Does Strategizing Work in your Organization?

Organizations strategize to achieve their key objectives. However, the achievement is largely dependent on the actions on the ground floor, which means the top floor and shop floor should act in unison. A strategy is largely an intent which must be made actionable and measurable, and which should integrate with the past in creating the future. There are tests that must be continually done to measure a strategy and ensure whether it is working and that the intent is being transformed into results. A strategy is confirmed to be working if it :

Translates ideas into action

Effective strategies should primarily be actionable. They should be able to bridge the gap between thinking and acting. In fact, they must be part of the process to build new organizational systems that create clear decisions, metrics of performance, and strong incentives to align individual behavior with the objectives of an organization.

Integrates

Strategies should integrate data and insights from different disciplines, departments and perspectives. An integrated choice is not self-limiting; it frees itself from conventional wisdom and, thus, creates opportunities for breakthrough thinking.

Reconciles past with future

Strategies should neither ignore past realities, nor be limited by them. They should attempt to build a bridge between previous results and future actions while maintaining an honest assessment of current realities.

Creates clear options

Strategies should create clear options for the future. This includes both detailing the implications of the current set of choices and outlining options to escape the past patterns.

Is explicit

Strategies, in order to bring about change, must be explicit. Everyone makes choices, but not everyone communicates both the choice and the underlying reasoning behind that choice to the people who must take action. Expressing things distinctly enables people to make the trade-offs necessary to create change.

Strategies should neither ignore past realities, nor be limited by them. They should attempt to build a bridge between previous results and future actions while maintaining an honest assessment of current realities.

T K Ramesh
Whole time Director and CEO
Micromatic Machine Tools Pvt Ltd

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