• Online, Self-Paced
Course Description

Corporate strategy is critical in aligning culture, competencies, and efforts to meet organizational goals. HR can be involved at various levels in high-level strategy, as well as the functional HR unit strategy. Key to this is HR's role in ensuring that the functional unit strategy is driven by and adheres to the corporate-level strategic goals. This course will give you an overview of corporate strategy, the strategic planning process, and tools used in collecting strategic information. The course contents are based on the Body of Competency and Knowledge (BoCK), 2015 of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). While this course helps learners prepare for the SHRM-CP/SCP certification exams, it is equally useful for HR professionals who want to improve their effectiveness in the workplace and advance their careers.

Learning Objectives

Introduction to Business Strategy

  • identify the features of successful corporate strategy
  • recognize the HR practitioner's role in supporting the corporate strategy and value creation
  • match stages in a strategic planning process to their descriptions
  • demonstrate your understanding of the basics of business strategy

Strategic Planning Process

  • recognize the activities and outcome of the strategy formulation phase
  • distinguish between examples of mission, vision, and value statements
  • recognize examples of value drivers
  • demonstrate your understanding of how to formulate strategy

Strategic Planning Tools

  • sequence steps in a PESTEL analysis
  • recognize strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in a sample HR function SWOT analysis
  • recognize HR's role at each phase of the organizational life cycle
  • match Porter's Five Forces to descriptions
  • recognize how the growth share and nine-box matrices are used in HR
  • demonstrate your understanding of how to use strategic planning tools in HR

Framework Connections

The materials within this course focus on the Knowledge Skills and Abilities (KSAs) identified within the Specialty Areas listed below. Click to view Specialty Area details within the interactive National Cybersecurity Workforce Framework.