In today?s globalised world, business managers and entrepreneurs need to ask if their current strategy is sustainable and if not, they must develop effective strategic planning, says veteran strategic planner Raymond Darke.

Mr. Darke will present a workshop next week at the Bermuda Employers? Council to help companies improve strategy, expand their existing business and prevent hostile acquisitions.

?If you have a good strategic planning process then you are going to maximise the profitability of your enterprise,? he said.

As an associate of Ontario-based Sapient Management Consulting, Mr. Darke said he has helped to develop a structured approach to strategy which will be successful whether competing on price, product or customisation.

?The first thing is to decide on is which of those are you competing on.

?A lot of people try to compete on all three which is a surefire formula for not making a whole lot of money,? he said.

The seminar work will look at how to expand a company?s existing business and make sure acquisitions are cost effective, using case studies such as Proctor & Gamble?s recent acquisition of Gillette.

?We will look at how to keep out Carl Icahn (a billionaire corporate raider and hedge fund operator listed on Forbes.com as having a net worth of $8.5 billion)out of your business.?

?In my experience strategy, is done on the basis of incremental financial planning, how much extra sales revenue are you are going to make, what will the costs be, while taking a hard look at the underlying numbers and the basis of competition.?

A graduate of the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University Mr. Darke holds an MBA, is a Certified Management Accountant in Ontario and a Chartered Management Accountant in the UK.

His areas of expertise include strategic planning and operating management at TD Financial Services, Scotia Bank and Scotia Capital.

?I don?t do people?s strategy for them, they know their business and markets better than I do but what we do is to help them think and develop their own strategy in a systematic way and then place a value or determination if that is good enough.?

He is also a moderator in the Strategic Leadership Programme of Certified Management Accountants of Canada and has spent many years in the banking and investment industry.

Mr. Darke said the workshop is applicable to the local banking and reinsurance industry and for regulatory bodies where there may be a need to assess strategic issues for businesses.

The seminar is designed for small, medium and large businesses to help them apply concepts to improve operational and financial performance of their organisations.

THE one-day workshop entitled, Linking Strategy To Shareholder Value, will be held on October 2 at the Bermuda Employers Council on Church Street.