Strategic Thinking Training For Managers & Leaders
Not so long ago, strategic thinking was all about creating a powerful positioning and establishing brilliant tactics to defend that position.
The goal was to chart the course and not veer from it. Things have changed. The world has changed. In today’s globalized world, the strategic thinker needs to possess intellectual agility.
The strategic thinker needs to understand and adapt to different competitive landscapes, quickly.
The strategic thinker is a nimble, disciplined thinker who is willing to apply different concepts to reach astute decisions. It seems as though traditional models of strategic management and decision-making will not suffice if an organization wants to thrive.
Today’s definition of strategic thinking must include exploring all possible organizational futures by challenging conventional thinking, assessing both internal and external impacts, and including imagination to redefine the rules of the competitive game.
Target Audience
- Anyone who is involved and has responsibility for business planning
The Problem
- Organizations often confuse strategic thinking with strategic thinking. They are two separate activities.
- Strategic thinking, unlike strategic planning, should be a daily activity, not a once-a-year event.
- Strategic thinkers need to feel safe in bringing up challenges to current beliefs and mindsets. This sense of safety doesn’t exist in many organizations.
Our Solution
To learn to. . .
- Identify opportunities through exposure to competitive analysis and other tools
- Recognize the role of creative thinking in building and evaluating a strategy
- Practice methodologies for clarifying and magnifying roadblocks to competitive advantage
- Examine ways to communicate a strategy that will garner support from all stakeholders
Course Outline
Opening: Welcome, introductions, icebreaker (Herrmann’sBrain Dominance Model)
Define Strategic Thinking: Identify five habits of strategic thinkers, benefits of strategic thinkers to your organization, roadblocks to strategic thinking
Improve Your Strategic Thinking: Question your own opinions, surround yourself with people who see your world differently, recharge
Utilize the Four Elements of Strategy: Where do we intend to be at some point in the future, what are we going to focus our resources on next, and how will we execute the strategy, create a criterion that lets you know when it’s time to change a strategic approach
Communicate Strategy: Keep your message simple, use a framework discipline inspire/educate/reinforce, put on your “real person” hat, and tell a story that includes the unexpected