Watch this with a 10-15 minute audiotrack at http://vimeo.com/novusprogram/lesson15 The goal of this lesson is do explain the purpose of having a strategy and developing a strategic plan. The lesson provides an overview of the prerequisites of having a strategic plan, then provides an explanation of each of the four phases of the strategic planning process: Situational Analysis, Setting Goals, Creating a Path Forward, and Using the Strategic Plan. The Novus project is a combination of video tutorials designed to be used in conjunction with a free business simulation software program. The Novus Business and IT Program contains 36 business and IT training videos, covering basic finance, accounting, marketing, economics, business strategy, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Users will have an opportunity to apply the lessons in the Novus Business Simulator. Over six rounds, the user or teams will have to make decisions on capital purchases, financing, production, financing, and human resources for a microbrewery. This channel has arranged the 36 video lessons into the order in which they are meant to be used with the simulator. To watch this slideshow as a video, please go to our Vimeo page at: https://vimeo.com/novusprogram. To download our free business simulation software, please go to our SourceForge page at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/novus/.