Strategic Thinking & Strategic Action

Fostering strategic thinking and strategic action by organizational leaders since 2007.

Self doubt and strategic planning
Strategic planning Lee Crumbaugh Strategic planning Lee Crumbaugh

Self doubt and strategic planning

Have you been in a situation where you thought you knew something, but then as you tried to explain it to someone else you realized there were serious gaps in your knowledge or logic?

I was led to doubting the depth of my knowledge this past week as I was working with AI to turn my FastTrack™ Strategic Planning System into a web-based application. The FastTrack™ system is something I have developed and used to help organizations create and implement strategic plans over my 37-year career as a strategy consultant.

It was in writing the introductory text for the Objectives and Key Performance Indicators sections when I realized that I had incomplete knowledge of how to develop organizational objectives and use them in setting KPIs or, perhaps more accurately, at the least I had never really had to explain in depth how the process worked.

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The secret sauce of successful plan implementation
Strategic planning Lee Crumbaugh Strategic planning Lee Crumbaugh

The secret sauce of successful plan implementation

I have been working diligently with my clients the last quarter of this year to assure that they have their strategic business plans in place for the New Year.

Each now has a vision of great success, strategies for getting there, and action steps and strategic initiatives laid out for the next 12 months to move them toward their vision.

You might think with their action plan written, my clients are ready to achieve greater success when January 1 rolls around.

Well, without something else, maybe you can call it the special sauce of execution, the odds are too high that they will not implement their plans or that implementation may peter out after a strong start. Just like so many New Year’s resolutions are abandoned.

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