Strategic Thinking -- The Key to Implementing Business Plans

by Robert J. Quinn, Principal, The Freeland Group
 

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” said Alice.
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,”  said the Cat.
“I don’t much care where ….,” said Alice.
“ Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.

Lewis Carroll

Alice is probably not the only one who has faced a decision before thinking things through.  Even when a preferred destination is determined, the press of everyday activities and distractions can divert the effort required to reach the goal.  However, implementing strategic thinking into the daily routine can help mitigate the impact of the bumps, curves, detours, and the occasional dead end met along the way. 

There are some prerequisites that need to be satisfied before implementing strategic thinking into the daily business activities:

• Know thyself:  a honest, hard look at the organizations strengths, weaknesses and current position in the marketplace;
• Know the customer:  what are the basic needs to be satisfied;
• Know the competition:  a realistic assessment of their strengths and weaknesses.
• Understand the past:  what has worked,  what has not; and why; and
• Define the long term vision or goal of the organization. 

Now the strategic planning process can begin by reexamining the organization’s future potential in light of a number different possible future scenarios.   This look into the future should include changes that the competition may make to improve their lot, as well as possible changes in the external factors that could influence the journey, i.e., economic conditions, politics, environmental and social issues, and technological trends.  The goal is not to predict the future, but to reduce surprises by better understanding what is possible and what the potential impact might be.  It is then feasible to conduct an on-going review of the strategic plan against intermediate waypoints to determine progress vis-à-vis the preferred outcome.  This process permits implementation of continuous proactive changes to the plan rather than a series of reactive, crisis driven responses.   Leadership can then be exercised by directing activity by understanding what is truly important, what the early warning signals are that indicate changes, what their impact may be, and how to influence the future by taking early and forceful action.  

Combining strategic thinking with the operational decision-making process allows Alice to forego asking the Cat which way to go.   Because she has a well thought out plan and an awareness and understanding of the factors that can impact the plan, she can now ask if the Cat knows of conditions along the road that will aid or impede her quest to achieve her destination.