It’s the Strategy Stupid!

One of the biggest mistakes business owners make in terms of developing or implementing a business strategy is that they confuse strategy with tactics.

Their changes in tactics may generate minor improvements, sometimes temporary ones, or they could just be rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

It seems a part of human nature to go after the low hanging fruit and to many business owners the tactics are just that, things they can reach and tweak right away.

In her book Being Strategic, Erika Andersen points out how people tend to rush in to developing and implementing tactics prior to creating the strategy. She says “Being strategic means consistently making those core directional choices that will best move you towards your hoped-for future.” Notice she says being strategic implying it is an ongoing state of mind not just a one time decision.

She also provides some common sense advice about not only articulating what your “hoped-for future” looks like, but also taking the time to assess where you are now. It’s a gap analysis that requires you look at the terrain and potential obstacles between you and your goal.

In addition to Erika’s assessment of creating a strategy I would add that the strategy is the foundation upon which everything else is built and needs to be solid so it can support the rest of the complementary roles, structures, etc.

So before you redesign your comp plans or hire that next sales person take a moment to step back and be strategic. Forget for a moment what you have in place and imagine for a moment what your goal is and what your strategy would be if you could start over fresh.