The Four Magic Business Bullets: Strategy, Intellectual Capital, Innovation, Implementation

Strategy is the unique formula or nucleus around which plans can be formed which leads to organizational success. Developing strategy is not that complicated yet it is an underused activity in many organizations. Figuring out strategy can be as basic as where is the organization today? Where does it want to be in the future? Where is our competition today? What is our cost position to beat them in the future? Strategy simply defines the logic and tactics that ensure the mission and vision will be achieved.

Quite often when the subject of “strategy” is discussed, it is assumed that we are talking about decisions and plans that will be made out there, somewhere in the future. The challenge for many organizations is to understand that they have to make decisions in the present that will help shape their future. We need to fully come to the understanding that the best possible choices made today will in fact determine much of how your future will play out. Your strategic choices today are not about future decisions, but about the future impact of the decisions you or your organization make today and plan to make tomorrow. Simply stated, what must be done today and tomorrow that will help us arrive at our desired future?

Because of the rate of change organizations face today, the older notion of a five-year strategic plan has changed. Agile, fast moving, and “evolving strategies” that ensure the success of the core business have become the norm in high-performance organizations. Evolving strategies that are continually calibrated against results, provide the clarity required in organizations, and help set more relevant direction for all to follow. Without a clearly defined and closely followed evolving strategy, organizations of all types tend to lose sight of their direction. Energy is wasted on doing things that are non-value added.

An organization without a strategy is like a ship without a rudder - it moves, but without direction. If you are in a for-profit business you should constantly be asking and answering the questions; how do I make money today? How will I make money tomorrow? What are my strategies today? What will be my strategies tomorrow? If you are a member of a non-profit and government organization you should be focusing on what are my strategies for providing services today? What will be my strategies for providing services tomorrow? What is my strategy if revenues decline? How can our organization serve the greatest good with the right amount of expenditures? All organizations should be making sure that whatever strategies they use… they are clearly understood by all stakeholders.

Under the umbrella of an overall “business” strategy, many other supporting strategies can reside. Several examples of supporting strategies are: sales, marketing, innovation, technology, service, global, quality, acquisition, partnership, human resource, learning and growth, succession planning, retention, and leadership development.
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About Ingbretsen Consulting LLC: Coach and author Roger Ingbretsen is a certified executive coach and organizational developer providing organizational and career guidance to professionals, managers, supervisors and all individuals looking for "real world" career development information. His entrepreneurial approach will help you learn how to use your strengths, plan, lead and succeed in your career. To know more and claim dozens of Rogers free articles go to www.ingbretsen.com.