Working with the top executives at a company I’ll call Titan, which designs and makes transit concrete mixers, I noticed that they were flat-out busy doing everything except thinking about strategy. The executives set the pace for everyone else in the organization. Many of Titan’s employees worked 12-hour days.
All this effort hasn’t improved performance, however. Titan isn’t doing very well. When I looked at Titan’s 13-page strategic plan, I could see why. The company lacks focus. It has 15 “strategies,” none of which really relates to how it achieves a competitive advantage. Executives knew something was wrong with their planning, but they were too busy to reflect—which has effectively taken the company’s destiny out of their hands.
Even if your organization is successful, being too busy isn’t a good thing, because you can’t sustain a frenzy of activity. But it’s much worse if the activity doesn’t cohere strategically and, as a result, your company’s performance suffers. So, what does it take to build an organization that’s less busy and more coherent?
As insiders at a company, when we look at what we do, we see only activity. This leads to an operational mind-set. By contrast, a strategic mindset is outside-in. Position yourself across the street, so to speak, and focus your attention on your firm’s competitiveness. Ask yourself: “Why would I want to buy from them?” and “Why would I want to work for them?” Looking at your company this way, you can establish a few key performance criteria much more easily. Then you can set priorities.
When’s the best time to think about all this? Well, not at work, when you’re surrounded by the hubbub that you’ve yet to control. To become more strategic, you have to escape. Try using a simple device that leaders have relied on for eons: walking. The rhythmic effect of putting one foot after another frees up the brain, allowing you to take a helicopter view. From this vantage point, you can better see how to reengineer your activities and save time and effort.
Had Titan’s CEO taken a walk and reflected, he might have identified his company’s real source of strength. Unlike its competitors, Titan customized its products and offered not only an initial mixer sale but also a suite of follow-up services. Titan’s customer service was superior—steeped in years of industry, product and technical experience.
Sometimes these advantages can be right in front of us. But they remain underdeveloped, or we fail to capitalize on them, because everyone is consumed by tasks that don’t su Focusing a company requires thought. It won’t happen if you don’t make the time. Graham Kenny
Graham Kenny is the managing director of Strategic Factors, in Sydney, Australia. His most recent book is Strategic Performance Measurement.