Seven starter points for strategic thinking

FROM HERE TO THERE A STRATEGY IS A JOURNEY

My first blog about my new position is about seven starter points I’ve had to consider before I even get going on the content of the strategy. Things I thought I’d share as I guess they apply to every strategy process.

My first frame of reference for the strategy was to think about a journey. After all, a strategy sets out how you get from your starting point to somewhere else.

To help us determine the direction of travel, I needed to consider seven key things that you might want to think about for your strategy. As with any journey, there a number of considerations before you travel:

1. What’s the destination? Where are we going?
2. What mode of transport should we use?
3. How do we keep the travellers safe and happy?
4. How do we keep the drivers happy?
5. How do we have the best journey possible? It is the fastest, most economical, most scenic or shortest?
6. Programming the SatNav or reading the map
7. Observing the Highway Code

Only when you know these things can we actually plan the route and get on our way.

1. WHERE ARE WE GOING? THE DESTINATION FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS

First things first – one needs to determine where you’re going before we can set off. In other words, you need to have a common vision for what the endgame will look like in 2016. If we don’t know that, we’re going to get lost. So you must establish this first and foremost.

2. WHAT MODE OF TRANSPORT? WHERE OUR PRIORITIES SHOULD LIE 

As with a physical journey, the traveller can choose from a variety of different modes of transport – planes, trains and automobiles! With your journey, you need to work out which is the most important ‘mode’ for your strategy so you can prioritise your resources. It may be through the products you trade or the messages you communicate, but it helps to prioritise what you’re good at.

3. HOW DO WE KEEP THE TRAVELLERS SAFE AND HAPPY? SERVING THE NEEDS AND ASPIRATIONS OF YOUR CUSTOMERS

The top consideration for a journey is normally getting all of the travellers to their destination safely and happily. In the case of a strategy, you need to do this for your end users – offer them a fantastic experience on the journey with you.

Put yourself in the shoes of your end user. By the end of the strategic period you’re working on  (normally 3-5 years)what do you think they would want to see from you? Why would they choose to get involved with what you do over another organisation?

4. HOW DO WE KEEP THE DRIVERS HAPPY? STAKEHOLDERS SETTING THE DIRECTION

The drivers on the journey set the course and direction of travel and they want to do so in a way that satisfies them. What things need to happen to satisfy your stakeholders? Stakeholders want to see the strategy succeed. The easiest way to find out what would satisfy them is to ask…

5. HOW DO WE HAVE THE BEST JOURNEY POSSIBLE? ESTABLISHING THE PARAMETERS FOR ‘BEST’

Each traveller’s definition of their ‘best’ journey may vary from person to person.

Some want a fast journey, some want a scenic journey, some want an economical ride or to travel the shortest possible distance. Until you understand what the traveller thinks is the ‘best’ journey, you won’t be able to deliver it. Imagine offering the scenic route to someone who wants to get there as quickly as possible!

Having a common understanding of the overall goals that should cut through everything offered in your strategy will help your end users have the ‘best’ experience possible.

6. WHICH SATNAV VOICE?  COMMUNICATING TO YOUR CUSTOMERS 

Some travellers like to set up their SatNav with different voices, some like to listen to music on the journey, and some prefer to read a map.

On your journey, you need to think about how you communicate with the customers – the channels we could use and what are the key messages we communicate through those channels.

7. OBSERVING THE HIGHWAY CODE INTERACTING WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS ON THE JOURNEY

The Highway Code provides a guide of how to interact with others on the journey the traveller is taking. It makes sure that cars don’t drive the wrong way down roads, that warning signs are known and that there is a common understanding about giving way at junctions.

You may need to think about the relationships or processes that would need to be established and worked on to make sure that you get where you want to go.

ARE WE THERE YET? ESTABLISHING HOW WE KNOW

Everyone has heard this cry from the back seat: “Are we there yet?”. Unless you are able to say the estimated time of arrival or how many miles to go or look out for a landmark, there isn’t really a way to respond.

You need to establish how we know if we’re ‘there yet’. This will come by collective reporting on common goals in the same way that other departments and businesses do.

There you go, a few starter thoughts for your strategy thinking…

How do you go about strategic thinking in the first instance?