You're aiming to succeed in a strategy career. What essential skills should you focus on mastering?

Risk taking and its mitigation is also one of the core skills needed. One needs to balance being bold with being prudent, always considering the potential impact of risks on the organization’s long-term goals.

One thing that can be out one determinative in establishing and articulating strategy is establishing your target end state in advance. Analyzing data, drawing connections where none seem readily apparent and motivating follower-ship are certainly useful skills. In my experience, however, establishing where you are going, what you in State consist of enable you to focus your analysis, communicate more effectively and consistently reference that in the medically throughout the stages of strategy development, articulation, deployment, and achievement

Effective listening is critical especially to those who will be delivering the strategy. Authenticity and empathy, if you are not credible and you cannot relate to the people involved in the execution, chances are colleagues will question how realistic/ relatable is your decision making and whether it is flawed. Fully understanding the implications of the strategy in terms of people, processes, organisational design etc. and the ability/carrying capacity of the organisation to effectively respond to what is being proposed.

Creativity is a jump from known to unknown. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …………………………. That’s all. While knowing helps…have courage to risk the unknown.

Early in my strategy consulting career, I realized that creativity, not just analysis, drives impactful solutions. When a client faced challenges in a saturated market, traditional methods fell short. By thinking creatively, we developed a disruptive business model that opened new opportunities. In strategy consulting, creativity isn’t optional—it’s essential. It enables us to find unique solutions and stand out in a field where innovation makes all the difference.

Breakdown the silos. If you normally don’t work with a stakeholder, have a discussion with them. Find out how you both can help each other and increase customer touch points. Be open minded, and have courage to try something new.

It really helps to have a broad perspective - vision, metaphorical thinking, a “what if” mindset. You also need to be comfortable being wrong.

It’s about knowing well…. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. That’s all. It’s about seeing and feeling. Less about speaking

The only way to succeed is to listen and communicate nicely... After that you should have a creative and critical thinking for each obstacle that will arise during the journey.

Communicating the strategy happens long before it is finalized. While many argue strategy development is often a top-down exercise, communicating and getting as many (types of) stakeholders involved is essential. This can be achieved through inviting them into brainstorming sessions to stress-test early versions of the plan and peer-review objectives set beyond their particular domains. Once the stakeholders feel listened to, they end up championing your plan leading to smoother execution.

I’ve found that adjusting how you present ideas based on your audience—whether you’re speaking to senior leaders, peers, subordinates, or contractors—can significantly impact how well your message is received. Taking the time to understand what resonates with each group and tailoring your approach ensures clearer, more effective communication and better outcomes.

Often as a strategist you don’t have authority to make decisions - instead you provide options, make recommendations based on various inputs. Having power to make decisions is also rare. So you have to use Influence to make the leadership group make decisions.

"A strategy is a series of guiding principles that, when communicated and adopted in an org, produce a desired pattern of decision making." (per HBR) In my experience, Strategy professionals place too much focus on decision rights and decision making, but not on building the principles that empower decision making in the org. Decisions don't have to be centralized when you have good tools. I've used the Decision Quality process to both improve the velocity, creativity in decision making. It's easy to learn, even easier to teach and adopt. It can be used to create strategic guiding principles and to analyze key single decisions. Building a culture of high quality decision making is better than being good at it yourself. Don't you think?

Decision-making is not solely about data. While analysis is crucial, trust your intuition and believe in your abilities. By combining data-driven insights with your instincts, you can make more confident and effective decisions. Surely utilize frameworks like SWOT analysis, seek diverse perspectives, practice mindfulness, and trust your intuition. By incorporating these techniques, you can become a more confident and effective strategist, capable of driving successful outcomes.

In strategic roles, the ability to make informed decisions under pressure is essential. It requires a careful balance of assessing risks, weighing options, and understanding long-term implications. My experience leading large-scale transformations, especially during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic, has reinforced the importance of clear, decisive action. Effective decision-making ensures that strategies are grounded in reality and can deliver tangible results

The art of a great strategy leader is to: > simplify the complex > bring clarity where there is confusion > encourage curiosity from all involved > make it safe for everyone to be part of the dialogue > allow diverse thinking to flourish Simple really....

Elon Musk often says, “the most common error about smart people, is to optimize the process that should not exist in the first place”. 1. Focus on the “WHY” 2. Build & learn from a diverse network of people 3. Reflect and connect the dots 4. Writing down our thoughts & articulating it definitely helps 5. Think win-win 6. Adopt a macro point of view 7. Out read the other guy

Leadership qualities for strategic thinking and implementation requires unit contributions. Be collaborative. Yet ready to push forward. Look like you are always moving. Be adaptive yet able to follow. Be smart yet enable others. It’s in these paradoxical habits that you find your strategic voice!

????????Be flexible and open to change!!!!! The business environment is constantly evolving, and your ability to adapt quickly will keep you ahead of the curve. In adition, build a deep understanding of business fundamentals, including market dynamics, financial principles, tech trends and competitive landscapes.

Leadership in practical way means people managements. Learning how to manage “up” is as crucial as knowing how to manage “down”.

Strategic thinking is a process of continuous learning. From observation to the identification of the core challenges, from solution development and testing to deciding to implement the solution, learning is the key enabler of strategic thinking. The learning process is not always steady and linear, instead it’s full of spirals, loops and changes in direction as we deal with strategic questions such as why, how, and what. Human’s curiosity drives them to seek out learning in variety of ways. We as humans are learners by nature. We watch, read, listen, feel, think, experience and ask questions. Learning is the process of transforming experience into purposeful action. For learning to happen we also need to have the ability to reflect.

Never assume you know all the answers inside your own business: Listen to your teams, ask your customers, reach out to your past customers, industry analysts, and monitor competitive language. The ability to be a humble learner who can listen, uncover patterns and identify opportunities is critical to being respected as a strategic leader. Additionally, never stop learning new technology or methodologies. If you are in any tech sector, double down here. The moment you find yourself an expert in a specific technology, you must ask yourself if you are equally skilled in the next gen technology. Because strategy moves pretty fast... if you don't look around once in awhile... you might miss it. Good luck out there and always be learning.

Throughout my career, I’ve been driven by a deep curiosity about what’s next, always eager to explore new ideas and innovations. This drive has not only kept me engaged but has also given me broad exposure across different areas of business and technology. I’ve found that this wide-ranging experience allows me to share insights that are uniquely my own, while also valuing the diverse perspectives others bring to the table. I believe the most powerful strategies are born from a blend of different viewpoints, and I’m committed to fostering an environment where collaboration and inclusivity lead to truly innovative outcomes.

Continuous learning has to be the part of the routine if you ever want to become a strategic leader. It doesn't have to be learning about a new methodology or a technique. It can also be keeping an effective listening mode to learn from your clients, peers, and even from individuals who are rather inexperienced from you. A true Listener can learn everyday and creates a continuous learning journey.

Pensar estrategicamente é definir como mover um business de um ponto A para um ponto B gerenciando variáveis que você domina mas principalmente aquelas que você n?o domina, como o mercado. Por isso, conhe?a o seu mercado e a dinamica dele e, principalmente, conhe?a seus clientes e seus concorrentes. Uma vis?o estratégica de sucesso n?o só contempla as condi??es de mercado, posicionamento dos concorrentes e necessidades dos clientes como antecipa todas elas posicionando seu negócio sempre um passo a frente dos demais, tornado-o mais resiliente e até gerando demadas em seus clientes que nem eles sabiam que tinham.