Financial Times

Take a look in the mirror (II)
Strategy and Shared Values
By Nilooka Dissanayake
Happy New Year to you! Before we cross the threshold to enter the first full working week of 2004, let us finish the task we started the last time, of taking a closer look at ourselves as leaders. In this self-analysis, we used the 7S framework where the S’s stand for staff, style, skills, systems, structures, strategy and shared values. Today, let us focus on the last of these.

There are libraries full of books on strategy. And there are equally large numbers of books on shared values, consensus, visions and missions which all employees at all levels of an organisation can understand and use as a banner in marching forward to a common tune. And the one who has to achieve this task is the leader. Here are a few words of wisdom to you from Lao Tsu:

The wicked leader is he who the people despise. The good leader is he who the people revere. The great leader is he who the people say, “We did it ourselves.” That, my dear readers, is the ultimate achievement in shared values. How are we going to achieve it in our organisations in 2004? Let us think back to see what we did in this direction in 2003? Did we do anything at all? Did we succeed? What went well and what went wrong? What do we need to change in 2004 to be more effective at making our team members all proud to stand under one banner, of our organisation?

Do our employees and team members see the company or organisation as we see it ourselves? It is difficult for new people to see, understand and appreciate what we went through before they joined us. A sense of belonging and a sense of ownership have to be built into the value structure of new employees. That is our task as leaders. Then only can we have any hope of their feeling a sense of ownership for the direction and success of the organisation.

In an article I read recently, Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad discuss strategic intent. They begin the article by stating that strategic intent is the obsession of companies to arrive at a global leadership position over a 10 or even 20-year period. According to them, most of these companies began initially with “ambitions that were out of all proportion to their resources and capabilities.” Then, they go on to distinguish these companies with the long view from those that are seeking short-term glory, profitability and satisfying the needs of shareholders.

I decided to speak of this article originally published in Harvard Business Review, May/June 89 because it lays out clearly a road map for us to follow if we wish to link strategic intent to shared values and a vision. This is because strategic intent captures the essence of winning. It also stays stable over time.

More importantly, strategic intent is clear to employees so that it sets targets that deserve personal effort and commitment. To spell it out in my blunt style, it is pretty difficult for an employee to feel driven by the need to pay a fat dividend cheque to unknown shareholders at the year end.

On the other hand, it is very easy for them to identify with the cry to “be number one,” “be the most popular” product, service or company or “beat Benz” (as one Japanese car maker expressed its strategic intent).

According to Hamel and Prahalad, these companies that overcome resource constraints over time, also have a different relationship between the means and ends from the traditional throw money at a project to succeed approach. While strategic intent is clear about the ends, it leaves the means relatively undefined.

A clever thing too, because it then allows companies, managers and teams to use their ingenuity to derive breakthroughs out of inadequate resources. The authors liken strategic intent to a marathon run in 400 metre sprints. Since no one knows what the ground will look like in the 26 th mile, the role of top management is to focus their attention on the ground to be covered in the next 400 meters. Strategic intent implies a capacity for stretch and flexibility. This is always a challenge.

For this challenge to produce results, it is necessary that everyone within the organisation understands the ultimate goal and the need for stretching right now, today in each of their jobs. To achieve this, the experience of companies such as Ford and IBM and many others have shown that the top managers have to do all of the following in an organised and sensitive manner:

*Create a sense of urgency.
*Develop a competitor focus at all levels in the organisation.
*Provide employees with the skills to work effectively.
*Keep your challenging undertakings under control, without bombarding employees with new challenges every day.
* Establish clear milestones and review mechanisms to track progress towards the ultimate goal.

Can we do that in 2004? Can we at least begin? Do please give it some thought. Over the next few weeks, let me focus on strategies for small business because I am planning to put my role as leader under the microscope just as I have been telling you. As a result the strategy area will gain more and more attention in my day-to-day life.

What other areas do you want us to focus on in this series? You can contact us on ft@sundaytimes.wnl.lk or on 5-552524 The writer is the Managing Editor of Athwela Vyaparika Sangarawa (Athwela Business Journal), the only Sinhala management monthly targeting the small and medium enterprises and its English version, Small Business International magazine.

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