Benefiting From Thinking Strategically
Not too long ago I took a class that discussed organizational behavior and strategic thinking. In this class my professor conducted an exercise where students in the class were grouped into a scholarship committee whose purpose was to use strategic thinking to budget scholarship money to several incoming freshman. The other students, including myself, represented the freshman who were in the running to receive the scholarship.
These contenders all had different strong points that would carry forward the standards and standing of the university. For example, my candidate was a high school senior who would not be able to go to college without a scholarship. She is very involved in music and should she receive a scholarship to the university, she would contribute to the school’s music program. One of the other hopefuls is a gifted athlete who would be a resource to the school’s basketball team. A third candidate was an intellect who would shine in the academic realm. Moreover, my case on why my candidate is worthy of the scholarship was among the other arguments from classmates who would appreciate the same for their candidates.
It was a hard process, trying to decide what we were looking for and which qualifications were most important. We had to think about how we would split up the money, whether we would give it out evenly so everyone benefits, or give more to those that were more qualified from our point of view. There was also the question of need. Did we give more to those that were in greater need of funding?
After listening to each representative make their point about the needs of their candidate, a few classmates backed out of the debate because they felt their student did not need the money as much as others. One classmate commented that his student came from a financially stable household and that the lack of funds would not keep him from going to college. Another classmate related that her student had the time to get a part-time job and would be okay without scholarship money. With strategic thinking among the committee members, we were able to asses how everyone would gain favor from the situation. Our committee’s final agreement left two students without scholarship money, but benefited three recipients with a part of the scholarship money, based on their needs and accomplishments.
Strategic thinking involved a group effort of brainstorming ideas, initiating change, and finding solutions to our dilemma. With our strategic thinking process, we were able to effectively factor in the highest priorities of our candidates.
If you would like to learn more about CMOE’s Applied Strategic Thinking Workshop visit their website or contact one of their Regional Managers at (801) 569-3444.
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