Understanding strategy can be like trying to grasp smoke. It's nebulous, intangible, and prone to misinterpretation. But it needn't be so complicated. Strategy is a clear, logical plan that bridges where you are today and where you aim to be tomorrow. Here's a simple, comprehensive guide for senior managers looking to understand the essence of strategy.

The Definition of Strategy

Strategy is a deliberate, informed approach to achieving specific, long-term objectives. It is the direction and scope of an organization over the long term, matching its resources to its changing environment and, specifically, its markets, customers, or clients to meet stakeholder expectations. In a nutshell, strategy is your game plan.

To illustrate, imagine you're leading a tech company aiming to be a market leader in artificial intelligence (AI) applications within the next five years. Your strategy might involve investing heavily in R&D, hiring top-tier AI specialists, and establishing strategic partnerships with relevant companies.

What Strategy Is Not

Now that we've defined strategy let's clarify what it isn't. A strategy is not a goal, a tactic, or a mission statement. These are common misconceptions, so let's debunk them.

1. Strategy is not a goal. A goal is your goal, while a strategy is how you plan to get there. In our AI tech company example, becoming a market leader is a goal, not a strategy.

2. Strategy is not a tactic. Tactics are specific actions taken to execute the strategy. In the AI company example, hiring AI specialists is a tactic to fulfil the strategic intent of building a top-tier AI team.

3. Strategy is not a mission statement. A mission statement describes the company's overall purpose and its values. It doesn't outline how the company will achieve its goals. An AI company’s mission statement might be "to advance society through AI innovation". It gives a sense of purpose, but it doesn't provide the path to get there - that's the job of a strategy.

The Importance of a Clear Strategy

A well-crafted strategy provides direction and enables focus. It guides decision-making, helps prioritize resources, and fosters alignment across the organization. It's like a lighthouse guiding a ship in a storm: it keeps everyone moving in the same direction, even when the going gets tough.

For instance, if our AI company has a clear strategy for becoming a market leader, this provides a focal point for the organization. All initiatives can be evaluated against this strategic aim. Does a proposed project or partnership advance the firm towards becoming an AI market leader? If not, resources might be better invested elsewhere.

However, a poor or misunderstood strategy can lead to wasted resources, misaligned initiatives, and failure to achieve goals. This is why understanding what strategy is and isn't is so critical for senior managers.

In Conclusion

Strategy isn't smoke and mirrors or corporate jargon. It's the clear, logical game plan your organization uses to move from where you are now to where you want to be. It’s not a goal, a tactic, or a mission statement. It is the roadmap for success, providing direction, enabling focus, and guiding decision-making.

As a senior manager, you must understand, communicate, and execute this strategy effectively. You can only navigate your organization towards its destination and achieve your ambitious goals.

Take your business to the next level.

We help medium-sized businesses to innovate and make measurable progress towards your business outcomes so your company thrives.

Over the years, we’ve used proven and guaranteed Innovation & OKR processes to generate tangible business outcomes in 12 weeks ️ for companies including Roche, IBM and many others.

Stay ahead of the competition. Learn more and contact us now.

By Andrew Constable MBA, LSSBB

Keywords: Business Strategy, Innovation, Leadership