not expected to incorporate every bullet under each slide as part of
your five-slide presentation. Instead, choose the most compelling elements that help you tell the most
persuasive story.
Strategy Presentation
Slide 1: What the Playing Field Looks Like Now
- Who are the competitors in this business large and small new and old?,
- Who has what share globally and in each market? Where do we fit in?,
- What are the characteristics of this business? Is it a commodity high value or somewhere in
between? Is it long cycle or short?, Where is it on the growth curve? What are the drivers of
profitability?,
- What are the strengths and weaknesses of each competitor? How good are its products?,
How much does each spend on R&D? How big is each sales force? How performance-driven
is each culture?,
- Who are this business’s main customers, and how do they buy?,
Slide 2: What the Competition Has Been Up To,
- What has each competitor done in the past year to change the playing field?,
- Has anyone introduced game-changing new products new technologies or new distribution
channels?,
- Are there any new entrants, and if so, what have they been up to in the past year?
Slide 3: What You’ve Been Up To
- What have you done in the past year to change the competitive playing field?
- Have you bought a company, introduced a new product, stolen a competitor’s key
salesperson, or licensed a new technology from a startup?
- Have you lost any competitive advantages that you once had – a great salesperson, a special
product, a proprietary technology?
Slide 4: What’s Around the Corner?
- What scares you most in the year ahead – what are one or two things a competitor could do to
nailyou?
- What new products or technologies could your competitors launch that might change the
game?
- What M&A deals made by a competitor would knock you off your feet?
Slide 5: What’s Your Winning Move?
- What can you do to change the playing field – is it an acquisition, a new product, globalization?
- What can you do to make customers stick with you more than ever before and be more loyal
to you than to anyone else?
Strategy Presentation
- Persuasively and logically present your “winning move”
JWI 540: Strategy
Assignment 3
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not
be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University.
This document is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assignment 3 (1244) Page 4 of 5
