Strategy Execution – Establishing the Conditions for Success

The purpose of strategy execution is to turn strategic intent into operational reality. It’s the series of decisions and actions aimed at changing an organisation’s trajectory, from one taking it to its default future to one that takes it to an improved future. These decisions and actions are usually undertaken within some form of transformation programme. However, all the evidence …

Seven Common Strategy Traps – And How To Avoid Them

Developing and executing effective strategy is never easy, especially in today’s increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world. It’s something all organisations do, but some do it better than others. Developing and executing good strategy is important as it ultimately determines the fate of your organisation. But why are some organisations better at it than others? One reason is …

Mediaspace: interview with David Trafford

In this short Mediaspace video interview, David Trafford shares his thoughts on the challenges COVID-19 has brought in respect to developing strategy and delivering change. He also offers three pieces of advice to professionals in the media space who are navigating their way through these challenging times. Watch the full interview.

The Case for Greater Collective Leadership

The last chapter of our book Beyond Default – Setting Your Organization On A Trajectory To An Improved Future is called It All Starts With Collective Leadership. The reason for this is that without collective leadership an organisation has very little chance of having a collective strategy, and without a collective strategy it has very little chance of successfully changing …

Are you Practising Collective Leadership?

Collective leadership is a style of leadership where multiple individuals exercise their leadership roles within a group – and then the entire group provides leadership to the wider organisation. It’s a fluid and flexible approach to leadership, where roles and resultant accountabilities evolve in response to changing circumstances. As a result, the power of a leadership team practising collective leadership …

Operating Principles for Collective Leadership

If you believe your organisation would benefit from greater collective leadership then how can it be established? One of the most effective ways is to introduce a set of operating principles, where an operating principle is a conscious choice about how an organisation has decided to operate. It’s a conscious choice between two, or more, equally valid alternatives. In the …

Ignore Exogenous Forces At Your Peril

The influence of exogenous forces can rapidly change the context within which organisations operate, and the future they can bring. The recent COVID-19 Coronavirus is an example of one such exogenous force. A force that in recent months has dramatically changed the context of millions of people and thousands of organisations across the globe. What’s more, the impact of COVID-19 …

The True Dynamics Behind Failing Corporate Strategy

Strategy is important. It’s important because good strategy provides focus and guidance on what leaders need to do to make their organisation successful in the long term. But how is strategy developed? Is it something the CEO instinctively believes in or is it the result of a formal process led by the head of strategy and supported by external consultants? …

Succeeding in a VUCA World – New Approaches to Strategy and Change

Developing strategy and delivering change continue to be a challenge for many organisations. As a result, many leaders are shifting their focus from strategy to agility. The logic is that if their organisations were agile they would be more responsive to change and strategy would not be needed. While there is some merit to this argument, being agile is not …