As a business leader or founder, how do you approach strategy now? More importantly, what is the process you undertake to devise your strategy? Business leaders need to be able to think strategically if they are to be successful. So, why not emulate some of the best strategists when devising your next business strategy. Below is a proven 5 step process to devise a winning business strategy.
Visualise
Start by considering your business’s position now and the journey that you have been on to get here. What are the strengths and weaknesses of your current position and where should the business be headed in the future? Taking some time to consider the future and where you want the business to end up is time well spent. These future thoughts should include what are the potential downsides in the future, what are some of the macro trends and what does your future customer look like?
Evaluate
Disassemble the problems that the business faces in the future, or even now. By breaking the problem down, it can become more transparent about what the solution will be and which business levers could be pulled to overcome it. Business leaders have a lot of options available to them when developing their strategies. More levers than most business leaders believe they have.
Brainstorm
How many ideas can you and your team think of to solve the problems you face and achieve your long-term objectives. Think of as many strategic options as you can, you don’t want a few to choose from, you want dozens. Pushing yourself to think creatively beyond your first thought is the only way to come up with ideas that no one else can think of.
Refinement
Now you want to refine that huge list of ideas down to something more manageable. However, don’t eliminate ideas too quickly because they seem unusual or challenging. Consider all the ideas more openly and you will truly find the best solution.
Promote
Finally, once you have settled on a strategy or strategies to move forward with you need to sell it. Convincing others of the worthiness of your strategy can be a difficult thing to do, especially if the strategy is less conventional than they are used to.
TAKEAWAY: Being a great strategist will serve any business leader well. The process from idea to fully formed business strategy should be embraced and not avoided. By giving more creative ideas a chance, you can create business strategies that no one else would think of.
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