Step 1: Where are we going?
Before we can invite healthy debate about the path of our journey, we must agree on the destination. Every member of the team has to understand the mission. State your overarching goal. Inviting diverse perspectives on how to achieve it will come later. At this stage, consensus is nonnegotiable.
Step 2: How are we going to get there?
Now you can unleash the debate. In an ideal universe, there are as many opinions as there are people on the team. You’ve agreed to traverse the mountain with surmounting the peak as your mission. Whether you go up the straight path on front side or consider the longer switchbacks on the opposite side is the fodder for rich discussion.
State your case. Back it up with data. Ask for feedback. Weigh pros and cons. These are your strategies. The beauty of this stage is that you don’t have to solve the problems yet. You just have to identify the challenges. Maybe it’s recruitment and retention of talent. Perhaps it’s technology. For some teams, it’s growth – while, for others, it’s sustainability. By the end of this step, your team has set the priorities and is ready to execute.
Step 3: What are the specific actions we need to take now and later?
At last, you get to start solving problems. These are your tactics and timelines. Some actions need to occur immediately. Others get placed somewhere on a Gantt chart for tracking and accountability. It’s triage time. First things first, second things second, and so on.
Uh oh! The landscape changed. A competitor poached your most talented teammate. The government changed the compliance rules. Your biggest client canceled their account. Your oil pipeline sprung a leak resulting in environmental damage. The Board of Directors fired the CEO and brought in a questionably qualified replacement.
You get it, $#!T happens. Your carefully crafted strategic plan became invalid unexpectedly. So, do it again. Lick your wounds and get back in the game. This time, however, assume that some other twist of fate will again interrupt your flow. Build adaptability into your plan by revisiting it constantly – more than once-a-year.
How often? Change never sleeps. Quarterly? Monthly? Weekly? Daily? Hourly? Yes.
