When to write strategy, and how much? (Category Management)
Interesting. article Create a strategy for Will Larson (Lethain) on his cool blog. By the way, Will has already written three books, each of which I have read and each in its own way I liked:) In fact, this article is a chapter from an as-yet-unwritten book on strategy. Here, Will ponders when to write a strategy and how extensive it should be. Here are the main thoughts that I got for myself. 1) When writing a strategy? An organization can be in three strategic states: globally consistent. (Everyone understands what they do and why.)It is consistent within individual teams, completely disassembled when engineers have little agreement on how to solve problems. In fact, it makes sense to formalize a strategy if there is inconsistency. On the other hand, a lot depends on where the trend of change is headed – if everything goes wrong, then it makes sense to make strategic changes.) But even if everything goes wrong, you first need to assess how much you understand what is happening in the organization to write a useful strategy. The effect of a strategy can be nullified if the organization changes direction too often. 2) How many strategies should there be? This is an important question, since there can be many strategies for different activities, but if you do not limit WIP. (work in progress)In each case, the results will be small. In the end, it is important to prioritize and highlight the most important. At the same time, you can do some things not fundamentally for all time, but start by steps that do not scare the participants with their volume, but bring you closer to the goal. 3) Scope and height of strategy Here, Will proposes to divide strategies into permissive and prohibitive. The first offer a solution ala (golden path)but do not prohibit other options. As a result, the movement along this path looks less stressful for participants and stretches in time. In fact, the work here goes through the refinement of golden paths and adoption tools. In prohibitive strategies, there is a permitted option, and everything else is prohibited. Escalations are possible, but they should be isolated. It's a tougher and quicker path. As a result, more permissive strategies can be launched simultaneously than if we make the same changes through prohibitive strategies. The bottom line is that they require less effort. 4) Are you implementing too many strategies? Will paradoxically notes that while many engineers in companies feel that their company does not have a clear engineering strategy, many more executives fail by trying to work hard on strategy, not just a little.) This can be determined by assessing how much past strategic initiatives have influenced subsequent decisions.
P.S. Villa's books in order of their release