The way to keep the growth trajectory of an organisation in the crosshairs of economic value and purpose & meaning is to pay attention to values as well as value.
That’s why the first question when creating strategy is;
“what are the values?”
not
“where is the value?”
Values provide the foundation on which any strategy worth its salt is built. We know there are sceptics but ignoring values in the pursuit of value is self-limiting and destructive. The taller the tree the deeper the root system required to support that growth. This is as true for individuals as it is business.
Strategy requires clarity of vision and mission. Once again we're aware there are many naysayers. But in our experience, to the extent vision and mission are clearly defined and accurately and authentically reflect the aspirations of the organisation they are powerful navigation beacons when it comes to steering the ship.
Without clearly defined vision and mission the answer when any opportunity presents itself is always yes.
When the answer is always yes, the outcome is almost always a mess.
Clarity of vision and mission empowers organisations to say yes to the few and no to the many. And not just in terms of portfolio and target market. Clarity of vision and mission also informs alliances strategy. Organisations who don’t know who they are or where they are going will marry anyone!
To those sceptical about strategy and the importance of values, vision and mission we would say this.
Whether they know it or not every person and every business is on a daily basis:
1. Making decisions and setting priorities based on what’s most important to them.
2. Growing up to be someone.
3. Becoming known for something.
If not by design then by accident.
Strategy = better by design:
- Deciding with purpose.
- Growing with direction.
- Becoming with intention.
