Connecting to Strategy

'Strategy' has to be one of the most over-used and least understood words in companies. Like the word 'innovation', leaders struggle to define 'strategy' and most corporate strategies are not strategies at all. Strategies do not dictate everything we do and nor are they so vague we can fit anything we do to them; rather, strategy should provide direction and guardrails, which empower employees and enable them to connect their decisions and actions back to the organisation's strategic intent. As much as leaders talk about strategy, they simultaneously avoid strategic thinking. In a world of increasing uncertainty and complexity, what we need from strategy has changed but we need it more than ever.

Susie Braam explored why so many corporate leaders shy away from strategic thinking and how we can best support leadership to develop an iterative approach to strategy and give their employees the clarity they so desperately want.