Strategy Blueprint

Funded by Yorkshire Forward and developed by the Engineering Employers Federation (EEF), the Strategy Blueprint is an online learning tool that was available free of charge to help managers in the manufacturing and engineering sector develop their planning skills and produce a strategic plan for their business.

Training needs research conducted by Cranfield University found that the Region was having little success in encouraging entrepreneurship, strategic leadership and business management of world class manufacturing techniques. The evaluators felt that key skills gaps were focused around managerial teams and suggested that a lack of business strategy was hampering their progress.

In response the Strategy Blueprint was developed by the Engineering Employers Federation (EEF) Sheffield Association and funded by Yorkshire Forward. The Strategy Blueprint is designed for "hands on" managers to access the tools of strategy. It uses clear language, diagrams and multimedia support. The strategy skills toolbox is available free of charge on both the web and CD-Rom.

MRS staged the Regional launch of Strategy Blueprint at The National Museum of Photography, Film and Television in Bradford. With Richard Noble as the guest speaker the event attracted over 120 top businessmen and women. A programme of roll out launches and workshops followed during May and June.

In addition to organising the Regional, sub-Regional launches and workshops, MRS has managed the production of all the printed material for the project, a comprehensive advertising campaign and all the associated public relations.

An experienced team, dedicated to the Strategy Blueprint initiative, work out of MRS's head office. They have developed and implemented marketing plans for the product and through the use of top class designers, copy writers and photographers have launched and marketed the product within Yorkshire and The Humber.

World of Learning Award Finalist

The Strategy Blueprint programme was a finalist for the 2004 World of Learning Awards. These awards are the industry's most prestigious. An independent panel of industry experts judged the entries. They recognise and reward organisations and people who have significantly advanced workplace productivity and performance in the training industry.

The Blueprint was nominated in the Generic Solution of the Year category where the judging panel looked for a generic product that can easily be adapted for a variety of organisations and/or situations with significant demonstrable results.

Strategy Blueprint - The Way Forward

35 delegates attended the national briefing for the Strategy Blueprint, held at EEF, The Manufacturer's Organisation in London.

In addition to being given an overview of the project by Sue Fairest, the project manager, delegates heard the results from research that was carried out by Leeds Business School. This evaluation taken together with the Strategy Blueprint's own research undertaken with businesses and intermediaries demonstrates high levels of satisfaction, but also indicate areas that would benefit from further development.

In response a Strategy Blueprint Small Business Version will be available in March 2005. This new version will provide a strategy template for a written plan, together with selected support materials that meet the time, knowledge, learning style and skill needs of smaller businesses.

Larger businesses and networks such as supply chains have different requirements to small businesses. Feedback from these types of organisations calls for a multi-user function where a designated team shares a common strategy plan. The system would be Internet or intranet based.

A basic template for a Strategy Blueprint Management Team Version that can be tailored for such requirements will be available later this year.

A briefing document entitled "Strategy Blueprint - The Way Forward" was produced for the London event. It contains full details of the how the Strategy Blueprint project came about, how it was implemented - including case studies, the research that was carried out and the developments that are now taking place.

The Way Forward document can be viewed here (pfd format 2.34MB)