We have developed our virtual seminars programme so that you can access most of the content on our free courses whenever and wherever you want. Each seminar comes as a series of audio files which you can listen to on your computer or download to your MP3 player.

So what is strategy really and how do you become a better strategist? How do you work with organisational politics and survive the sharkpool? Thinking strategically is the key. Find out how to think strategically, write strategies that will really work and get the support of your organisation and your board.

This seminar contains the following topics:

• Strategic Thinking
• Strategic Writing
• Stakeholder analysis and management
• Working with boards
• Dynamics in groups and meetings
• Surviving organisational politics
• Gaining support
• Strategic finance
• Presenting strategic proposals

The seminar is in 4 parts and can be accessed as follows:

Part 1 covers:

• What is strategy?
• Adaptive vs technical problems (from Ronald A. Heifetz)
• Strategy vs planning (why questions vs how questions)
• Using stakeholder analysis to develop strategy
• Force-field analysis
• SWOT analysis
• PEST analysis
• Developing clarity on the problem and the outcome

Part 1 lasts 45 minutes and can be downloaded here (41 Mb)

Part 2 covers:

• How to develop strategy documents
• Dos and don'ts in writing strategy
• Strategic finance
• Flow of money through the NHS
• Funding cycles
• Recurrent and non-recurrent funding
• Tactics for different funding sources

Part 2lasts 39 minutes and can be downloaded here (35 Mb)

Parts 3 and 4 cover:

• Gaining influence for your strategy
• How to increase your personal influence
• "What's in it for me" analysis
• Using other people's worldview
• Influencing boards and committees
• Identifying key decision-makers
• Using patients stories
• Developing outline business plans
• How to present strategies to boards and committees

If you would like to access parts 3 and 4 for free, please email dave@entreprenurses.net with "Virtual Seminar" in the title and we will email you download instructions.

If you have any problems accessing or playing these courses, please email us at dave@entreprenurses.net . All our material is created under a creative commons licence and you can find out more about this at www.entreprenurses.net/about/licence.php. If you would like to use this material in teaching or developing others, you can ask permission from dave@entreprenurses.net.