|
Faint heart might never have won fair lady – nor does it win business success. In the strategic leadership of organisations it’s important to be bold. Opportunities need to be seized as well as identified – and often this requires the organisation, and its leaders, to have courage to move away from the status quo, to set out in a new direction, to do something different to the competition. I’ve mentioned in previous articles how timing is important in strategic planning, and what’s right for the organisation at a particular stage. Sometimes a strategic planning process simply re-asserts the current strategy and defines a plan to organise resources to achieve essentially ‘more of the same’. That might be exactly what’s required in the circumstances, such as a successful organisation in a market which is not undergoing significant change. But there are often situations where identifying, assessing and deciding on strategic opportunities is more important than a detailed plan based on current strategies and structures. This is why the process of strategic planning is so important, and so varied – there is a major difference between planning based on departments updating and extrapolating their current activities and fundamental thinking about the purpose and strategic direction of an organisation. It’s hard to be bold. Making changes, doing something different are risky. Yet being prepared to question the ‘norm’ can lead to giant strides forward, sometimes redefining the market and leaving competitors in a different race. This ‘Blue Ocean’ thinking arises because an organisation challenges its own previous way of looking at its market and itself. What really matters to customers, and what will help them most in future? Which customers are we actually best placed to serve? What is the organisation excellent at that others aren’t, and how can it use these ‘core competencies’ to satisfy unmet needs? What possibilities might develop from changes in the market or industry, and what opportunities might this present? Are these right for us, and are we prepared to seize them? And it’s here that strong hearts and faith are important too. Strategising is as much art as science, feelings as well as logic. ‘Old school’ strategic planning that focused on market analysis, competitor comparisons and positioning options was only half the story – it missed the ‘people’ dimension, customers, those working for the organisation, and those supporting or affected by it. Strategic planning is about the people in the organisation ‘making sense’ of its situation and where it’s heading: after all the thinking, it’s got to ‘feel right’ for the organisation too. Trusting your instinct as well as your head is a vital part of strategic leadership – there might be the most powerful analytical argument for a particular strategy, but if there’s a nagging doubt that it somehow doesn’t fit with what the organisation is at heart, then it’s right to question it. Conversely, if a strategy seems to resonate and excite, it’s worth pursuing – or at least exploring further. Boldness is needed too to lead an organisation in new directions. It’s about finding the balance between risk and potential reward – how best to check the route whilst forging ahead to realise the opportunity. And there needs to be determination, too – leading change and seeing it through despite obstacles and setbacks requires energy and resolve. Organisations and their leaders need courage, too, to learn as the journey progresses, to recognise changes from what was envisaged and to be able to adapt accordingly. Embarking on a ‘strategy journey’ can be a bold adventure into the future, or it can be just the next step on the current path. Strategic leadership is about understanding what is right for the organisation, having the courage to start the journey, and faith in the ability of the organisation to complete it. |
