Gaining a Collective Understanding of the Strategy Development Challenge

Abstract

In Lewis Carroll’s novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Alice asks the cat which way to go? To which the cat replied, “that depends on where you want to go?” Similarly, in strategy design, it is important to have a goal in mind before starting. This goal, broadly speaking, is made up of two characteristics, that is, the target industry in which to compete, and guiding principles to follow. Defining these two characteristics sets the stage for successfully designing a firm’s strategy. Combined with identifying the key stakeholders that need to be involved at one point or the other during the strategy design process, an initial budget, an expected timeline, an innovation culture, an inherent risks analysis, as well as an assessment of the capacity to change of the firm, they form the strategy brief. The strategy brief serves as engagement to develop a new or revised strategy and offers a collective understanding of the targeted goals.

It always seems impossible until it is done—Nelson Mandela