Developing Strategic Intelligence

You are in a team meeting. It all seems to be going well and then the senior manager in the room announces, 'Lets get out of the weeds here and start sorting out a new business approach. I'm looking for fresh strategic thinking...'

What do you do?

So, one voice in your left ear says, 'This is your big chance, take it.' And another voice in your right ear says, 'Be careful, this could go seriously wrong.' Part of the secret of success in this situation is to join the conversation and show that, no matter how new you are to strategy, you can think strategically and contribute to a strategic conversation. This step will help you hold your own and, maybe, even impress. 

Thinking strategically and why it matters?

We are sure you have met and been impressed by people who spoke confidently and fluently on a topic. If you want to impress others and win them over to your ideas, you need to understand what it means to think strategically and articulate the language of strategy with the same confidence and fluency. Lets' exercise your strategic thinking muscles.

Read through the following statements and decide whether the statement reflects:

a) 'Strategic Thinking' or

b) 'Not Strategic Thinking'

Here we go....

1. It's my managers job to be thinking strategic!
2. How would we deal with a change in market conditions?
3. Lets' hire them and work out what department to place them in later!
4. What roles do I need to drive transformation and growth?
5. How should I build my career to ensure I make the most of opportunities?
6. Lets make more decisions designed to deliver long-term outcomes!
7. What am I going to watch on Netflix this weekend?
8. Why change something which is not broken?
9. What plan should we have to attract and hold onto high performers?
10. Why do we need to achieve these financial objectives?

How did you go flexing your strategic thinking muscles?

'Strategic Thinking' Answers: 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10

'Not Strategic Thinking' Answers: 1, 3, 7, 8

As witnessed in this previous activity we were able to switch gears and get you to think in deliberate different ways. It is clear and true that we all need to become strategic thinkers! Strategic thinking is a textbook example of an ‘important, not urgent’ activity that tends to get pushed aside by the day to day. Without prioritizing strategic thinking correctly, changes in technology, customer demands, and competition start to challenge our ability to be agile.

Increasing your capability to embrace strategic thinking?

To be different is not necessarily to be ugly; to have a different idea is not necessarily to be wrong. The worst possible thing is for all of us to begin to look and talk and act and think alike.” - Gene Roddenberry

The original series of Star Trek first aired in 1966 and created a whole crew of iconic characters and catch phrases.

One of the draws of the show was the duality of character and approach presented by Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. These two characters stand out for their thinking styles and strategy approaches to some of the big issues they need to tackle.

Click the <play> button to observe their individual thinking styles and strategy approaches.

Take a moment to think about the two different thinking styles you observed.

Kirk was passionate and emotional. He was famous for his leaps of intuition and ambitious have-a-go action.

Spock was coldly logical. He was famous for his logical approach through rational analysis.

Are you a Spock or a Kirk by preference?

In the original TV series, neither approach was especially demonised, and crucially the collaboration between logic and emotion enabled them to solve complex problems in innovative ways. The characters presented a vision of opposing ideas working together to produce something greater than either on their own could ever manage. They are a great team because they combine both approaches.

When you are considering contributing a strategic thought, do not be afraid to share logic and intuition. But also notice when you are in a group what the preference of others in the room are and be aware of how your preference might impact.

Identifying your strategic thinking style?

Now take a minute to think about the two approaches. Are you a Spock or a Kirk by preference? Or are you a mix of both?

Planning Strategy: The Spock Approach

You are more like a Spock strategist if you like:

• a formalised system using a specific sequence of models and frameworks
• calendar-based planning
• thinking led by a senior leader
• analysis and hard data
• extrapolating from the past
• intellectually thinking things through
• left-brain, logical risk analysis
• sticking to the plan

Crafting Strategy: The Kirk Approach

You are more like a Kirk strategist if you like:

• an informal approach with various models and frameworks
• reviewing the process as necessary
• everyone engaged in the process
• synthesising ideas and feelings
• searching for future discontinuities
• pragmatic responsive doing
• right-brain, creative, intuitive effort
• adopting opportunistic changes

Kirking or Spocking out? Which do you find yourself doing more often? We all exhibit ‘intuition' and 'logic’. Sometimes we lose track of our intuition, 'Spocking out' as we get absorbed in the day-to-day business. Other times we can 'Kirk out' to the extent we lose 'logic' and never get around to starting our next big idea.

To develop a more rounded approach, consider the following:

1. Ask oneself what you could do to further develop your strengths.
2. Plan what you need to put into place to develop new skills important to your career goals.
3. Observe others to work out what their preference is.
4. Find opportunities to collaborate with those who do not share your natural preference.
5. Adapt your style to influence others who do not share your natural preference.

In Summary

Be ready and willing to speak up and speak out about strategic issues, even if you are not certain about the answer. Taking actions to increase your strategic intelligence will set you on the path to flex your strategic thinking muscles more often. If you want to really grow and become excellent at strategy start learning everywhere.

What are your approaches for developing strategic intelligence?

Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Reference: Harvard Business Review How to Demonstrate Your Strategic Thinking Skills (hbr.org)