Developing strategy takes time and resources (even if it is a one page plan!). It requires the time and commitment of some of your most experienced and important people in your company. So, if you or your team are not willing to invest the time required, I recommend that you don’t do it. Poor planning is often worse than no planning at all.

So, why do you need a strategy? Why take time for planning? There are many reasons., but for me these are the key ones:

1) To set direction and priorities

Firstly, you need a strategy because it sets the direction and establishes priorities for your company. It defines your view of success and prioritises the activities that will make your vision a reality. The strategy will help your people understand the roadmap and know what they should be working on, and what they should be working on first.

2) To get everyone on the same page

If you find that you have departments working to achieve different aims, or going in different directions, you need a strategy.

Once you define your direction, you can get operations, sales, marketing, administration, finance, and all other departments moving together to achieve the company’s goals.

3) To simplify decision making

If your leadership team has trouble saying no to new ideas or potential initiatives, you need a strategy. This will have already prioritised the activities necessary for success. Priorities make it easier to say no to distracting initiatives.

4) To drive alignment:

Many organizations have hard working teams putting all their efforts into areas that have little to no effect on long term success. Your strategy serves as the vehicle for answering the question, “How can we better align all our resources to maximise our strategic success?”

5) To communicate the message:

Many leaders walk around with a virtual strategy locked in their head, They know where their company needs to be and the key activities that will get it there. Unfortunately, the strategy isn’t down on paper and hasn’t been communicated thoroughly. As a result, few people are acting on it. To achieve your success a strategy must be shared. When your team, suppliers, and even customers know where you’re going they will help you get there.

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