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September is International Strategic Thinking Month, and once again, the Learning for Success Center is eager to help students improve their strategic thinking skills and use them to further their academic success. In a previous post on Strategic Thinking for Student Success, I asserted that strategic thinking can help students enhance their learning, improve their academic outcomes, and prepare for a successful career. 

Today, I want to focus on the 5 P’s of Strategic Thinking. Defined by Henry Mintzberg back in 1987 as a way of helping strategic management scholars discuss, practice, and research in their field, these five definitions of strategy can continue to help students today by giving them a framework for developing their own strategies, like those needed to achieve academic success. 

Mintzberg’s five definitions of strategy are: 

1. Plan
2. Ploy
3. Pattern
4. Position
5. Perspective

These five aspects or elements of strategy can work together or on their own to help organizations, leaders, businesses, and students create effective strategies for meeting their goals. 

Plan

First, a strategy is a plan. It involves setting goals, identifying the steps needed to achieve them, and establishing processes for effective execution of the steps. Mintzberg (1987) calls this definition of strategy a “consciously intended course of action” (p. 11). The strategy as plan is “made in advance” and “developed consciously and purposefully” (p. 11). When students strategize for their academic success, they should begin by creating an informed plan before the start of the term. Determine the number of hours needed for coursework each week. For example, at Purdue Global, students generally need about 15 hours per week for each course. Establish the days and times of day when these study hours will be completed. Identify where the studying will take place, and ensure that all the tools, textbooks, equipment, internet connections, and accounts needed are ready before the term starts. Work with Technology Tutors to download and access any needed software, work with Writing Tutors to create citations for each required course textbook, and work with Peer Tutors in Learning for Success to practice navigating the online classroom, digital textbooks, and other university resources. 

Ploy

A strategy is also a ploy, or “a specific maneuver intended to outwit an opponent or competitor” (p. 12). For most students, the greatest opponent to academic success is themself, and the competition is for the limited time and energy a student has each day. A strategy might be a ploy that motivates a student to close the door and study when the rest of their family is watching a movie, when they would rather relax after a long day of work instead of firing up the computer to work on chemistry equations, or when the student would prefer to sleep in a little later rather than wake up early to study for a test. A ploy for academic success may also mean establishing boundaries for other people or activities that compete for the time devoted to coursework. Many students report that the Live Study Sessions provided by the Learning for Success Center on Sunday and Monday evenings give them an effective way to establish boundaries around those study times. Logging in to study with other students and having that study room open on the screen sends a clear signal to spouses, partners, children, and others that the student is in an academic meeting and cannot be disturbed until after the event. 

Pattern

Third, a strategy can be defined as a pattern. Mintzberg (1987) asserts that this definition establishes strategy as “consistency in behavior, whether or not intended” (p. 12). Students can identify the patterns that already exist in their behavior, like staying up late or waking up early, to help determine the best times to study each day. They can also use patterns to establish productive routines, as I discussed in a previous post, Using Routines for Academic Success. A student’s patterns can also be analyzed to identify emergent strategies. For instance, perhaps the student did not intend to spend their lunch hour reviewing flashcards for a quiz, but after realizing it was a helpful pattern after the term’s 4th quiz, they begin to include that strategy as part of their academic success planning. Patterns may also lead students away from their goals. Assess the patterns of behavior that may be interfering with academic success, like staying up too late to binge-watch favorite shows, wasting time checking all social media accounts each time one sits down at the computer to begin studying, or not taking the time for a balanced meal and crashing during study time. To be successful, students can reflect on their patterns at the end of every term and identify areas for improvement and new patterns to implement going forward into the next term. 

Position

Mintzberg (1987) also defines strategy as a position. This means locating the organization or individual within their environment. Strategy, in this case, is the “mediating force” between external and internal contexts, between an individual and their environment (p. 15). This might involve thinking about available resources and competition. Students can strategize by thinking about their position. An online student, for example, is in a prime position to create a schedule that suits their unique responsibilities, lifestyle, and needs. There is no driving to campus and trudging into a classroom at the same time three days each week. Instead, the challenge might be to stay motivated and focused when learning more independently. The structure of a three-day-a-week course is gone, so students need to replace that with their own structured study time. For students, their strategy as a position also involves the environment they choose for their studies. If being at home has too many distractions, they may need to identify a more productive environment, like a local library or quiet coffee shop. Perhaps making decisions to turn off the TV, silence notifications on electronic devices, or choose lo-fi beats instead of songs with favorite lyrics can make the current environment more suitable for productive study. 

Perspective

Finally, a strategy is a perspective, an “ingrained way of perceiving the world” (p. 16). For an organization, this might mean a strategy tied to its character or priorities, like a company that favors innovation or one that runs on efficiency. Like the personalities of various individuals, strategy as perspective is shaped around one’s worldview, values, and beliefs. Students can use this definition as they strategize for academic success by establishing where coursework falls on their list of priorities and how a degree plan reflects their values and personal interests. They can also use perspective to strategize about the way they view themselves, like the student who practices mindful breathing and engages in a power stance like Superwoman before her anatomy exams. Strategy as perspective reminds us that strategy is an abstract concept. Our strategies are inventions; they’re figments of our imaginations. So strategize to succeed, to be the best version of yourself, and to turn your dreams into reality.  

Until next time, this is Dr. Linscott with another Learning for Success podcast. Happy Learning! 

References

Mintzberg, H. (1987). The strategy concept I: five P’s for strategy. California Management Review, 30(1). 11-24. https://doi.org/10.2307/41165263