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A concerning number of enterprises see parts or all of their <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business strategy</a> fail to realize regularly, leading to major setbacks, missed opportunities, and unrealized potential. According to <a href="https://www.internationaljournalcorner.com/index.php/theijbm/article/view/166128/114055" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">study findings</a>, “60 to 90% of strategies fail, with fewer than 15% claiming successful implementation.”&nbsp;&nbsp;This article highlights the six signs that your strategy is failing and proposes a fresh strategic approach to steer your business away from these pitfalls and ensure it realizes its strategic potential.&nbsp;&nbsp;The six signs of strategy failure include:&nbsp;<ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Poor clarity and communication&nbsp;</li><li>Ineffective resource allocation&nbsp;</li><li>Workforce disengagement&nbsp;</li><li>Data blind spots&nbsp;</li><li>Rigidity of the strategy&nbsp;</li><li>Misaligned goals&nbsp;</li></ol><figure class="image"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1715321361/site-v5/6_signs_of_strategy_failure_184b3d4ec7.png" alt="an image showing 6 signs of strategy failure"></figure>

A lack of clarity and communication is a common sign of a failing strategy — and, unfortunately, is highly prevalent. HBR studies found that <a href="https://hbr.org/2015/03/why-strategy-execution-unravelsand-what-to-do-about-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">50%</a> of middle managers couldn’t name any of their top five strategic objectives, with less than <a href="https://hbr.org/2005/10/the-office-of-strategy-management" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">5%</a> of employees having a basic understanding of their company’s strategy. This hints at a disconnect between what senior leaders aim to achieve and what’s actually being done, impacting the company’s performance and perception.&nbsp;&nbsp;Internally, employees may struggle to understand their roles and responsibilities, and how these support the strategic direction. This causes a lack of cohesion — conflicting priorities, misallocated time, distrust in the leadership, and misdirected efforts. Externally, stakeholders may be confused about company’s direction and potential, damaging trust.&nbsp;

Not using resources in line with your organization’s strategic agenda is a tell-tale sign of strategy failure, preventing your business from reaching its full potential.&nbsp;&nbsp;Inefficiencies, misused time, and wasted efforts wreak the most havoc on business success. A study found that <a href="https://zapier.com/blog/report-how-office-workers-spend-time/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">76% of employees</a> spend less than three hours a week on strategic work. The negative consequences are exacerbated by the dual role managers and leaders typically take on. Having to juggle operational, manual, and strategic responsibilities limits their bandwidth to contribute to strategic initiatives, resulting in minimal — or downright ineffective — strategic impact.&nbsp;<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1715321533/site-v5/76_percent_of_employees_spend_less_than_3_hours_on_strategic_work_86276fcbe7.png" alt="an image of a statistic stating that 76 percent of employees spend less than 3 hours on strategic work"></figure>

<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-for-employee-engagement" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Employee engagement</a> is a potent predictor of strategic success. Without it, a critical link between your workforce and the overarching business strategy is missing.&nbsp;Workforce disengagement, as a sign of a failing strategy, is often due to a lack of employee awareness about how they support your business’s strategy. If they perceive their contribution to be meaningless, they may view their job as purposeless — a mere laundry list of to-do tasks that exist to be checked off. This, in turn, impacts efficiency as employee engagement can increase productivity by <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/231602/right-culture-not-employee-satisfaction.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">17%</a> and profitability by <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/231602/right-culture-not-employee-satisfaction.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">21%</a>.&nbsp;<blockquote>“Connect the dots between individual roles and the goals of the organization. When people see that connection, they get a lot of energy out of work. They feel the importance, dignity, and meaning in their job.”&nbsp;&nbsp;– Ken Blanchard&nbsp;</blockquote>

<a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2020/01/29/leadership-lesson-top-reasons-why-most-business.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Phoenix Business Journal</a> found that 80% of companies fail to <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-tracking" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">track their goals</a>. Without timely and actionable data, strategic analysis and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/ai-for-decision-making" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">decision-making</a> becomes a struggle. Data mismanagement — its absence, mishandling, or negligence — forces you to rely on intuition, impulse, or biases during decision-making.&nbsp;Furthermore, the lack of <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">data-driven strategy execution</a> creates deeper and broader problems for your organization. Without real-time measurement of progress toward strategic objectives, employees are flying blind and will ignoring strategic initiatives until the last minute, when they must rush to make progress.&nbsp;This impacts progress, with strategy becoming fixed, flawed, or out of sync with evolving circumstances.&nbsp;

Stagnancy is a glaring indicator of a failing strategy. Marked by a disconnect between your strategy and the market, it’s the result of a lack of <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-adaptability" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">adaptability</a>, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/digital-transformation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">innovation</a>, and capacity to meet evolving customer needs, ultimately compromising competitiveness. The core issue behind this indicator of this strategy failure is a deficiency in agility — a struggle to anticipate and respond to dynamic market changes.&nbsp;&nbsp;The strategy could start great, created and communicated effectively. But as time evolves and the business context changes internally and externally, the strategic plan needs to adapt. Unfortunately, confined by the rigidity of planning, review, and management cycles, the strategy becomes gradually disconnected from reality. Unsurprisingly, this impacts financial performance, as an <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/agile-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">agile transformation</a> significantly increases an organization’s likelihood of being a top-quartile performer, according to <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-impact-of-agility-how-to-shape-your-organization-to-compete" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">McKinsey</a>. It is important to build agility into the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategic-planning-process" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategic planning process</a> from the start.

Misaligned goals are a common obstacle to strategic success and an evident marker of a failing strategy. According to a <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2020/01/29/leadership-lesson-top-reasons-why-most-business.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">2020 study</a>, only 51% of companies try to <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-for-business-alignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">establish aligned goals</a>. And among the companies surveyed, only 6% regularly revisit them.&nbsp;&nbsp;Diverging objectives between departments and teams results in disconnected strategy execution, inefficiencies, and subpar company performance. In this divided landscape, units work separately instead of together, undermining efficient resource use and diluting the success of strategic initiatives. According to <a href="https://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/public/pdf/learning/thought-leadership/why-good-strategies-fail-report.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Economist</a>, companies with misaligned strategic objectives report weaker financial results than their more strategically aligned counterparts.&nbsp;

Strategy failure in organizations can have profound consequences, affecting multiple business areas, from operational efficiency to overall strategic direction.&nbsp; Here are some of the main implications of strategic failure.<h3>Setbacks and missed opportunities</h3>When strategies fail, businesses may experience setbacks such as missed deadlines or a failure to capitalize on emerging market opportunities. This can lead to a loss in competitive advantage and limited long-term growth prospects.<h3>Wasted time and energy</h3>Strategy failure may result in employees wasting valuable time and energy on tasks that don't contribute to business goals. This can cause frustration, burnout, and a lack of focus on strategic priorities.<h3>Decreased productivity</h3>Employees who don't understand how their work contributes to the strategy may feel unmotivated. This can cause a lack of direction in their daily tasks, impacting their productivity, drive, and purpose.<h3>Inefficient resource allocation</h3>When resources are misaligned with strategic priorities, businesses waste valuable assets on activities that don't move the needle, limiting growth and goal attainment.&nbsp;<h3>Lack of agility and adaptability</h3>Rigid, inflexible strategies that can't adapt quickly risk falling behind competitors and missing out on new opportunities. This can lead to a loss of market share or complete market displacement.<h3>Disengagement and distrust</h3>When strategies aren't performing as they should, trust and confidence in leadership erodes. This may cause employees and stakeholders to become disillusioned and disengaged, leading to a breakdown in organizational culture, performance, and motivation.<hr>Explore more <a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive%20Guides/Global-State-of-Strategy-by-Quantive.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">weaknesses present in traditional approaches to strategy&nbsp;</a><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive%20Guides/Global-State-of-Strategy-by-Quantive.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1712837023/site-v5/2024_strategy_report_Ebook_ff937761d0.png" alt="2024-strategy-report-Ebook.png"></a></figure><hr>

The <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Always-On Strategy</a> model is a transformative solution that addresses the signs of a failing strategy. Designed to counter the challenges posed by traditional strategy management, the Always-On Strategy operates as a continuous, adaptive loop that integrates <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">dynamic strategy development</a>, focused execution, and ongoing evaluation to streamline and optimize business strategy. The goal is to bridge the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategy execution gap</a>, ensuring <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/organizational-alignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">alignment</a> with market demands while fostering resilience in an <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ever-changing business landscape</a>.&nbsp;<h3>How the Always-On Strategy addresses signs of strategy failure&nbsp;</h3>The Always-On Strategy model:&nbsp;<ul><li>Champions strategy clarity and communication by engaging insights from across the organization throughout the strategy development process, eliminating the disconnect between <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/goal-setting" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">goals</a> and actions&nbsp;</li><li>Ensures effective resource allocation by creating a strategy with a clear <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vision</a> and execution plan, resulting in strategically deployed resources that prevent wasteful activities&nbsp;</li><li>Cultivates employee engagement by promoting inclusive decision-making, transparency, and ownership of goals, ensuring employees understand how their contributions drive progress&nbsp;</li><li>Empowers data-driven decision-making by leveraging advanced technology for dynamic data analysis, enabling agile responses in alignment with market changes&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Overcomes strategic rigidity by using adaptive feedback loops for real-time adjustments, addressing challenges, capitalizing on market opportunities, and ensuring competitiveness in dynamic markets&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Aligns goals by collaboratively reassessing and synchronizing these with internal and external demands to minimize conflicting priorities, cultivate cohesive efforts, and drive impactful strategic work&nbsp;</li></ul><hr>Discover the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Always-On Strategy Model</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1705585972/site-v5/What_is_an_Always_On_Strategy_d1c3c5e1f3.png" alt="an image depicting always-on strategy to help prevent strategy failure"></a></figure><hr>

Keeping an eye out for signs of strategy failure can help your business pivot when necessary, averting prolonged setbacks while positioning you for strategic success. Upon recognizing these, you must promptly respond to them as they come.&nbsp;The Always-On Strategy model operates as a continuous, adaptive loop of strategy management, addressing identified signs of strategy failure head-on. By facilitating strategic clarity, optimal resource allocation, employee engagement, data-driven decisions, agility, and collaborative goal alignment, the Always-On Strategy is a holistic solution for your business strategy, allowing you to navigate the dynamic and unpredictable market to ensure resilience, adaptability, and enduring strategic success.&nbsp;<hr>Quantive empowers modern organizations to turn their ambitions into reality through strategic agility. It's where strategy, teams, and data come together to drive effective decision-making, streamline execution, and maximize performance.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;As your company navigates today’s competitive landscape, you need an Always-On Strategy to continuously bridge the gap between current and desired business outcomes. Quantive brings together the technology, expertise, and passion to transform your strategy and playbooks from a static formulation to a feedback-driven engine for growth.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Whether you’re a fast-growing scale-up, a mid-market business looking to conquer, or a large enterprise looking for innovation, Quantive keeps you ahead – every step of the way. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.quantive.com/">www.quantive.com</a>.&nbsp;

6 Signs of Strategy Failure 

Playing chess without a strong opening is a guaranteed way to disadvantage yourself. Just like in chess, organizations without an adequate strategic planning process are unlikely to thrive and adapt long-term.&nbsp;The strategic planning process is essential for <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/organizational-alignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">aligning your organization</a> on key priorities, goals, and initiatives,&nbsp;making it crucial for organizational success.&nbsp;&nbsp;This article will empower you&nbsp;to craft and perfect your strategic planning process by exploring the following:&nbsp;<ul><li>What is strategic planning</li><li>Why strategic planning is important for your business&nbsp;</li><li>The seven steps of the strategic planning process&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Strategic planning frameworks</li><li>Best practices supporting the strategic planning process&nbsp;</li></ul>By the end of this article, you’ll have the knowledge needed to perfect the key elements of strategic planning. Ready? Let’s begin.&nbsp;

Strategic planning charts your business's course toward success. Using your organization’s <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vision, mission statement</a>, and values — with internal and external information — each step of the strategic planning process helps you craft long-term objectives and attain your goals with strategic management.&nbsp;The key elements of strategic planning includes a SWOT analysis, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/goal-setting" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">goal setting</a>, stakeholder involvement, plus developing actionable strategies, approaches, and tactics aligned with primary objectives.&nbsp;<blockquote>In short, the strategic planning process bridges the gap between your organization’s current and desired state, providing a clear and actionable framework that answers:&nbsp;<ul><li>Where are you now?&nbsp;</li><li>Where do you want to be?&nbsp;</li><li>How will you get there?</li></ul></blockquote><h3>7 key elements of strategic planning&nbsp;</h3>The following strategic planning components work together to create cohesive strategic plans for your business goals. Let’s take a close look at each of these:&nbsp;<ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Vision: What your organization wants to achieve in the future, the long-term goal&nbsp;</li><li>Mission: The driving force behind why your company exists, who it serves, and how it creates value&nbsp;</li><li>Values: Fundamental beliefs guiding your company’s decision-making process&nbsp;</li><li>Goals: Measurable objectives in alignment with your business mission, vision, and values&nbsp;</li><li>Strategy: A long-term strategy map for achieving your objectives based on both internal and external factors&nbsp;</li><li>Approach: How you <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">execute strategy</a> and achieve objectives using actions and initiatives&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Tactics: Granular short-term actions, programs, and activities&nbsp;</li></ol><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1688544752/site-v5/7_components_of_the_strategic_planning_process_acf11732a0.svg" alt="an illustration of a pyramid representing the 7 components of the strategic planning process">

Just as a chess player needs a gameplan to reach checkmate, a company needs a solid strategic plan to achieve its goals.&nbsp;&nbsp;Without a strategic plan, your business will waste precious time, energy, and resources on endeavors that won’t get your company closer to where it needs to be.&nbsp;&nbsp;Your ideal plan should cover all key strategic planning areas, while allowing you to stay present by measuring success and course-correcting or redefining the strategic direction when necessary. Ultimately, enabling your company to stay future-proof through the creation of an always-on strategy that reflects your company's mission and vision.&nbsp;&nbsp;<blockquote>An always-on strategy involves continuous environmental scanning even after the strategic plan has been devised, ensuring readiness to adapt in response to quick, drastic changes in the environment.</blockquote>Let’s dive deeper into the steps of the strategic planning process.&nbsp;

You understand the overall value of implementing a strategic planning process — now let’s put it in practice. Here's our 7-step approach to strategic planning that ensures everyone is on the same page:&nbsp;<ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Clarify your vision, mission, and values&nbsp;</li><li>Conduct an environmental scan&nbsp;</li><li>Define strategic priorities&nbsp;</li><li>Develop goals and metrics&nbsp;</li><li>Derive a strategic plan&nbsp;</li><li>Write and communicate your strategic plan&nbsp;</li><li>Implement, monitor, and revise&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ol><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1688544623/site-v5/Strategic_planning_process_385f73938c.svg" alt="7 step strategic planning process"><h3>1. Clarify your vision, mission, and values&nbsp;</h3>The first step of the strategic planning process is understanding your organization’s core elements: vision, mission, and values. Clarifying these will align your strategic plan with your company’s definition of success. Once established, these are the foundation for the rest of the strategic planning process.&nbsp; &nbsp;Questions to ask:<ul><li>What do we aspire to achieve in the long term?</li><li>What is our purpose or ultimate goal?</li><li>What do we do to fulfill our vision?</li><li>What key activities or services do we provide?</li><li>What are our organization's ethics?</li><li>What qualities or behaviors do we expect from employees?</li></ul><hr>Read more: <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">What is Mission vs. Vision</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1679576222/site-v5/mission_vs_vision_4831a60599.png" alt="A green flag with hollow filling placed to the left of an outline of an eye, with the iris also outlined in green, all on a green background, to signal mission vs. vision"></a></figure><hr><h3>2. Conduct an environmental scan</h3>Once everyone on the same page about vision, mission, and values, it's time to scan your internal and external environment. This involves a long-term SWOT analysis, evaluating your organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.&nbsp;<h4>Internal factors&nbsp;</h4>Internal strengths and weaknesses help you understand where your organization excels and what it could improve. Strengths and weaknesses awareness helps make more informed decisions with your capabilities and resource allocation in mind.&nbsp;<h4>External factors</h4>Externally, opportunities and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">threats in the market</a> help you understand the power of your industry’s customers, suppliers, and competitors. Additionally, consider how broader forces like technology, culture, politics, and regulation may impact your organization.&nbsp;&nbsp;Questions to ask:<ul><li>What are our organization's key strengths or competitive advantages?</li><li>What areas or functions within our organization need improvement?</li><li>What emerging trends or opportunities can we leverage?</li><li>How do changes in technology, regulations, or consumer behavior impact us?</li></ul><h3>3. Define strategic priorities</h3>Prioritization puts the “strategic” in strategic planning process. Your organization’s mission, vision, values, and environmental scan serve as a lens to identify top priorities. Limiting priorities ensures your organization intentionally allocates resources.&nbsp;These categories can help you rank your strategic priorities:&nbsp;<ul><li>Critical: Urgent tasks whose failure to complete will have severe consequences — financial losses, reputation damage, or legal consequences&nbsp;</li><li>Important: Significant tasks which support organizational achievements and require timely completion&nbsp;</li><li>Desirable: Valuable tasks not essential in the short-term, but can contribute to long-term success and growth&nbsp;</li></ul>Questions to ask:<ul><li>How do these priorities align with our mission, vision, and values?</li><li>Which tasks need to be completed quickly to ensure effective progress towards our desired outcomes?</li><li>What resources and capabilities do we need to pursue these priorities effectively?</li></ul><h3>4. Develop goals and metrics</h3>Next, you establish goals and metrics to reflect your strategic priorities. Purpose-driven, long-term, actionable <a href="https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/strategic-planning-goals" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategic planning goals</a> should flow down through the organization, with lower-level goals contributing to higher-level ones.&nbsp;One approach that can help you set and measure your aligned goals is objectives and key results (OKRs). OKRs consist of objectives, qualitative statements of what you want to achieve, and key results, 3-5 supporting metrics that track progress toward your objective.&nbsp;OKRs ensure alignment at every level of the organization, with <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-tracking" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tracking</a> and accountability built into the framework to keep everyone engaged. With ambitious, intentional goals, OKRs can help you drive the strategic plan forward. &nbsp;Questions to ask:<ul><li>What metrics can we use to track progress toward each objective?</li><li>How can we ensure that lower-level goals and metrics support and contribute to higher-level ones?</li><li>How will we track and measure progress towards key results?</li><li>How will we ensure accountability?</li></ul><hr>Get an in-depth look at OKRs with our <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-playbook" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ultimate OKR Playbook</a><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-playbook" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670879450/site-v5/ultimate_OKR_playbook_cce3f7f1c8.png" alt="an illustration of a circle in a shifting square to represent an okr playbook"></a></figure><hr><h3>5. Derive a strategic plan</h3>The next step of the strategic planning process gets down to the nitty-gritty “how” — <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/category/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">developing a clear, practical strategic plan</a> for bridging the gap between now and the future.&nbsp;&nbsp;To do this, you’ll need to brainstorm short- and long-term approaches to achieving the goals you’ve set, answering a couple of key questions along the way. You must evaluate ideas based on factors like:&nbsp;<ul><li>Feasibility: How realistic and achievable is it?&nbsp;</li><li>Impact: How conducive is it to goal attainment?&nbsp;</li><li>Cost: Can we fund this approach, and is it worth the investment?&nbsp;</li><li>Alignment: Does it support our mission, vision, and values? &nbsp;</li></ul>From your approaches, you can devise a detailed action plan, which covers things like:&nbsp;<ul><li>Timelines: When will we take each step, and what are the deadlines?&nbsp;</li><li>Milestones: What key achievements will ensure consistent progress?&nbsp;</li><li>Resource requirements: What’s needed to achieve each step?&nbsp;</li><li>Responsibilities: Who's accountable in each step?&nbsp;</li><li>Risks and challenges: What can affect our ability to execute our plan? How will we address these?&nbsp;</li></ul>With a detailed action plan like this, you can move from abstract goals to concrete steps, bringing you closer to achieving your strategic objectives.&nbsp;<h3>6. Write and communicate your strategic plan</h3>Writing and communicating your strategic plan involves everyone, ensuring each team is on the same page. Here’s a clear, concise structure you can use to cover the most important strategic planning components:&nbsp;<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1682967397/site-v5/Structure_of_a_strategic_plan_f0be17d1af.svg" alt="The 11 step structure of a strategic plan: executive summary to strategic approach to implementation"></figure><ul><li>Executive summary: Highlights and priorities in your strategic overview&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Introduction: Background on your strategic plan&nbsp;</li><li>Connection: How your strategic plan aligns with your organization’s mission, vision, and values&nbsp;</li><li>Environmental scan: An overview of your SWOT analysis findings&nbsp;</li><li>Strategic priorities and goals: Informed short and long-term organizational goals&nbsp;</li><li>Strategic approach: An overview of your tactical plan&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Resource needs: How you'll deploy technology, funding, and employees&nbsp;</li><li>Risk and challenges: How you’ll mitigate the unknowns if and when they arise&nbsp;</li><li>Implementation plan: A step-by-step resource deployment plan for achieving your strategy&nbsp;</li><li>Monitoring and evaluation: How you’ll keep your plan heading in the right direction&nbsp;</li><li>Conclusion: A summary of the strategic plan and everything it entails&nbsp;</li></ul>Questions to ask:<ul><li>What information or context do stakeholders need to understand the strategic plan?</li><li>How can we emphasize the connection between the strategic plan and the overall purpose and direction of the organization?</li><li>What initiatives or strategies will we implement to drive progress?</li><li>How will we mitigate or address risks?</li><li>What are the specific steps and actions we need to take to implement the strategic plan?</li><li>Any additional information or next steps we need to communicate?</li></ul><h3>7. Implement, monitor, and revise performance&nbsp;</h3>Finally, it’s time to implement your strategic plan, making sure it's up to date, creating a persistent, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">always-on strategy</a> that doesn't lag behind. As you get the ball rolling, keep a close eye on your timelines, milestones, and performance targets, and whether these align with your internal and external environment.&nbsp;&nbsp;Internally, indicators like completions, issues, and delays provide visibility into your process. If any bottlenecks, inefficiencies, or misalignment arises, take corrective action promptly — adjust the plan, reallocate resources, or provide additional training to employees.&nbsp;Externally, you should monitor changes such as customer preferences, competitive pressures, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/recession-proofing-your-business" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">economic shifts</a>, and regulatory changes. These impact the success of your strategic action plan and may require tweaks along the way.&nbsp;&nbsp;Remember, implementing a strategic plan isn’t a one-time task — <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-evaluation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">continual strategic evaluations</a> are essential for an Always-On Strategy. It involves extending beyond planning stages and contextualizing the strategy in real-time, allowing for swift adaptations to changing circumstances to ensure your plan remains relevant.Questions to ask:<ul><li>Are there any bottlenecks, inefficiencies, or misalignments we need to address?</li><li>Are we monitoring and analyzing external factors?</li><li>Are we prepared to make necessary tweaks or adaptations along the way?</li><li>Are we agile enough to promptly correct deviations from our strategic plan while maintaining an "always-on" strategy for continual adjustments?</li></ul>

You can use several frameworks to guide you through the strategic planning process. Some of the most influential ones include:<ul><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-vs-balanced-scorecard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Balanced scorecard (BSC)</a>: Takes an overarching approach to strategic planning, covering financial, customer, internal processes, and learning and growth, aligning short-term operational tasks with long-term strategic goals.</li><li>SWOT analysis: Highlights your business's internal strengths and weaknesses alongside external opportunities and threats to enable informed decisions about your strategic direction.</li><li>OKRs: Structures goals as a set of measurable objectives and key results. They cascade down from top-level organizational objectives to lower-level team goals, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-for-business-alignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ensuring alignment</a> across the entire organization. Get an <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">in-depth look at OKRs here</a>.&nbsp;</li><li>Scenario planning: Involves envisioning and planning for various possible future scenarios, allowing you to prepare for a range of potential outcomes. It's particularly useful in volatile environments rife with uncertainties.</li><li>Porter's five forces: Evaluates the competitive forces within your industry — rivalry among existing competitors, bargaining power of buyers and suppliers, threat of new entrants, and threat of substitutes — to shape strategies that position the organization for success.</li></ul><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1713535057/site-v5/strategic_planning_framework_fa8b15f30e.png" alt="different strategic planning frameworks"></figure>

While strategic planning provides a roadmap for business success, it's not immune to challenges. Recognizing and addressing these is crucial for effective strategy implementation. Let's explore common issues encountered in strategic planning and strategies to overcome them.<hr>Want a quick recap? Watch our summary below<div class="raw-html-embed"><script src="https://fast.wistia.com/embed/medias/nrgtje25h5.jsonp" async=""></script><script src="https://fast.wistia.com/assets/external/E-v1.js" async=""></script><div class="wistia_responsive_padding" style="padding:56.25% 0 0 0;position:relative;"><div class="wistia_responsive_wrapper" style="height:100%;left:0;position:absolute;top:0;width:100%;"><div class="wistia_embed wistia_async_nrgtje25h5 seo=true videoFoam=true" style="height:100%;position:relative;width:100%"><div class="wistia_swatch" style="height:100%;left:0;opacity:0;overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0;transition:opacity 200ms;width:100%;"><img src="https://fast.wistia.com/embed/medias/nrgtje25h5/swatch" style="filter:blur(5px);height:100%;object-fit:contain;width:100%;" alt="" aria-hidden="true" onload="this.parentNode.style.opacity=1;"></div></div></div></div></div><hr><h3>Static nature</h3>Traditional strategic planning models often follow a linear, annual, and inflexible process that doesn't accommodate quick changes in the business landscape. Strategies formulated this way may quickly become outdated in today's fast-paced environment.<h4>Solution</h4>To overcome the rigidity of traditional strategic planning, your organization should integrate continuous environmental scanning processes. This includes monitoring market changes, competitor actions, and technological advancements, ensuring real-time insights inform strategic decision-making. Additionally, adopting agile methodologies allows for iterative planning, breaking down strategies into smaller, manageable components reviewed and adjusted regularly, ensuring adaptability in today's fast-paced landscape.<h3>Disconnect between strategic plan and execution</h3>There's often a significant gap between the strategic objectives and their actual implementation, leading to misalignment, confusion, and inefficiency within the organization.<h4>Solution</h4>To bridge the gap, ensure accountability, alignment, and feedback-driven processes across the business. Linking team roles and responsibilities to lower-level objectives can fosters alignment and accountability, whereas aligning these with overarching strategic objectives ensure coherence in execution. To ensure goals are optimized on an ongoing basis, implement a feedback mechanism that continuously evaluates progress against goals, enabling regular adjustments based on market feedback and internal insights.<h3>Lack of real-time insights</h3>Traditional planning models rely on historical data and periodic reviews, which might not capture real-time changes or emerging trends accurately. This can result in misaligned strategies unsuitable for the current business landscape.<h4>Solution</h4>Leverage advanced analytics tools and AI-driven technologies. Invest in technologies that offer real-time tracking and reporting of key performance indicators, with dashboards and monitoring systems that provide up-to-date insights. These allow you to gather, process, and interpret real-time data for proactive decision-making that aligns with the current business landscape.&nbsp;<h3>Failure to close the feedback loop</h3>The absence of a feedback loop between strategy formulation, execution, and evaluation can impact learning and improvement. Companies might therefore struggle to refine their strategies based on real-time performance insights.<h4>Solution</h4>Establish a structured feedback loop encompassing strategy formulation, execution, and evaluation stages. Encourage employees to actively contribute insights on strategy execution, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and adaptation.

Navigating strategic planning goes beyond overcoming challenges. A successful strategic plan requires you to embrace a set of guiding best practices, helping you navigate the development and implementation of your strategic planning process.&nbsp;&nbsp;<h3>1. Keep the planning process flexible</h3>With ever-changing business environments, a one-and-done approach to strategic planning is insufficient. Your strategic plan needs to be adaptable to ensure its relevancy and its ability to weather the effects of changing circumstances.&nbsp;<h3>2. Pull together a diverse group of stakeholders</h3>By including voices from across the organization, you can account for varying thoughts, perspectives, and experiences at each step of the strategic planning process, ensuring <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/cross-functional-collaboration" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cross-functional alignment</a>.&nbsp;<h3>3. Document the process</h3>Continuous documentation of the strategic management process is crucial in capturing and communicating the key elements of strategic planning. This keeps everyone on the same page and your strategic plan up-to-date and relevant.&nbsp;<h3>4. Make data-driven decisions</h3>Root your decisions in evidence and facts rather than assumptions or opinions. This cultivates accurate insights, improves prioritization, and reduces biased (flawed) decisions.&nbsp;<h3>5. Align your company culture with the strategic plan&nbsp;</h3>Your strategic plan can only be successful if everyone is on board with it — company culture supports what you’re trying to achieve. Behaviors, rules, and attitudes optimize the execution of your strategic plan.&nbsp;<h3>6. Leverage AI&nbsp;</h3>Using AI in strategic planning supports the development of an always-on strategy — amplifying strategic agility, conducting comprehensive environmental scans, and expediting planning phases. It can streamline operations, facilitate data-driven decision-making, and provide transparent insights into progress to drive accountability, engagement, and alignment with the strategic plan.

Careful strategy mapping is crucial for any organization looking to achieve its long-term goals while staying true to its mission, vision, and values. The seven steps in the strategic planning process outlined in this article provide a solid framework your organization can follow — from clarifying your organization’s purpose and developing a strategic plan, to implementing, monitoring, and revising performance. These steps will help your company meet goal measurements and create an always-on strategy that's rooted in the present.&nbsp;It’s important to remember that strategic planning is not a one-time event. To stay effective and relevant, you must continuously monitor and adapt your strategy in response to changing circumstances. This ongoing process of improvement keeps your organization competitive and demonstrates your commitment to achieving your goals.&nbsp;<hr>Quantive empowers modern organizations to turn their ambitions into reality through strategic agility. It's where strategy, teams, and data come together to drive effective decision-making, streamline execution, and maximize performance.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;As your company navigates today’s competitive landscape, you need an Always-On Strategy to continuously bridge the gap between current and desired business outcomes. Quantive brings together the technology, expertise, and passion to transform your strategy and playbooks from a static formulation to a feedback-driven engine for growth.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Whether you’re a fast-growing scale-up, a mid-market business looking to conquer, or a large enterprise looking for innovation, Quantive keeps you ahead – every step of the way. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.quantive.com/">www.quantive.com</a>.&nbsp;

Strategy Execution in 4 Steps: Keys to Successful Strategy

Strategic Planning Process: Why Is Strategic Planning Important for Organizations in 2024?

Strategy development is the beating heart of effective business management. It’s about understanding your business’s current position, defining the path toward your business ambitions, and tailoring it to the business environment, using objectives and goals as milestones along the way. Without a robust strategy creation approach, your business risks navigating <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">rocky market environments</a> aimlessly, vulnerable to unexpected risks and missed opportunities.&nbsp;Below, we cover quick-fire FAQs on strategy development, unpacking its definition, elements, and advantages to help you deliver the best results in today’s business landscape.&nbsp;

Strategy development involves assessing your business within its environment, considering both internal and external factors. It covers:&nbsp;<ul><li>Tailored <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business strategies</a> aimed at value creation&nbsp;</li><li>Comprehensive mitigation plans based on identified risks, scenarios, and trade-offs&nbsp;</li><li>Clear communication and execution of plans using defined strategic goals and success metrics&nbsp;</li></ul>

A strategic plan guides your business toward its long-term goals by focusing resources, actions, and priorities on a united purpose. It creates a shared understanding of the company’s direction among company leaders, stakeholders, and staff, ensuring they synchronize their efforts to serve a desired outcome.&nbsp;<hr>Explore our <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategic-planning-process" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">step-by-step guide to strategic planning</a><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategic-planning-process" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1678888522/site-v5/Strategic_Planning_Process_diagram_f96a921ef4.png" alt="a grid illustration connecting a circle and square representing the strategic planning process"></a></figure><hr>

Strategy development involves continuously analyzing, developing strategies, and refining business strategy based on the business's current state, risks, and emerging opportunities. <a href="https://hbr.org/topic/subject/strategic-planning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strategic planning</a> is a subset of strategy development focused on creating resilient strategies for long-term business sustainability. Both processes are integral to the planning process, with company leaders playing a vital role in guiding and overseeing their execution.&nbsp;

Strategy development is essential for several reasons. It:&nbsp;&nbsp;<ul><li>Establishes clear direction and purpose, helping employees understand the ‘why’ behind their work&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Identifies organizational strengths and weaknesses, aiding in effective resource allocation&nbsp;</li><li>Allows your business to <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-adaptability" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">adapt to changing environments</a>, repositioning it to suit shifting markets and circumstances&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Enhances <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/ai-for-decision-making" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">decision-making</a>, serving as a framework for evaluating performance and progress&nbsp;</li><li>Promotes innovation, fostering a competitive advantage through continuous improvement based on feedback loops&nbsp;</li><li>Facilitates <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/organizational-alignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">organizational alignment</a>, ensuring conflicting efforts are reduced as departments work cohesively toward shared goals&nbsp;</li><li>Guides risk management, offering a structured approach to assessing and mitigating risks&nbsp;</li></ul>

The development of a strategic plan involves several key steps:&nbsp;<ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Analyze: Assess your business's current state to understand its strengths and opportunities while minimizing weaknesses and threats&nbsp;</li><li>Develop strategy: Create a strategic plan that navigates your business toward its desired state, identifying strategic options for&nbsp;risks and outlining financial planning concerning resources, budgets, and trade-offs&nbsp;</li><li>Align and communicate: Communicate your business's <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vision, mission</a>, and long-term goals, aligning these using a <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/goal-setting" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">goal-setting framework</a> like OKRs&nbsp;</li><li>Create action plans: Detail execution plans, establishing responsibilities and timelines for accountability&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ol>Implementing your strategic plan requires successful execution that emphasizes measurability. This serves as a continuous feedback loop that drives the strategy creation’s adaptation and optimization, ensuring your strategy doesn’t miss out on market opportunities.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Past strategic performance provides insights into what worked and what didn’t, enabling your business to refine future strategies, embrace practical approaches, and steer clear of prior errors. Historical data also nurtures organizational know-how, empowering your company to evolve and enhance strategy creation effectiveness as it gathers knowledge over time. Frameworks such as <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-are-kpis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">key performance indicators (KPIs)</a> and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">OKRs</a> can be valuable tools in evaluating past performance and informing future strategy, helping company leaders make informed decisions.&nbsp;

A strategy built on innovation and ongoing adaptation is a great way to gain a competitive advantage. Innovation is critical, driving differentiation to secure a competitive advantage. This involves introducing novel ideas, products, or processes that set your business apart from competitors.&nbsp;Yet, an innovative spirit can fall short if it’s not aligned with the business environment. &nbsp;The crux lies with senior executives and their capacity to leverage critical, comprehensive, and timely data, as this dictates business agility and enables your business to tackle market shifts as they come.

Strategy development plans typically lack robust feedback loops, hindering continuous evaluation and adaptation. This absence results in stagnant plans unsuitable to dynamic markets, rendering them obsolete.&nbsp;&nbsp;To maintain agile and relevant strategy development plans, and to avoid <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development-pitfalls" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategic planning pitfalls</a>, you need real-time feedback — and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/digital-transformation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">technology-driven</a> feedback loops powered by AI are an effective way to stay ahead. <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/ai-in-business-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AI enables rapid data analysis</a>, supporting adaptive decision-making in dynamic environments. As such, using it for strategic insights allows your business to adapt plans to market changes, analyze trends, and incorporate internal insights, ensuring ongoing relevance, resilience, and success in your strategy development approach.&nbsp;

Creativity fuels strategy development. It empowers your business to innovate, explore new paths, and craft unique value propositions. However, creative strategic concepts must be substantiated to ensure alignment with market realities. Powering your creative ideas with data-backed insights can refine and validate these, providing empirical support for strategy creation. As such, a blend of creativity and data-driven strategies is essential to creating validated visionary strategies primed for success.&nbsp;

Alignment between different departments or units within your business is essential for <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">effective strategy execution</a>. When various parts of the organization work cohesively towards common strategic objectives, you minimize conflicts, optimize resource allocation, and enhance overall efficiency, contributing to successful strategy implementation. Effective alignment requires active involvement and leadership from company leaders to ensure coherence across the organization.&nbsp;

Deliberate strategy development is a pre-planned strategic approach aligned with long-term objectives. Think of it as a systematic process focused on structured planning and execution. In contrast, emergency strategy development is reactive, responding to unforeseen events or crises. It requires quick decision-making and implementation to navigate immediate challenges and mitigate their impact.&nbsp;<blockquote>The best strategy development approach blends deliberate, long-term planning with the flexibility to pivot, optimize, and refine based on data-driven insights. At Quantive, we call this the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Always-On Strategy model</a>.&nbsp;</blockquote>Powered by ongoing measurements and continuous optimizations, the Always-On Strategy operates as a dynamic loop, continuously developing, executing, and evaluating strategies. It prioritizes business agility and alignment with market shifts, emphasizing continual strategic readiness to avoid surprises and prevent strategies from becoming obsolete. By leveraging real-time insights, the Always-On Strategy model enables swift, informed decisions and ongoing refinements, ensuring your business strategy remains relevant and adaptable.&nbsp;<hr>Discover the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Always-On Strategy model</a><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/always-on-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1705585972/site-v5/What_is_an_Always_On_Strategy_d1c3c5e1f3.png" alt="an image depicting always-on strategy"></a></figure><hr>

Strategy deployment involves translating your formulated strategy into actionable steps and ensuring its effective implementation across all business levels. Strategy development is the process preceding strategy deployment and consists of the conceptualization, formulation, and planning of business strategies.&nbsp;

While many companies stick to traditional annual strategy reviews, this approach is typically inflexible, rigid, and time-consuming. Instead, focus on creating a dynamic strategy by consistently revisiting and optimizing it to ensure continuous alignment with the evolving market and business landscape.&nbsp;&nbsp;By setting an ongoing schedule for strategic optimizations using best practices such as pre-scheduled planning and regular reviews, you emphasize the significance of strategic agility for stakeholders. Moreover, this approach enables ongoing strategic reassessments while avoiding unnecessary or impulsive changes.&nbsp;

While not always necessary, a fresh pair of impartial eyes can be immensely valuable to your strategy development process, offering expertise and experience that might not be available internally. This can include support with activities such as strategic analysis, market research, problem-solving, and industry-specific best practices — all of which can enrich your strategy development process.&nbsp;&nbsp;<hr>Read more on the <a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive%20Guides/Global-State-of-Strategy-by-Quantive.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">success of centralized vs. decentralized strategies</a><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive%20Guides/Global-State-of-Strategy-by-Quantive.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1712837023/site-v5/2024_strategy_report_Ebook_ff937761d0.png" alt="2024-strategy-report-Ebook.png"></a></figure><hr>Similarly, the right technology can significantly enhance strategic development. AI-powered solutions not only enable you to analyze your market environment and sift through large amounts of existing data quickly, but also contribute to data-driven strategic decisions. This not only aligns your business with market threats and opportunities but also helps with eliminating biases and navigating organizational politics often associated with this process.&nbsp;

Strategy development isn't a one-person job. It's a <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/cross-functional-collaboration" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">collaborative effort</a> that involves strategic management from key decision-makers who draw on insights from across the organization. This helps your business account for diverse perspectives and contributions to ensure your strategy development plan is well-rounded and comprehensive.&nbsp;

Integrating technology and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-esg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ESG</a> in strategy development is becoming the norm.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The right tech tools, such a <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategic-intelligence-platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategic intelligence platform</a>, can help your business navigate the onslaught of business uncertainties using the right data. AI, machine learning, and big data play a pivotal role in rapidly analyzing your business environment to drive quick, informed decision-making that seamlessly align your strategy with changing market needs and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategic-intelligence-platform-roi" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">improve your bottom line</a>. Additionally, the push for sustainability and social responsibility push for ESG-aligned strategic initiatives as part of strategic development.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<hr>Quantive empowers modern organizations to turn their ambitions into reality through strategic agility. It's where strategy, teams, and data come together to drive effective decision-making, streamline execution, and maximize performance.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;As your company navigates today’s competitive landscape, you need an Always-On Strategy to continuously bridge the gap between current and desired business outcomes. Quantive brings together the technology, expertise, and passion to transform your strategy and playbooks from a static formulation to a feedback-driven engine for growth.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Whether you’re a fast-growing scale-up, a mid-market business looking to conquer, or a large enterprise looking for innovation, Quantive keeps you ahead – every step of the way. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.quantive.com/">www.quantive.com</a>.&nbsp;

7 Pitfalls in Strategy Development & How Technology Can Help

Strategy Development FAQ: Definition, Components, & Benefits

Businesses have had a whirlwind of disruptions over the past few years. From pandemics and supply chain disruptions to interest rate hikes, fluctuating energy prices, geopolitical tensions, and the rise of <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/ai-for-decision-making" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">generative AI</a>, the market has become a minefield of unexpected disturbances.&nbsp;&nbsp;While market volatility persists, the process of crafting <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business strategies</a> remains largely unaltered. Although experts and thought leaders like BCG, Drucker, and Porter have built upon this process, its core remains constant:&nbsp;&nbsp;Each year, a group of executives sift through heaps of data to set a future business strategy, usually one to three years ahead — sometimes stretching to five or ten years. They then communicate this strategy down the organization, leaving teams scrambling to align and contribute to meet these goals.&nbsp;This approach views organizations as predictable systems, setting strategies based on assumed certainties in a supposedly known future. However, it’s completely disconnected in today’s <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">uncertain business environment</a>.&nbsp;<blockquote>“In the digital age, sitting down once a year to do anything is weird, it's just bizarre.”&nbsp;– Jeff Immelt, CEO of GE&nbsp;</blockquote>

Once practical, the traditional way of strategy development now creates a <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategy execution gap</a>. The strategy execution gap is the misalignment between a company’s strategic aims and practical application, resulting in a stagnant, inefficient strategy that’s disconnected from present realities.&nbsp;This stems from this outdated strategic process’s multiple weaknesses:&nbsp;<ul><li>Infrequent <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategy development</a>: Annual or sporadic strategy formulation renders it dated upon implementation&nbsp;</li><li>Outdated data: Strategy development lacks real-time responses due to reliance on outdated data&nbsp;</li><li>Human-led limitations: Constraints in processing and analyzing information lead to incomplete or biased insights&nbsp;</li><li>Influence of intuition: Heavy reliance on executives' intuition as opposed to accurate data causes blind spots in assessing operations and risks&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Lack of measurement: Inadequate follow-up and monitoring post-deployment&nbsp;</li><li>Infrequent optimization: Rare adjustments in response to market changes render strategies disconnected from the business's current state&nbsp;</li></ul>These weaknesses add up, leading to significant business problems like losing competitive edge, declining profits, inefficiencies, limited innovation, and customer churn. Staying competitive requires a dynamic strategy approach that tackles uncertainty while emphasizing agility — we call this the Always-On Strategy model.&nbsp;<hr>Discover the <a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive%20Guides/Global-State-of-Strategy-by-Quantive.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">current state of strategy in our 2024 report</a>&nbsp;<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive%20Guides/Global-State-of-Strategy-by-Quantive.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1712837023/site-v5/2024_strategy_report_Ebook_ff937761d0.png" alt="2024-strategy-report-Ebook.png"></a></figure><hr>

The Always-On Strategy model bridges the strategy execution gap using a continuous, rapid, and iterative loop of strategy development, execution, and evaluation. Its connected, data-driven, and agile nature encourages informed strategic decisions, faster execution and time to value, and ongoing alignment with market demands.&nbsp;&nbsp;At its core, the model embraces the fluidity of today’s business landscape. It acknowledges that change is not just continuous but rapid. Rather than depending on dated, set-term plans, this model empowers businesses to tweak their strategy using real-time insights. Its inherent <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-and-cfrs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">feedback cycles</a> refine and optimize strategy continuously, ensuring it stays relevant and timely.&nbsp;&nbsp;Let’s break down the Always-On Strategy by examining its three components:&nbsp;<ul><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strategy development</a> – direct your business&nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strategy execution</a> – change your business&nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-evaluation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strategy evaluation</a> – evaluate your business&nbsp;</li></ul><h3>Component 1: Strategy development&nbsp;</h3>The first phase of Always-On Strategy optimization is making sure you <a href="https://hbr.org/2017/11/many-strategies-fail-because-theyre-not-actually-strategies" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">have a strategy</a>. This involves <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">developing a robust, adaptable, and responsive strategy</a> that minimizes risks and maximizes <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-adaptability" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">adaptability</a>. This requires an acute awareness of the business environment, including market trends, consumer behaviors, and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/digital-transformation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">emerging technologies</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Key activities during strategy development include:&nbsp;<ul><li>Real-time strategic context analysis: Use advanced technology for dynamic data analysis and informed, timely, and responsive strategic decision-making&nbsp;</li><li>Inclusive decision-making: Engage insights from across the organization to create a comprehensive strategy that fosters understanding and ownership&nbsp;</li><li>Executive team collaboration and strategy formulation: Executives convene annually to collaboratively formulate the business strategy, using technology for ongoing discussions, risk assessment, and idea reconciliation&nbsp;</li><li>Hypothesis testing: Assess potential outcomes under various scenarios to mitigate risk and create robust mitigation plans to future-proof your strategy&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Activation readiness: Create a strategy with <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vision</a> and top-level execution in mind, ensuring clarity and actionability&nbsp;</li></ul><blockquote>“The faster the rate of change, the more adaptability becomes a key imperative.”&nbsp;– Ian Cox, Senior Director, Analyst, Gartner&nbsp;</blockquote><hr>Read more on <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategy development</a><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-development" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1705667395/site-v5/Strategy_Development_76b703eb76.png" alt="a green bullseye graphic representing strategy development"></a></figure><hr><h3>Component 2: Strategy execution</h3>In the second phase, the focus shifts to addressing the strategy execution gap. This means aligning and translating strategy into actionable steps for smooth implementation, ensuring a seamless move from planning to execution in line with the environment.&nbsp;The main elements of successful strategy execution include the following:&nbsp;<ul><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/organizational-alignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Organizational alignment</a>: Align roles and responsibilities across teams and functions for outcome-driven execution&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Transparency and focus: Drive focus and unified vision through open communication and result visibility&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/cross-functional-collaboration" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Communication</a>: Keep stakeholders updated on goals and progress for effective execution and alignment across the board&nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-adaptability" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Adaptive execution</a>: Maintain agility to navigate unforeseen challenges or changes during strategy execution&nbsp;</li></ul><h3>Component 3: Strategy evaluation&nbsp;</h3>The last phase of the Always-On Strategy model involves a constant, data-backed evaluation of your dynamic strategy. It involves regularly checking performance metrics to create a continuous feedback loop that steers ongoing actions and decisions.&nbsp;&nbsp;Crucial aspects of strategy evaluation include:&nbsp;<ul><li>Aligning strategic objectives to measurement: Track your objectives’ progress to understand how things are going and improve performance&nbsp;</li><li>KPI integration: Facilitate precision and actionable insights by aligning <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-are-kpis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">key performance indicators (KPIs)</a> with strategic objectives and the work being done&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Democratization of data: Enable access to strategy-measurement data and analytics for informed decision-making across the organization&nbsp;</li><li>Iterative strategy development: Leverage real-time insights on a rolling basis to optimize strategy development, ensuring the strategy’s relevance while maximizing opportunities&nbsp;</li></ul><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1707389187/site-v5/always_on_strategy_model_f53665641c.png" alt="an image showing the three components of the always-on strategy model">

Continuous adaptation isn’t an option when it comes to strategy — it’s vital for success. The Always-On Strategy model relies on ongoing adaptation to respond to market disruptions and thrive accordingly.&nbsp;Let’s take a closer look at the primary advantages of integrating continuous planning and adaptation within your organization:&nbsp;<ul><li>Agility: Swiftly address and accommodate market shifts, honing business agility and responsiveness&nbsp;</li><li>Innovation: Modernize internal processes and nurture a creative work culture for innovative solutions&nbsp;</li><li>Resilience and longevity: Succeed amid dynamic market conditions, ensuring long-term viability and sustainability&nbsp;</li><li>Customer-centric approach: Closely align offerings to changing customer needs, enhancing satisfaction and loyalty&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Engagement: <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-for-employee-engagement" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Drive stakeholder engagement</a> while applying relevant insights to ensure commitment, accountability, and ownership, facilitating progress and shared success&nbsp;</li><li>Resource optimization: Ensure effective resource allocation, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/lean-growth-okrs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">minimizing waste and maximizing productivity</a> for remarkable outcomes&nbsp;</li></ul><blockquote>"The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence — it is to act with yesterday's logic."&nbsp;– Peter Drucker&nbsp;</blockquote><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1707389272/site-v5/Benefits_of_continuous_adaptation_febf1a1667.svg" alt="An image highlighting the 6 benefits of continuous adaptation">

The Always-On Strategy model sees strategy as an ongoing journey, while keeping a close pulse on results in the here and now. It helps you shape a dynamic strategy that responds to what’s happening inside and outside your company, keeping you ahead in a swiftly changing market.&nbsp;To adopt an Always-On Strategy successfully, consider leveraging AI-powered solutions specifically designed for dynamic strategy management. The right solution can optimize the management of your Always-On Strategy, enabling you to wholly and effectively deliver all of your business’ potential.&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/products/strategies" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive Strategies</a> pairs AI with your business data to design, deploy, and continually enhance an Always-On Strategy for your business. By empowering you to make better strategic decisions faster, Quantive Strategies accelerates strategy development, simplifies strategic planning, and reduces business risks.&nbsp;&nbsp;<hr>Quantive empowers modern organizations to turn their ambitions into reality through strategic agility. It's where strategy, teams, and data come together to drive effective decision-making, streamline execution, and maximize performance.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;As your company navigates today’s competitive landscape, you need an Always-On Strategy to continuously bridge the gap between current and desired business outcomes. Quantive brings together the technology, expertise, and passion to transform your strategy and playbooks from a static formulation to a feedback-driven engine for growth.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Whether you’re a fast-growing scale-up, a mid-market business looking to conquer, or a large enterprise looking for innovation, Quantive keeps you ahead – every step of the way. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.quantive.com/">www.quantive.com</a>.&nbsp;

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