Category Archives: Planning Strategy

What path to take?

Planning Strategy, Scenario Planninng, Strategic Foresight, Strategic Planning, Strategy

When choosing which path to take, there are often several alternatives.

But how do you choose?

One way is use the tool of scenario planning. A framework for putting the issue of focus into perspective. But not just one perspective, it uses melds of ranges of impact and uncertainty to create four storylines.

The benefit of using this model is that you can see clearly what can happen if certain things occur.

Say you are looking to invest in expanding your manufacturing plant. The output from that plant is used by particular customer segment. In order to be satisfied that there will be a payoff for that investment you’ll need to be convinced that that customer segment will be around for the life of that investment.

So the key question is, what are the drivers of change for that particular customer segment? What is likely to happen to your current, and potential, customers throughout the years ahead?

So, by thinking about a range of events that could happen and the impact if they do, risks and opportunities with respect to that investment can be quantified.

 
For more, visit Dellium Advisory, follow on Twitter, connect using LinkedIn, or review my IT-centric blog.

Strategic Planning is Essential for Better Performance

Cognitive Strategy, Cultural Strategy, Design Strategy, Entrepreneurial Strategy, Environmental Strategy, Planning Strategy, Positioning Strategy, Power Strategy, Strategic Planning, Strategy

Over the decades of the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s there were a mixed bag of academic studies regarding the usefulness of strategic planning. Some studies poured cold water on the notion that strategic planning could improve the performance of a firm, others were hearty in their endorsement.

But time and again in recent years, analysis has shown that indeed bringing direction to an organisation through the process of strategic planning has indeed brought benefits.

Aspects improved include:

  • sales
  • profit
  • productivity
  • returns on investments
  • employee engagement
  • even the success ratio of new product development

The long-term implication from each of these studies is that if an organisation (whether for-profit or not-for-profit) thinks about its future and puts some resources into planning its direction (where it is, where it wants to go, and how it will get there) it will not only survive but thrive.

For more, visit Dellium Advisory, follow on Twitter, connect using LinkedIn, or review my IT-centric blog.

The Big 3 V’s of Strategy

Planning Strategy, Strategic Planning, Strategy

Velocity, Volume and Variety.

Its the latest set of words that describe the environment we are living in and the business environment that we are operating in.

Yes, the terms come from the “Big Data” perspective of information management. But they are useful terms for describing what we are experiencing. Velocity, obviously, has to do with speed and the rate of change. Volume is about the quantum of information that we are dealing with, the ever increasing amount of data. And variety is about the spread, is about the different types of information.

And how do you deal with it? What strategies do you set for handling the volume, velocity and variety?. Well, there are three:

  1. is to ignore it and hope it goes away. We know that in the long run that that won’t work
  2. is to build bigger machines to handle it. To, if you will, meet the onrushing force with overwhelming power
  3. is to react like that whitewater kayaker. To read the flow and make your own path through it

What is your approach?
For more, visit Dellium Advisory, follow on Twitter, connect using LinkedIn, or review my IT-centric blog.