Even the best strategy requires regular reviews. These are the facts. Besides, in today’s world it is hard for us to keep up with all the changes, so we should not expect this from a document written 5 years ago. At least not without our help.
It is true that a good strategy can outline the future of a company for a decade or even two. However, only an outstanding one will take into account changing circumstances and leave room for course corrections. Strategy is a tool. Let us be aware not only of its strengths, but also of its limitations.
Okay. But how do you know when it’s time for a revision and potential update? The answer is: there will be signs. You just have to know where to look for them. Fortunately, it’s a skill that can be learned.
Basic Checklist
Some of the signals are quite obvious and easy to spot. You probably know them. The following short list of red flags contains the absolute basics that most of us understand intuitively. However, we are not always able to interpret them correctly. We also do not always look for a solution in a strategy document. Therefore, first of all, look around your company for signals such as:
- Lack of Measurable KPIs – This may sound silly, but how do you know if you’ve achieved success? Without specific, quantifiable, and time-bound goals, it’s pretty hard to do. Check to see if your strategy has specific KPIs (hint: usually on the front pages). Then ask yourself if you’re actually using them telegram blast on a daily basis. It’s also worth noting that “sales” or “profit” aren’t the answer to this question. We definitely need more detail here.
- Failure to achieve goals – if we already know what measures success in our company, it will be easy for us to diagnose the next problem. Are we achieving our goals? If we are not, we need to go back to the strategy and consider where we have a discrepancy. What if we are achieving them, but at a disproportionately high cost? The solution is similar. It is worth going back to the strategy and making friends with the indicator that is ROI.
- Decrease in brand interaction – a situation in which fewer people visit our website, social media, physical store, or search for us on Google is a pretty clear warning sign, especially if this state persists. Note: the exception may be businesses that rely on seasonality: in such a situation, it is worth having control and comparing our results with the results from the seasons in previous years.
- The competition is doing better — when we start to fall behind our direct rivals in some (or, shockingly, all) areas, we need to react. Another warning sign is a sudden increase in competitive activity. Especially if we don’t understand it. Even when things are going well for us, but our environment is accelerating, it’s worth taking a look and revisiting our strategy.
Let’s not ignore these signals
Most of us try to observe the competition and know whether an advertising campaign is moving us towards our goal or just burning money. We intuitively understand why this is important. We can even interpret the sources of these problems and implement the necessary solutions. But let’s look at some of the more complex and non-obvious but common messages. All of them should set off a warning light:
We’re Attracting the Wrong Audience
Someone might say that if the product sells, then there is no problem. Unfortunately, such an approach is short-sighted. If our offer was to attract young mothers, and it became a hit among classical music fans, we should not ignore it. It is crucial to understand how our actions translate into final results. This is the only way to find out if this situation will continue and if we will be able to plan for the future.
If the implementation of the strategy consistently attracts different people than planned, it is a solid sign that something is wrong. Even if we ultimately make a profit. Moreover, such a situation can just as well become a huge opportunity, provided that we understand its causes and make appropriate changes to the strategy. LEGO almost went bankrupt blindly adhering to the idea forged in the 1930s that their products were ONLY for children. The company even tried to discourage adult customers, because that was what their strategy said. In this one respect, let’s not be like LEGO.
The fixes don’t work
The mere need to make minor adjustments to processes is not yet a warning signal. People make mistakes and we cannot predict all of them. However, if we are in the process of making adjustments and the results are not coming, it is worth reaching for the source. The strategy.
What if the changes may bring the expected effect, but we have to implement them continuously? This can also be a signal that something is wrong with our foundation. So when new, unforeseen problems appear all the time and nothing goes according to plan – let’s consider whether it is not the fault of a faulty plan.
Our team is constantly overloaded
Far too common is the scenario where managers don’t learn about problems, but they often hear about too much work. If your team has been reporting overwork for a long time, it’s a sign that it’s worth going back to basics.
The reasons for a team being overloaded can be varied. Perhaps the business has grown and new responsibilities have arisen that someone has to take care of. Perhaps the company environment has changed and employees, in order to maintain results (e.g. sales), have to put in more and more work to acquire customers. All of this may suggest that the current strategy has not kept up with the change and needs to be reorganized.
It takes too long to make changes
Is there a new opportunity on the horizon? A chance for RTM and using a trend to achieve sales goals? A new tool or feature on social media? In these situations, let’s carefully examine the reaction time our company needs to make a decision.
If we have observed that a month of meetings, discussions, and waiting for someone to return from vacation has passed from the time a new five reasons why we love platform sandals initiative is announced to the time work begins on implementing it, this can be a critical signal. It usually means that we do not have the right processes or space to quickly test and implement changes.
It is also worth observing whether such initiatives appear at all. If there have been no new ideas for months, then we can be sure of one thing – it is not the world outside the company that has stopped.
We are not talking about competition
When was the last time you checked out a competitor’s website or store? Now for the harder question: when was the last time you shared your thoughts on the subject with your team? Information tends to become outdated, and holding on to old data about our competitors is a big risk. So if their thread isn’t regularly appearing on the forum, it’s good to know that this could be a sign of trouble. After all, our competitors are also looking for new ways to improve their performance.
We rely on intuition, not data
Instinct is important and has its place in business. However, the market is evolving and we are not always able to keep up with it. Hard and measurable data is a different story. Therefore, its interpretation and insights based on it are key to making good decisions. In a company, you should use data as the basis for all your strategic decisions. Look for patterns, make predictions and take action. If you are not doing this, or if you are brazil data not collecting data at all, or do not know why you are collecting it – you need to take a step back.
We only stick to the “old and proven methods”
What does the argument look like in a company when someone asks “why”? The answer, “we’ve always done it this way,” doesn’t predict very well. Experience is worth its weight in gold, but that same experience can also be the biggest block to innovation.
The easiest way to check this is by observing new people we bring into the company. Employees at the beginning of their careers like to ask a lot of questions. Does the rest of the team give them comprehensive answers and explain the processes, or does the conversation come down to saying that this is just how it is here?
Summary: Strategy in Motion
A good strategy is not a burden or a set of rules and prohibitions. Quite the opposite. It is like an instruction manual that helps us achieve success. However, we need to take care of it. It is not a document that we will create “once and for all” and that will remain with us in an unchanged form forever. This is both a plus and a minus. The minus is that keeping the strategy up to date requires awareness and a bit of resources. The plus is that the competition usually does not know about it.
Many of the basic warning signals about strategy obsolescence come from the outside. It is extremely important to look for them. We cannot ignore it. However, if we want to use this tool to its full potential, the most important messages can be found within the organization. Often, we see the signals themselves, but we are not able to accurately determine their source, until now.
Next steps: one-time check
Here are some simple tasks you can complete right away to better understand the state of your strategy and prevent problems in the future:
- Check the date the strategy file was created and last updated.
- Review your key performance indicators (KPIs) and make sure they reflect your current business goals.
- Compare your results with your competitors and try to identify areas for improvement.
- Gather your team’s observations on the strategy. Do they know it? Do its assumptions align with their day-to-day work?
- Find out if your company collects data, and if so, what kind, and whether it uses it to plan for the future.
- Establish a schedule for regular strategy reviews to keep it current.