B2B - Strategy Tools - Part 13

Strategic Leadership

In their recent book: "Strategy that makes sense", Mark Holst-Mikkelsen and Flemming Poulfelt summarise their findings based on a survey of 60 Danish companies, employing 45.000 people out of whom 3.300 were involved in the survey.

Their conclusion is that there are 3 characteristic's in a successful strategy:

1. The strategy must be meaningful to the organisation
2. There must be commitment to the strategy
3. There is sufficient empowerment in the organisation to carry out the strategy

In other words the strategy must have "Mind, Heart & Legs"


This is well in line with my comments about "Strategic Focus" in a previous post.

Holst-Mikkelsen & Poulfelt conclude that there are in total 6 tasks that must be executed in an excellent way in order to perform Strategic Leadership:

1. Develop a strategy that makes sense, a strategy that by the organisation is felt to be right and reasonable in relation to the actual situation of the company.
   
2. Develop and maintain commitment in the organisation to the strategy over time.
3. Empower the organisation and create a framework so that each employee can contribute to the strategy.
4. Develop, test and challenge the mental thinking that lie behind the strategy and the decisions that are part of it.
5. Contribute to and manage a strategic process tailor-made to the company.
6. Enable all managers to communicate the strategy with special focus on how to make the individual employees role clear and attractive.

In my previous posts focus has been on discussing tools and ways to develop a strategy that makes sense particularly in business-to-business (i.e. how to develop a strategy that is meaningful to the organisation.

In coming posts I will invite to a discussion about how to create commitment and empowerment in the organisation towards the strategy.

Peter Sørensen