Confusing Strategy with Tactics
In all of my experience working with CEOs of small to mid-size businesses, if I had to choose one thing that holds companies back from their potential more than anything else it's this … confusing strategy with tactics…
Tactics are ground-level decisions about execution. The history of the word is heavily tied to “military tactics” which refers to the practice of disposing of military forces and maneuvering them in battle. It’s about how you are executing on a day to day basis. This includes aspects of the business such as managing your outbound marketing campaigns, to scheduling the manufacturing floor, hiring and firing of employees, etc. Your business would not operate without tactical thinking and execution. It is hyper pragmatic.
Strategy is, by contrast, a birds-eye view of business model level decisions and overall direction. It’s about pulling yourself out of the weeds of working IN the business day to day and viewing the landscape from above. Working ON the business. This is focused on digesting everything that is happening in your business, distilling it down to the business model, and exploring where you want to make changes or explore opportunities while recognizing the broader environment in which your business operates. It is purposefully abstracted.
If we use the analogy of driving a car, tactics are your gas pedal and brakes. Strategy is the steering wheel and the GPS. If you are focused on tactics absent strategy, it is possible to get going very fast but you may soon find your business accelerating off a cliff. Operating this way may allow you to make incremental progress over time without crashing but you’ll never be able to sustainably go fast or optimize for where you want to go without grabbing hold of the steering wheel.
The vast majority of small to mid-size businesses are stuck in tactical thinking entirely. Even those who do implement a “strategic planning process” once per year are spending way too little time thinking strategically, let alone giving that strategy the value it deserves. Most strategic plans are created and sit on a shelf until next year’s strategic planning meeting.
So what does it look like to be operating strategically? The best first practice I recommend to every CEO or business owner is to block off a set amount of time on a recurring basis to pull themselves out of operations and focus on strategy. Work ON the business. An hour and a half, once every other week is a good start. You need to be extremely disciplined about this and not schedule over this time unless the house is literally burning down. Remember, this is actually the most valuable use of your time because it will determine what direction you are heading. That 1.5 hours of work will determine how valuable the next 78.5 hours of work is.
When you’re finished, craft an email that will go out to your other shareholders, advisors, mentors, leadership team, or maybe just yourself. It should contain ~ 3 things that are going well, ~ 3 things that aren’t going well, what you’ve learned from those things, reflections on strategy, and anything you need help with. It’s a great way to communicate strategy with the people who really need to be on the same page with you about it, in a digestible and on going fashion. It’s also a way of keeping yourself accountable to being strategic and forces you to reflect.
If this sounds interesting to you and you’d like to add me to your update email list, please reach out. We’d love to help.
