Strategy Redefined: The Intelligent Art of Navigation Through the Invisible Barriers

After several strategy-focused editions within this “Digital CXO Advisor” LinkedIn newsletter, I found that the time has come and that it is better to sharply define what I usually mean by the word “Strategy’ when I talk about business or enterprise strategy. This sharp definition will help define the strategy in its simplest form or more accurately in its fundamental essence.?

The intention is not to introduce a new formal or academic definition for the strategy, but to provide an insight into the "Minimum Perspective" that I usually take into consideration when talking about the strategy in these editions. This perspective shouldn’t be expected to cover the many existing definitions of the strategy and/or the several images of the strategy that usually co-exist. Simply, just, setting the starting point to ensure that all readers are on the same page.

In the age of "Artificial Intelligence", the definition is expected to contain an intelligent side. However, "Human Intelligence" should be considered as the logical basis for understanding all artificial intelligence systems. Of course, the historical intent was to transfer human intelligence to the machines to let them think and act like humans.?Human Intelligence in its simplest definition contains two major components, which are “Environmental Awareness” as well as the ability to take “Proper Actions”. Through these two basic components, humans can achieve their goals.

Hence, in the "Business" context, environment awareness means the ability to discover invisible barriers. For example, the market saturation level and rate may not be visible factors, but the decision-makers should first be aware that market saturation level and rate concepts exit, and they should be able to understand how they may act as invisible barriers to their actions. Here, comes the second component, which is the ability to take the proper actions. Taking the proper action means the ability to find the best fit between the actions taken by the decision-makers and the environment. For example, they should stop investing in their advertising campaigns when the market saturation level is reached by a noticeable rate. Taking non-best-fit actions generates resistive responses from the invisible barriers in the surrounding environment. For example, any additional advertising campaigns will be a waste of time and money.

As "Strategic Thinking" is considered one of the highest intelligent thinking acts by humans, formulating a strategy is by definition, a human intelligence act. Hence, in the "Strategy Formulation" context, environment awareness means the ability to discover invisible barriers such as discovering the environmental "Critical Success Factors" that may not be visible, but the decision-makers should first be aware that the critical success factors concept exists, and they should be able to understand how they may act as invisible barriers to their actions. For example, having a well-established "Data Strategy" is a critical success factor for any "AI Strategy", which may not be a visible factor. The decision-makers should first be aware that the data strategy concept exists, and they should be able to understand how poor data strategy may act as an invisible barrier to their actions.

The second component is the ability to take proper actions. Taking the proper action means the ability to build "Core Competencies" that enable careful intelligent navigation through these invisible barriers. For example, they should stop dealing with the "Data" as an operational asset. They should deal with the data as a "Strategic Asset". Taking non-best-fit actions, in which the core competencies don’t match the critical success factors, generates resistive responses from the invisible barriers in the surrounding environment. For example, any operational-oriented data strategy will be a waste of time and money.

Hence, the "Business or Enterprise Strategy" should be designed based on a deep understanding of the enterprise’s environment and its critical success factors or the invisible barrier as well as focusing on building core competencies that can match these critical success factors and enable intelligent navigation through them.

?