Strategy's purpose... on becoming a moat builder
The term strategy has acquired a certain ‘Humpty Dumpty’ quality: “it means just what I intend it to mean, nothing more, nothing less”. Before we explore what strategy is, we should be clear about the purpose of strategy.
What driving fast cars can teach you about strategy…
In an earlier life, I designed a leadership development program which gave a group of leaders the opportunity to drive high-performance vehicles at speed through a mini slalom course (see below). The challenge was to drive the circuit as fast as possible.
I feel the need, the need for speed...
When we think about decision-making, we probably think first about decision quality: getting decisions right. And why not? Rio Tinto would prefer it made a better decision when it spent $39B on the Alcan acquisition (since written off ca. $33B).
Opening minds... thinking differently
Strategy is ultimately an expression of collective mental models. To create a strategy that is more than ‘mere incrementalism ’, we must therefore create new mental models. Most major strategic shifts reflect a fundamental shift in the framing of the strategic context.
MBA reflections... what stuck?
In parallel with my consulting/advisory practice, I just finished teaching business strategy – the traditional capstone unit – to 47 MBA students. What stuck across that 12-week period? One way of judging that is through the students’ learning journals.
Shifting political trendlines... an 'epochal shift' or mere turbulence?
We may be witnessing an epochal shift in the socio-political context of advanced Western economies. Brexit surprised; Trump shocked. But are these simply expressions of a broader shift in society, government and geopolitics?
VUCA translated... welcome to the world of scenarios
Is the world more turbulent than it used to be? Not everyone agrees, but an extract from a major strategy textbook suggests the business environment is more turbulent.
It's official: the new economy won
Did you miss it? In the run-up to year-end, the five largest public companies in the US by market cap were the masters of the ‘digital economy ‘. Can you guess their names?
Looking back, looking forward... a strategist's view
2016 was my second year of serious blogging. In the last year, I wrote 23 blogs and LinkedIn posts. My focus reflects my roots: the strategy process, strategy execution, and leadership. This year, corporate behaviour got a couple of (dis)honourable mentions.
Woolworths and the normalisation of deviance
Twenty years ago, Dianne Vaughan coined the term ‘normalisation of deviance to explain the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. It describes how seemingly small choices, made in the context of daily decisions repeated over time, “can camouflage a cumulative directionality that too often is discernible only in hindsight”.
Brexit surprised. Trump shocked. A strategist’s view
If you are not now launching a major strategic review incorporating scenario planning, you will be grossly ill-prepared for what may unfold over the next 5-10 years. But let’s start at the beginning.
Are we really that bad at strategy execution? Mostly yes...
Last night I was teaching strategy execution on the MBA capstone unit. I asked the participants: ‘In your experience, how well did the companies you know rate on strategy execution on a scale of 1-10? Only one rated some of the companies he’d worked with above 5.
Strategy, execution and dog food...
As I write this, I am a participant in our strategic planning forum with a mix of old and new ‘friends’. Having written so much on strategy execution, it seems now I have to eat my own dog food. I
What's your plan to overcome the strategy-execution deficit?
The first step in solving any problem is to recognise there is one. Reed Hastings, the founder/CEO of Netflix, recently commented that Netflix was enjoying a period of stability; that now it knew exactly where it was going: ‘our challenges are execution challenges’.
Bridging the Strategy-Execution Air Gap
My previous blog highlighted the opportunity for dramatically improved strategy execution if organisations get the socio-cultural elements right. But only if the 'structural' elements of execution are in place. The reaction of one reader highlights the challenge:
Can someone help me please? I'm stuck!
At a recent workshop on strategy execution, one of the executives said she felt ‘stuck’ as she thought about how to translate their strategy into outcomes. That’s unsurprising. Research consistently shows organisations massively under-perform on strategy execution.
Apparently, mining blew the boom ... but who's the greater fool?
Each year, PwC release a comprehensive report on the state of the mining industry. What can we learn from the PwC Mine 2016 report?
Let's talk productivity and technology management...
Productivity is back on the agenda after a decade languishing behind growth. The Government began telling industry to get its house in order. Industry responded by telling government what it needs to do. Telling others to change seems simpler than changing ourselves. But it is much less effective.
Rethinking leadership development - it's about strategy execution
About 15 years ago, a major Australian resources company set out to develop ‘world-class leadership’. But Professor Chris Worley rebuts the usual prescription of ‘more leadership’. He argues that asking people to change behaviours without changing the underlying system – the structure, systems and processes – is borderline immoral.
Business behaving badly... we're no worse than the others
Business leaders often lament the lack of political leadership and community support. It’s only going to get harder. WA Premier Colin Barnett, at LNG 18 – the premier global conference of the LNG industry – offered some advice to the industry: you guys have to do more of the heavy lifting.