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Strategy

Defining your company’s approach to business. Use our selection of articles, reports, tools and books to find more information on all aspects of corporate strategy.
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Latest on strategy

EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence draft directive adopted
  • Article
  • 02 Mar 2022
Controversial proposals will impose new obligations on companies active in the EU on how they monitor and operate in their supply chains, alongside new duties for directors.
Exclusive How to create business order out of chaos
  • Article
  • 16 Nov 2021
Own the unknowns and create order out of chaos
Climate risk is an “inescapable” part of chartered accountants’ remit
  • Article
  • 01 Nov 2021
For those looking to future-proof their career, being able to embed climate change and wider sustainability issues into business strategy and planning, risk management, procurement and performance management is essential.
Exclusive What happens if we don't make net zero?
  • Article
  • 11 Aug 2021
Looking at the potentially huge consequences for business
Exclusive The CFO and strategy
  • Article
  • 11 Aug 2021
CFOs are key to strategy, make sure you are evolving yours
Exclusive Turn your data into insights
  • Article
  • 17 May 2021
Six key tips to make the most of your data
Exclusive Making a sustainable business strategy for all
  • Article
  • 17 May 2021
Ensure your green agenda suits everyone
NAO adds to calls for a long-term strategy for adult social care
  • Article
  • 12 Apr 2021
A National Audit Office report lays out the challenge for local authorities and central government on adult social care in the absence of a long-term funded plan.

Reports

Platform businesses: A Guide
  • Helpsheets and support
  • 2021
This guide explores the characteristics of platform businesses and the importance of different aspects of trust in making them work. It concludes with five actions that will help you consider the opportunities they provide.
Business Ecosystems: A Guide
  • Report
  • 2021
The term ecosystem is regularly bandied about in business conversations. But what does it mean and is it a useful metaphor for improving business performance?
The CFO and Strategy Our first report explores the nature of strategy, particularly how CFOs balance planning and opportunism. We then consider the various aspects of the CFO's role in strategy.
Special report - Growing your business
  • Report
  • 2014
This report is primarily aimed at smaller businesses seeking to grow and develop and to achieve their full potential through practical guidance and advice.
Developing a vision for your business
  • Report
  • 2014
This special report looks at what makes a good vision, the benefits of having one, the role of the FD in the process, leadership, storytelling and the use of visions in medium-sized businesses.
Special Report - Strategic planning
  • Report
  • 2004
A special report on strategic choices, the role of the finance director and the core elements of corporate strategy.

Strategy tools

PESTEL - what is it and how to apply it to your business strategy
Ensure your strategy takes into account the political, economic, societal, technological, environmental and legal context.
Porter’s Five Forces
Explore the competitive landscape of your industry sector.
Resource Based View of the Firm
Do your internal resources give you a competitive advantage?
Strategy Maps
Analyse the strategic drivers of financial performance
Success Mapping
Systematically discuss how you will achieve your strategic objectives
SWOT
Make the most of analysing your organisation’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Webinars

Strategic thinking for senior professionals
  • Webinar
  • 29 Sep 2020
Find out what the three core questions of strategy are and the common pitfalls to avoid in addressing them.
Statistics for business - How do I know if my trend is a mirage
  • Webinar
  • 29 Mar 2017
Nigel Marriott explains the principles of hypothesis testing to help you quantify the risks of incorrect decisions.

eBooks

The ICAEW Library & Information Service provides full text access to a selection of key business and reference eBooks from leading publishers. eBooks are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users. If you are unable to access an eBook, please see our Help and support advice or contact library@icaew.com.

Exclusive Exploring strategy
  • 2017
  • Gerry Johnson, Richard Whittington, Patrick Regnér, Kevan Scholes, and Duncan Angwin
  • Pearson Education Limited
This book has long been the essential strategy text for managers of today and tomorrow. From entrepreneurial start-ups to multinationals, charities to government agencies, this book raises the big questions about organisations- how they grow, how they innovate and how they change.
Exclusive Building a resilient organisation
  • 2014
  • James Crask, Charley Newnham, Jack Armstrong, Paul Robertson
  • ICSA Publishing
How to build a prosperous and sustainable business.
Exclusive Professional services marketing: how the best firms build premier brands, thriving lead generation engines, and cultures of business development success
  • 2013
  • Mike Schultz, John Doerr
  • John Wiley and Sons
Guide to marketing from a US perspective.
Exclusive Strategic cost analysis
  • 2012
  • Roger Hussey, Audra Ong
  • Business Expert Press
Cost analysis for managers, from an American perspective.
Exclusive Strategic marketing planning for the small to medium-sized business: writing a marketing plan
  • 2012
  • David Anderson
  • Business Expert Press
A guide to marketing for SMEs.
Exclusive Trade promotion strategies: best practices
  • 2012
  • Michel Borgeon, Claude Cellich
  • Business Expert Press
Export promotion strategies suitable for SMEs.
Terms of use

You are permitted to access, download, copy, or print out content from eBooks for your own research or study only, subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.

Business press

The Library provides access to leading business, finance and management journals. These journals are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users subject to suppliers' terms of use.
Exclusive Budgeting to fund strategic plans
  • Article
  • 01 Dec 2021
  • Daniel Butcher
  • Strategic Finance
The CFOs of CSX and ATI reveal best practices for finance to lead organizations' strategic planning and budgeting processes.
Exclusive Crafting a mission statement
  • Article
  • 02 Aug 2021
  • Jolene A. Lampton
  • Strategic Finance
A mission statement works with the company or business' code of ethics and helps inspire its employees to work toward a common goal of that company or business.
Exclusive How come so many strategies fail?
  • Article
  • 01 Jul 2021
  • David J.Collis
  • Harvard Business Review
Leaders often make the mistake of focusing on one element of their strategy, rather than considering strategy as a whole, says David J.Collis. He compares strategy mistakes typically made by CEOs at innovative new businesses and at mature established companies.
Exclusive Time to pivot? You need a story
  • Article
  • 01 Sep 2020
  • Robert Bremner, Rory McDonald
  • Harvard Business Review
How to sell stakeholders on a new strategy. Pivoting entrepreneurs should explain strategy shifts with humility and express empathy for any inconvenience they cause stakeholders, say the authors.
Exclusive Controlling influence: Considerations in creating a strategic credit management department.
  • Article
  • 01 May 2020
  • Matthew Godby
  • Credit Management
Matthew Godby looks at some of the factors in achieving a strategic credit management department, including the order to cash cycle, systems and reporting, credit policies and taking a collaborative approach.
Exclusive The big picture for compensation in a pandemic
  • Article
  • 01 May 2020
  • Blair Jones, John Borneman, Kathryn Neel
  • NACD Directorship
The article discusses several foundational principles for compensation committees in developing new approaches to executive pay. The foundational principles include the need to prioritize stakeholders, the need to focus on engagement rather than retention and the need for the boards to align performance and pay outcomes to create the appropriate incentives.

Articles and books in the ICAEW Library collection

The collection of the ICAEW Library & Information Service includes a range of articles, books and reports on corporate strategy and planning. Use the links below to see what we have available to request in our Library catalogue (Libcat).
Strategy: an international perspective
  • Library book
  • 2020
  • B. De Wit
  • Cengage Learning EMEA
This book covers the many perspectives in the field of corporate strategy, navigating readers through contrasting viewpoints to encourage discussion and debate.
Directors' checklists
  • Library book
  • 2020
  • M.Wearden
  • ICSA Publishing
An easy-to-use A-Z guide to the key tasks and responsibilities of a director. It is designed for quick reference, with each entry including an introduction and explanation, a checklist of points to consider, procedures to follow and cross-references to relevant legislation and regulation.

To find out how you can borrow books from the Library please see our guide to borrowing books.

You can obtain copies of articles or extracts of books and reports through our document supply service.

External resources

Creating a valuable business
  • Atom Content Marketing
A LawDonut guide to making strategic decisions that can help create and maintain a valuable business. Running a business often involves reacting to circumstances, making minor decisions that have a limited, short-term impact. In contrast, creating a valuable business is about taking strategic decisions that have a lasting effect.
Get key business strategies right
  • Atom Content Marketing
A Start-up Donut guide to mastering key business strategies. Business owners must remain focused on the key issues that ultimately determine success or failure. With dozens of different tasks competing for your time, you need to identify activities that will make a real difference to long-term success.
Your sales strategy
  • Atom Content Marketing
A MarketingDonut guide to creating a sales strategy. Your sales strategy identifies which customers your business is targeting, it specifies how you will reach them and it outlines how you will convince them to buy from you.
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