How can you nurture your teams to become more strategic?
Are you a visionary leader, someone who exudes passion, creativity, and a remarkable ability to see the bigger picture? Your energy is infectious, and you are inspired by the organisation’s vision for the future?
But here's the twist. You look around and realise that not everyone shares that same level of enthusiasm or sees the bigger picture as clearly as they do. In fact, many of your team seem caught up in the day-to-day operational tasks, firefighting and being reactive rather than proactive.
So, what happens if those you lead can't seem to grasp the full scope of the vision? What causes this disconnect? Is it that they can't see it, or is it that they won't?
I was chatting this through with a client last week and it really got me thinking. So in this blog series, we'll explore the delicate balance between operational and strategic thinking within organisations and uncover how you can nurture a culture, your structure and mindset to embrace strategic decision-making for long-term success.
There are several things that play into developing a strategic and operational balance.
· Culture
· Organisational structure
· Individual agency
The first of this series will look at is the factors will look at the cultural shift within the organisation. Perhaps you recognise the following.
Do you recognise any of these in your organisation?
Operational focus: People being so caught up in operational tasks that they end up firefighting, being reactive rather than proactive. This lives little time or mental bandwith for strategic thinking. The constant urgency of immediate tasks can prevent individuals from stepping back and considering the bigger picture.
Lack of Time and Resources: When individuals are overwhelmed with their workload or face resource constraints, they may prioritise short-term demands over long-term strategic considerations.
Lack of Awareness: Some individuals may lack awareness of the importance and value of strategic thinking. They may be unaware of the impact strategic decisions can have on long-term success and may not see strategic thinking as a priority.
Short-Term Performance Pressures: Organisations that prioritise short-term performance and immediate results may inadvertently discourage strategic thinking. When individuals are solely focused on meeting short-term targets, they may neglect long-term strategic considerations.
So how to counter this?
Link EVERYTHING your organisation does, and everything anyone achieves back to the vision and objectives, and reward and recognise for this.
Make your strategic plan visual. Make it accessible to everyone, so its not a 20-page bedtime read. Show how everything within the organisation links and connects together.
Measure and create an annual visual of the impact you have achieved relating directly to your strategic objectives and vision.
Make protected time for reflection and strategic thinking once a month for at least two hours. This will give team leaders the agency to reflect, connect and re-energise, helping them to problem solve and think about opportunities, which will in turn support them to think more strategically. It might look like this:
‘Strategic update’ – update from each team on where they are on the strategic plan
Problem-solving – peer support, and particular asks of the team to identify and support any barriers to the strategic plan.
Actions and next steps.
Make sure that there is a three-line whip to attend. Only illness will prevent people from attending.
What do you do to keep connected to your vision and keep on track? My vision is of creating a world that works because of brilliant, effective strategic leaders. Everything I do is about creating this. Let me know what you agree with the points in this blog and what you do to help bring on your leaders.
