Understand your company's and unit's strategies
Awareness of your company's and unit's strategies is vital to your ability to think strategically. Do whatever it takes to understand the corporate strategy and how it affects your unit's strategy. Talk with your boss and peer managers, examine annual reports and other company publications, and listen to your CEO's speeches.
Sometimes the way in which executives allocate resources in your company can suggest something about the high-level strategy. If you observe the company is investing in acquisitions of competing firms, you might deduce that its strategy involves eradicating rivals and growing its market share.
Then use your understanding of this strategy to ensure that your group supports it.
For example, suppose your company has a clearly stated strategy of expanding into new markets overseas. You can use awareness of this high-level strategy to define your group's direction.
- If you lead a product development group, you might evaluate the appeal that your existing products have in the targeted overseas market.
- If you lead a market research group, you may want to design surveys and other tools for testing potential interest in your company's offerings in the intended new market.
- If you lead a customer service group, perhaps you'll explore how your group's services can be scaled to meet the demand of the overseas customer segment you'll be serving.
With every important decision that you weigh, ask, "Will what I'm considering doing help my unit and company carry out its strategy? Or will my proposed course of action make it more difficult for us to achieve our strategic goals?"