“The strategy”, much like the term “quality” gets abused and should be used very carefully. “The strategy” can be used unambiguously only when used with a clear perspective.
The Strategy
Be careful to distinguish between the working definitions of “the strategy” compared with “a strategy” (or “the strategies”) and contrasted with “a strategic plan.” To a sharp-listening facilitator, sensitive to rhetorical precision, the examples offer discrete meanings. Many people sloppily use the terms as replacements for each other or synonyms.
What is the difference between a strategic plan, a department plan, a product plan, a project plan, a team plan, and so on? Primarily, scope. The word “plan” can be defined with three words (preferably five), namely “who does what” (by when)—that’s a plan. The same logic extends throughout an organization.
Every business group needs answers to the nine questions listed in the “Strategic Planning Agenda”
- Mission (why are we here?)
- Values (who are we?)
- Vision (where are we going? How do we know if we got there or not?)
- Success Measures (what are our measurements of progress?)
- Current Situation (where are we now?)
- Actions (what should we do?—from strategy through tasks)
- Alignment (is this the right stuff to do?)
- Roles and Responsibilities (who does what, by when?)
- Communications Plan (what should we tell our stakeholders?
The organizational or divisional “strategy” is actually an initiative(s). Typically called either a program or a portfolio, the group of approved projects receiving investment funds helps to further define. The program “strategy” reflects the quantity and type of projects the portfolio contains. Project “strategies” capture tactics to complete and make the project successful. The team “strategy” reflects the tasks or operations required to complete the project implementation and ongoing operation and improvement.
The meaning of the term strategy largely depends on the perspective it supports. To speak of “the strategy” without emphasizing its perspective tells only part of the story. Consider the organizational holarchy for more insight into the operational differences and how to facilitate alignment.
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Terrence Metz, MBA, CSM, CSPF, PSP01, HTTO1, is the Managing Director of MG RUSH Facilitation Leadership, Training, and Meeting Design, an acknowledged leader in structured facilitation training, and author of “Meetings That Get Results – A Facilitator’s Guide to Building Better Meetings.” His FAST Facilitation Best Practices blog features nearly 300 articles on facilitation skills and tools aimed at helping others lead meetings that produce clear and actionable results. His clients include Agilists, Scrum teams, program and project managers, senior officers, and the business analyst community among numerous private and public companies and global corporations. As an undergraduate of Northwestern University (Evanston, IL) and an MBA graduate from NWU’s Kellogg School of Management, his professional experience has focused on process improvement and product development. He continually aspires to make it easier for others to succeed.
