Strategy, Operations, Tactics, and the Transition out of Start-up Mode

A business begins, usually, with a vision. Who we are, what we do, and for whom. The vision may (should?) even include an exit goal, and possibly a competitive advantage.  

In order to make the vision a reality, the business leaders set the business strategy. Setting strategic goals requires careful consideration of alternatives, long time horizons, limited resources, and must account for uncertainty. 

Once the business strategy is set, business owners must plan operations in order to best achieve the strategic goals. Operations plans to manage people, processes, and systems. Successfully managing operations requires attention to detail and follow-through.

The business's operational plans are executed tactically. Tactics are the basic blocking and tackling skills of work that can apply to any operational plan or strategic goal. Basic selling skills, for example, is a basic tactical skill set that can be managed in accordance with the business's operational plan to achieve the current strategic objective. 

Businesses need all three, and in a small business, the same people may be managing or executing all three. Top managers need to avoid getting so bogged down in operations they can't take time to consider strategies - the business can become an operational ghost ship,   

Operational level managers need to devote some time and attention to improving employee tactical skills. A great plan can fail if the people executing the plan do not have the skills to execute the plan properly.

As the company grows, you will find that moving people so that they do not have to operate on all three levels pays dividends. The entrepreneur or President should have the goal of spending more time on strategy, less on operations, and none on tactical execution. A lot of the friction in a growing company will come because the strategic demands on the top increase as the stakes increase (more money, more options to consider, more risk) but the strategic level decision-makers are still bogged down by the inability to hand off tactical business tasks they performed in the start-up stage.

This transition from start-up where everyone is a tactical executor to a professionalized model where the top-level managers can focus on planning and not doing is a difficult one, but understanding the different spheres and making conscious choices about work roles is a good first step.