When You Wish Upon A Star

Full disclosure.

When it comes to most companies, I believe strategy is The Great Black Hole – and like its physical counterpart in the outer regions of the universe, it has become so immense that nothing, not even light, can escape its clutches.

The astronomical version is formed when a massive star dies. 

The human version emerges when common sense dies. 

If we could journey to the center of the traditional Black Hole we would find the laws of physics, as we know them, have broken down. 

When we journey to the center of a company’s Strategic Black Hole we find the laws of order, as we know them, have followed suit.

Replaced with the fog of war.  Chaos. 

Commonly referred to in more colloquial terms – “Work hard, stay busy, do something…. anything.”

Which explains why so may workers (from C Suite to intern) invest countless hours in ensuring tactical efficiency.

Doing things right – operational busy work. 

While failing to be strategically effective. 

Doing the right things….right.

Big difference.

Five questions we sometimes ask when it comes to pressure testing a company’s employee base’s understanding of STRATEGY.

Ready? Here you go…

1.     What is your definition of strategy?

2.     What is your company’s strategy?

3.     What is your role in advancing that strategy?

4.     Do you have a plan that supports it?

5.     What’s working – and what isn’t? 

Simple, right?

Well, not exactly. 

The answers would amaze you. 

Here are some numbers to consider (and they’re not mine – they’re pulled from a variety of objective sources which I will be happy to provide on request).

·      95% of employees are unaware of their own company’s strategy

·      80% of employees have no appreciation for how their work relates to the company’s strategy

·      63% of employees don’t even know what their organizational goals are

·      80% of most company strategies are crafted by senior executives with little to no input from mid-level to lower- level employees

And finally, this….

·      A survey of a thousand senior executives reported that they believed only half of senior management teams could either develop or execute a strategy

·      While another study revealed that approximately 40% had no formal vehicle for building a strategy

“So what?”, you might ask.  “Does any of this matter?”

Only if you want to win – and only if you want your people to soar. 

I’ve come to the conclusion that strategy and culture are two sides of the same coin – it takes both to make a company great.

Contrary to public opinion, real strategy doesn’t complicate – it simplifies. 

It makes what is most important MOST important. 

And it is the only known antidote to the scourge of this age – busyness.

It gathers people around a common cause – galvanizes their focus – clarifies their thinking. 

Makes every decision easier. 

Strengthens cultures. 

I have become something of a Strategy Warrior over the last 10 years – and I think it’s because I’ve seen too many useless Business Plans, sat in too many bloated meetings, and participated in more than my share of rambling executive dissertations that made me question my will to live. 

It was Leonardo da Vinci that said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” 

Yes, eliminating the unnecessary allows the necessary to finally speak.  

But getting to simple isn’t always easy.  Not in a world of information and technology that overwhelms. It requires all of us to think a little bit. 

With deference to one of the greatest polymaths in human history, I might add this… 

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication, but it is the firstborn of strategy and culture.  

And wishing for it is just not enough.