Earlier, we wrote down your mission statement. This is the mountain that you are currently climbing, or as Jim Collins also puts it, your company's BHAG. Once you have your mission outlined, the next step is to answer the big question in the room: how? This is where strategy comes in, but what exactly is strategy?
Strategy: how you plan to achieve your mission
It's not that complicated. Undoubtedly you already have many ideas about the methods you will use to accomplish your mission. Before we commit to specific strategic initiatives, we need to do an internal and external assessment of our strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities. Download the Internal and External assessment forms here.
Follow the steps in the assessment forms linked above and begin answering the questions. Suppose you don't already know the answers to some of the questions in the external assessment. In that case, it's essential that you take the time to do the research to answer them. Remember to check back to the simple market research guide that you completed earlier. Many of the answers you're looking for should've been uncovered during that research. These are very important questions and the strategy that you commit to will cost you money and time. You will be very thankful for the effort you put into researching and answering these questions as best you can.
Doing an objective internal assessment can be challenging; it's important to be as clinical as possible in this process. Remember that the answers you give here simply help you identify the best opportunities to put time, energy, and resources towards. So if there's nothing new about your approach, then it's essential to acknowledge that. It means you'll be relying on something other than innovation at this stage with your company. Or suppose you are moving into a market that is driven by innovation. In that case, it means lots of your strategic energy is going to have to be focused on innovation to make up for where you are weak.
Side Note: sometimes, these types of assessments help us uncover new information or see things in a new light. Even though you've spent lots of time and energy so far in laying the groundwork for your new business, if you do these assessments and you feel like your planned approach might not be such a good idea after all, then it's never too late to re-evaluate it. Uncovering incorrect assumptions at this stage is really good, even if it can be disappointing. Iteration is the path to success. Make the changes you need to make, and let's keep going.
Now that you've completed internal and external assessments let's identify your strategic focus. It will be helpful to download the strategic focus form linked here. Start by listing all the strategic priorities and opportunities you identified during your internal and external assessment. Remember, every strategic priority has to be in line with your vision. Next narrow that list down to the top 3 to 5. You can determine the top priorities and opportunities by choosing the ones on your list that will help you accomplish your mission effectively and in the shortest possible timeframe.
Earlier, we wrote down your mission statement. This is the mountain that you are currently climbing, or as Jim Collins also puts it, your company's BHAG. Once you have your mission outlined, the next step is to answer the big question in the room: how? This is where strategy comes in, but what exactly is strategy?
Strategy: how you plan to achieve your mission
It's not that complicated. Undoubtedly you already have many ideas about the methods you will use to accomplish your mission. Before we commit to specific strategic initiatives, we need to do an internal and external assessment of our strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities. Download the Internal and External assessment forms here.
Follow the steps in the assessment forms linked above and begin answering the questions. Suppose you don't already know the answers to some of the questions in the external assessment. In that case, it's essential that you take the time to do the research to answer them. Remember to check back to the simple market research guide that you completed earlier. Many of the answers you're looking for should've been uncovered during that research. These are very important questions and the strategy that you commit to will cost you money and time. You will be very thankful for the effort you put into researching and answering these questions as best you can.
Doing an objective internal assessment can be challenging; it's important to be as clinical as possible in this process. Remember that the answers you give here simply help you identify the best opportunities to put time, energy, and resources towards. So if there's nothing new about your approach, then it's essential to acknowledge that. It means you'll be relying on something other than innovation at this stage with your company. Or suppose you are moving into a market that is driven by innovation. In that case, it means lots of your strategic energy is going to have to be focused on innovation to make up for where you are weak.
Side Note: sometimes, these types of assessments help us uncover new information or see things in a new light. Even though you've spent lots of time and energy so far in laying the groundwork for your new business, if you do these assessments and you feel like your planned approach might not be such a good idea after all, then it's never too late to re-evaluate it. Uncovering incorrect assumptions at this stage is really good, even if it can be disappointing. Iteration is the path to success. Make the changes you need to make, and let's keep going.
Now that you've completed internal and external assessments let's identify your strategic focus. It will be helpful to download the strategic focus form linked here. Start by listing all the strategic priorities and opportunities you identified during your internal and external assessment. Remember, every strategic priority has to be in line with your vision. Next narrow that list down to the top 3 to 5. You can determine the top priorities and opportunities by choosing the ones on your list that will help you accomplish your mission effectively and in the shortest possible timeframe.