Introduction

The purpose of this book is to emphasise the role of strategic human capital in the development of stronger global business strategies. This book is specifically aimed at helping business leaders understand the essential elements of human capital in their organisations. Human capital, the performance and the potential of the people in an organisation, is a critical issue for leaders to address. We will examine how the critical elements of human capital such as culture, leadership, talent, structure, change, and performance metrics are essential to strategic learning and the continued evolution of the firm’s strategic positioning.

Strategy is the expression in practice of the strategic intent or aspiration that stretches the organisation to innovate, change, leverage resources, and develop new skills. Intent is an architecture or framework used to develop the distinctive competencies of an organisation, which can be leveraged for competitive advantage. Strategy encompasses the formulation and articulation of a strategy through a planning process or strategic analysis, a set of goals, and the associated processes of strategic implementation and execution enacted by policies to achieve the goals. It follows that a good strategy is achieved through an understanding of not only how to achieve strong competitive advantage, but also how to execute that position and the competitive vision over time.