Executable strategy
Have you ever read something and felt the author had captured exactly what was on your mind about a topic? For me, The Perils of Bad Strategy, was just that article (and book):
"[Good strategy] does not pop out of some strategic-management tool, matrix, triangle, or fill-in-the-blanks scheme.
Instead, a talented leader has identified the one or two critical issues in a situation—the pivot points that can multiply the effectiveness of effort—and then focused and concentrated action and resources on them.
A good strategy does more than urge us forward toward a goal or vision; it honestly acknowledges the challenges we face and provides an approach to overcoming them."
Rumelt describes what most leaders think of as strategy is actually "bad" strategy; he explores what "bad" strategy looks like as well as why it's so prevalent:
Bad strategy ignores the power of choice and focus, trying instead to accommodate a multitude of conflicting demands and interests.
Like a quarterback whose only advice to his teammates is “let’s win,” bad strategy covers up its failure to guide by embracing the language of broad goals, ambition, vision, and values.
Each of these elements is, of course, an important part of human life. But, by themselves, they are not substitutes for the hard work of strategy...
...This template-style planning has been enthusiastically adopted by corporations, school boards, university presidents, and government agencies. Scan through such documents and you will find pious statements of the obvious presented as if they were decisive insights.
The enormous problem all this creates is that someone who actually wishes to conceive and implement an effective strategy is surrounded by empty rhetoric and bad examples.
I help clients create a shared understanding of what Rumelt describes as "good" strategy:
Diagnosis: an explanation of the nature of the challenge. A good diagnosis simplifies the often overwhelming complexity of reality by identifying certain aspects of the situation as being the critical ones.
Guiding policy: an overall approach chosen to cope with or overcome the obstacles identified in the diagnosis.
Coherent actions: steps that are coordinated with one another to support the accomplishment of the guiding policy.
How do I do it? Keep reading...
Who do I do it for? Client description
What do I charge? Fee structure
