Surely you have heard the word “strategy” too many times, but it is very likely that you still do not know exactly what a strategy is, how to create a strategy, or how to implement a strategy.
So in this article we will tell you all of the above and additionally, you will find a list of strategy books in e-book format.
Let us begin…
What is a strategy
The definition of strategy according to the Royal Academy of Language is: Art of directing military operations. (Strategy comes from the greek Strategoswhich refers to the person with higher command in the military)
However, strategies have a place in other areas. So a more global definition would be the following:
A strategy is an action taken to achieve one or more of the objectives.
And in an entrepreneurial or business environment, A strategy is a general direction established for the company and its various components, to achieve a desired state in the future..
Additionally, the strategy is a well-defined roadmap of an organization that allows maximizing the strengths of an organization and minimizing the strengths of competitors.
Before moving on to the types of strategy, it is important to make a clarification:
Difference Between Strategy and Tactics
Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu wrote in his acclaimed book The Art of War: “Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.
Think about strategy at the macro (long-term) level and tactics at the micro (short-term) level. That is, to execute a strategy, a series of tactics must be carried out.
For example:
Your company needs to increase sales and the strategy they have is to win the hearts of buyers from the competition. To do this they will use a tactic: Strong campaigns in social networks aimed at the target of the competition.
Strategy Types
Corporative strategy
This type of strategy generally occurs in corporations that have other businesses under their control. For example in the case of Unileverwho own brands like Knorr, Axe, Pond’s and many others.
corporate strategy describes the general direction of the company in terms of its various businesses and product lines. So the decisions made will define the long-term objectives and will generally affect the businesses that are “under the umbrella”. Some decisions may be investments, mergers and/or acquisitions.
Business strategy
Strategies that relate to a particular business are known as business strategies. It is generally developed by general managers, who convert mission and vision into concrete strategies.
More specifically, It’s like a blueprint for the whole business. that seeks to use the resources and distinctive competencies of a company, to gain a competitive advantage over its rivals in a market.
Functional Strategy
Functional strategy occurs at a departmental level within a business. Therefore it is common to hear about advertising, financial, production strategies; etc.
The goal of a functional strategy is Develop a distinctive competency to provide a business unit, or department, with a competitive advantage.
How to create a strategy
Marc Emmer, author of the book Momentum: How companies decide what to do next, and president of Optimize; share 8 tips to learn how to create a strategy efficiently.
Develop a vision.
The easiest way for you to get an idea of the vision (different from the mission of a company), is to think of a picture of how you imagine your business in the future.
What are your aspirations? What percentage of the market will be yours?…Think about where you want to get to in a given time.
Define a competitive advantage.
What will you do that others won’t do?… It’s not easy to find an answer, but it will be worth it when you find it.
Unless you’re in an underexplored niche, having a competitive advantage is ideal; since only then will you separate yourself from your competitors and customers will be able to see you.
Set your goals.
If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll hardly get there. The vision will mark a north, but the goals will be the objectives that yes or yes you must achieve. That is why it is essential that you set your goals intelligently.
In point #1 of this article, you can find how to set goals with the SMART method.
Focus on systematic growth.
A very important part of understanding what a strategy is is knowing which areas of your business (or of yourself, if it is a personal development strategy) should grow and how you will do it. Defining this will make it easier for you to create the entire strategy and cost sharing.
Make decisions based on facts.
Facts and information do not lie. Analyze what have been the results you have obtained and with what actions. Or in case your strategy is not based on anything you have done, investigate how other people have done to achieve their goals.
Remember that the past is there to teach us not to repeat mistakes.
think long term…
The percentage of people whose lives change overnight is very low, so the healthiest thing is not to dream that this will be your case.
On the other hand, if you realize that what you want is going to take time and you have enough mentality and motivation to work every day, it is very likely that you will achieve it. Additionally, getting great results takes time; is a reality.
…But you must be agile.
If you don’t hurry, your competitors will get there first. It is important that you can think long term but that is not synonymous with going slowly.
To avoid falling “asleep” you can put dates on each tactic you are going to implement. And additionally, constantly review what is happening in your niche, since some external factors can change key points of your strategy and you must be able to adapt quickly.
Select your team very well.
To develop a promising strategy, you must surround yourself with the best team. So think carefully about each goal and compare the requirements with the abilities of each member; in this way you will know who is more suitable.
You should also consider how each other’s personalities play off with the rest of the team. This will allow you to handle effective communication that speeds up processes and helps you maneuver in times of crisis.
By now we have seen what is a strategy, strategy types Y how to create a strategy. But this is useless if you do not execute it perfectly. A plan without action is absolutely nothing. Or well, yes it is something: a waste of time.
So before you see how to implement a strategy, I would like to ask you a favor. Simply vote from 1 to 5 to see how you’ve found this article so far. Thank you very much!
How to implement a strategy
All the effort invested in planning the strategies makes your plan seem foolproof. Also, it looks pretty good in the Power Point presentation; but everything can fall apart if that great strategy is not executed perfectly.
So you should pay attention to 3 details:
Communicate clearly.
Your strategy must be completely clear and transparent. Otherwise, your implementation will be a complete failure.
The entire work team must be absolutely aware of everything. Make it clear to them what their role is, give them the opportunity to ask questions, and create lines of communication to provide feedback as quickly as possible.
follow the progress
Each team member must work towards their goal every day. Since in your plan you established very specific and measurable goals, you will be able to hold short weekly meetings to see the progress.
Promote accountability
As implementation progresses, it is important that you share the status with your team. The good, the bad… EVERYTHING! In this way you will show them transparency, and seeing how their work is giving results will give them motivation.
strategy books
If you want to go a little further, you can find quite a few books on strategy, how to implement it and everything you must take into account to make it a total success. Below you will find a list of 16 strategy books in ebook format:
conclusion
Since strategies are essential for any organization, all management decisions must be consistent with its objectives.
Also, it is important that you do not forget that at the beginning it may seem somewhat complicated, but creating a strategy is the only way you have to organize all your resources and achieve your goals.
I hope this information is very useful to you 🙂
And remember, if you are really interested in creating your own business, you can read our book “How to create a company while working: Discover how to manage your time, manage your money and motivate yourself while creating a company and working for another” , where you will find all the information you need to found your own company, without having to leave your job.
