The Most Essential Component of Business Success
What are the primary objectives we hope to accomplish? What is the balance of allotted time and inclusion?
We consider traditional project and program planning to be a strategic element of any effort.
We won’t start with a blank page, but rather, a baseline from pre-work for initial reactions.
There is a method to “the magic” for group strategy sessions. We generally complete ours in 1-2 days.
Meaningful results are achieved when the essence of strategy takes focus for all participants.
As a final step, we put the strategy down on paper in a simple, easy to understand format to socialize broadly.
Strategy is one of the most essential components of business success, but also one of the more difficult efforts to perform successfully. So many individual ideas of what strategy is exist in the minds of stakeholders that setting expectations among them can prove challenging. Strategy is also often misinterpreted as a necessarily expensive and time-consuming undertaking to be applied only in fewer cases, or even worse – as a “pure thinking” exercise that does not achieve real value as an outcome.
In truth, strategy is a valuable component of almost any effort worth undertaking. The key to success is the use of a framework for strategy that allows stakeholders to “rightsize” this effort and calibrate it to the area of strategic focus. This kind of strategy development can be applied to an entire company, an operating unit, active teams, or even a medium-sized to large project. It is always a good idea to get interested parties together and agree on objectives and tactics. With the right approach, any company can afford to have more strategic thinking today.
Which ideas/topics are included? More importantly, which are excluded? Who should participate?
Perform necessary research, develop discussion materials, and schedule sessions.
We will facilitate dynamic group sessions over a period of 1-2 days that will define the elements of strategy
Document the strategy using a simple and lightweight notation technique for clarity and focus
Review results, refine where needed, and begin sharing and communicating with stakeholders
The real key to realizing strategy is using it to measure achievements for accountability
When realized successfully, strategy can be a very effective tool for unifying people and clarifying both group and individual purpose – not as much from the final result, but from the journey they take together to reach shared conclusions. A very simple documented outcome memorializes the process so all participants can “see it in writing”. In addition, a good initial strategy effort informs any team’s ability to measure results moving forward. It becomes the agreed-upon baseline for measuring company, business unit, or project benefits attainment.