Most people would recognise the value for an organisation to have some sort of strategy. But differences of opinion quickly follow when it comes to debate about what it should include, what form it should take and what process should be followed to develop it.
Following the principle of Distinctions before Labels (avoiding terminology wars), rather than trying to drive a prescriptive meaning to the term “strategy”, instead I describe the range of meanings and where and when each is the most useful.
In this chapter we will consider different perspectives on what class of thing a strategy is. All of them are valid (to at least some extent) and in later chapters we explore which are most useful in what circumstances.
Strategy as a document
This is perhaps the most common way of considering “Strategy”. The document may take various forms – a report, a webpage, a poster, a coaster – but the essence is that it is documented. It can be published and cited. A strategy that cannot be referred to has no use. A strategy is useful when it has touch-points with governance and control processes, with day-to-day activity, when it affects what gets done. In general this requires it to be written.
Until it is written, a strategy cannot be adequately reviewed and challenged, nor can it receive informed consent.
Documenting the strategy allows it to have substance but it being formalised can risk it remaining beyond its useful shelf-life. See Resilient Strategy.
Strategy Formation as a process
“Strategy” can refer to an activity or process for the formation or development of a strategy output (typically in the form of a document). In their excellent book “Strategy Safari” Henry Mintzberg et al. identify and describe 10 distinct “schools of thought” on Strategic Management. Each of the ten is summarised in a common form – “the (insert one of 10 names) school: Strategy Formation as a (insert one of 10 descriptions) process”.
The book describes the wide variety of processes followed but is all through the lens of strategy formation – looking at the processes and activities.
Strategy to address a need
“Strategy” can be at least part of the answer to a diverse set of needs. These are considered in the chapter When developing a strategy, start with why you think you need one.
‘Strategic’ as a characteristic
Here strategy moves from being used as a noun to an adjective. So, what makes something strategic? One primary consideration is that it relates to subject matter that has the potential to have significant implications for a large portion of the enterprise. Examples include topics relating to any of the Key Strategic Questions of Identity, Purpose, Success and Means. Strategy development in relation to one of these key strategic questions could include identifying constraints and drivers, analysis of options or securing of informed consent to a proposed position.
‘Strategic’ as a timescale
Another view is that the term “strategic” can be considered to relate to timescales, although this author finds this unhelpful (see decoupling strategy and timing.)
Strategy as a distillation
Strategy is not always about conscious choices for the future. It may be a synthesis or a distillation of current and historical practices – an expression of strategic positioning based on observation.
Strategy in this sense can be an emergent phenomenon, a post-hoc rationalisation of what must have been the “strategic thinking”, even if it was not recognised and formalised as such at the time.
Strategy as a sequence of activities
A strategy can be considered to be a plan or recipe of a sequence of actions intended to achieve a desired outcome.
I note that many authors try to contrast strategy and planning (typically seeing to position ‘strategy’ as being of greater value and significance). In my view such a distinction is at best a soft distinction. Strategy can be considered a special case of planning. Planning can be considered the evolution of strategy. The overlaps of strategy and planning are developed in the section on cultural expectations largely drive what ought to be included in a strategy, where it is noted that organisations can have very different expectations of what counts as ‘strategy’. See also Horizons of Uncertainty.