How to Know Whether Your Strategy Is a Good Strategy

As a strategy advisor and mentor, I often encounter organizations struggling to determine whether their strategy is truly effective.

While no foolproof method guarantees success, you can significantly improve your odds by applying these three critical tests.

1?? Is It a Strategy?

Many documents labeled as "strategies" are not genuine strategies. To assess whether your document qualifies, apply Peter Compo 's five disqualifiers:

• Is it a list of things to do?
• Does it include numbers?
• Is the opposite of the strategy absurd?
• Is it a duplicate of the parent strategy?
• Does it exclude anything or anyone in the organization?

If you answer "yes" to any of these questions, you likely don't have a real strategy.

Sorry ????♂?, but it's time to start over.

Passing these tests only tells you whether you have a strategy, not whether it’s a good one.

2?? Is It a Good Strategy?

Once you have established that you do indeed have a strategy, the next step is to ensure its quality by evaluating it against these formal criteria:

• Basics: Does your strategy answer the basic questions relevant to its level (ecosystem, corporate, business, functional)?
• Challenge: Does it clearly identify the key challenge to be resolved?
• Vital Elements: Does it distinguish between trivial and essential elements of the challenge?
• Central Rule: Does it define a central guiding policy for resolving the challenge? This is the core of your strategy, really. Strategy is the answer to the challenges you face on the journey to achieving your ambitions.
• Choices and Trade-offs: Does it make clear choices and trade-offs, outlining what you will and will not do?
• Coherence: Are the different elements aligned and supportive of each other in addressing the challenge?

3?? Is It a Winning Strategy?

Finally, a good strategy must have the potential to be a winning strategy. Assess your strategy against these criteria to determine its potential for success:

• Fit: Does it fit with the current environmental context?
• Positioning: Does it position your business to create a sustainable competitive advantage?
• Value: Is it clear how your strategy will create unique value for customers, stakeholders, and the company?
• Action-oriented: Does it allow you to translate your understanding of the challenge and the central rule into specific, actionable steps?
• Leverage: Does it focus on high-impact actions that exploit your essential resources, strengths, and core capabilities?
• Feasibility: Is it implementable with the resources available?
• Logic and Assumptions: Is it based on clear and compelling logic? Does it outline and test the assumptions it’s based on?

If you find yourself answering “no” to any of these questions, identify what needs improvement. If you answered "yes" to all questions, congratulations! You've developed a great strategy with the potential to be a real winner.

Now, it’s time to go out and live it.

Final Thoughts

Ensuring your strategy is robust and effective requires rigorous evaluation. By following these tests, you can reinforce your strategy and enhance your organization’s chances of achieving its goals. As always, stay committed and focused, and refine your strategy to navigate the ever-changing business landscape successfully.

Connect with me for more insights on crafting and evaluating winning strategies. Let's transform your strategic vision into reality!