How can strategic thinking help you lead organizational change?

Strategic thinking is a crucial capability for several reasons. At executive level, strategic thinkers provide visionary leadership, establishing and navigating paths that secure and enhance the organization’s sustainable competitive advantage. On top of that, embedding strategic thinking throughout an organization will help improve its adaptability and creativity when, improving problem-solving and ensuring not only its survival but also its thriving in a complex business environment.

Strategic thinking shows that you are planning for the future, not just the here and now. Though it should always be backed with some kind of logic and what steps can be taken towards any strategic goals.

I agree that strategic thinking is about planning and analysis, and also about creativity and innovation. What I would add, is that it is also about making choices & providing clarity to the organization. A clear strategy needs to define what actions the organization is going to take, and also what it is not going to take (e.g. we are going to grow through innovation in existing categories/verticals. We are not planning to enter new verticals or look to acquire new businesses). This clarity allows the organization to focus.

Strategic thinking can help us in leading organizational change by providing a roadmap and a clear vision. We can utilize strategic planning to set long-term goals and priorities. By thinking strategically, we can anticipate challenges, adapt to new circumstances, and align the organization with change initiatives. This approach allows us to make informed decisions, allocate resources effectively, and communicate the change plan to the team. Ultimately, strategic thinking ensures a structured and purposeful approach to successfully lead organizational change.

Speaking in terms of a modern day company or organisation the setting of clearly defined, well understood ( by everybody concerned) and achievable goals within reasonable time frames, is I believe the epitomy of strategic thinking.

In my experience it’s not an absence of strategic thinking that hinders the implementation of change, it’s the inability to meet people where they are and help them see what’s in it for them!!!

While strategic thinking is important, relying too heavily on structured strategic plans can limit leaders during complex change. The most effective change leaders blend strategic discipline with agile adaptation. They engage stakeholders in co-creating strategies rather than dictating steps. Two-way communication and listening helps strategies organically evolve based on people's needs. Leaders still guide with purpose but flex based on feedback. Data is key but so is emotional intelligence and intuition. Over-strategizing without empathy risks resistance

Too many organizations try to "engineer" change top down, then get surprised by the slow, reluctant adoption their carefully crafted messages, presentations and plans create. Strategic thinking should recognize this and incorporate experiments, checkpoints and explicit mechanisms to re-evaluate progress, assess new information and adapt course / plan. In a nutshell: make adaption and agility part of the strategic thinking practice.

Leaders who think strategically use data and other information to identify what the risks, opportunities, and impacts are as it relates to the organizational change. These insights inform the development of a change management strategy and implementation plans; however, this is not enough. Qualitative insights from impacted stakeholders (aka - the people who must change their behaviors) are critical. Data can establish direction, while taking the time to understand how people will experience (react/respond to) the change - and then taking aligned action to help them overcome self-concerns, get on-board, feel inspired, and take ownership is the foundation for success.

El pensamiento estratégico es una competencia esencial que debe desarrollar un líder, por medio del pensamiento estratégico se busca que todos en la organización entiendan las circunstancias del entorno de la compañía y sus desafíos, así como el impacto e importancia del trabajo de cada miembro del equipo en el logro de los objetivos de la empresa.

When it comes to developing work skills, there is the challenge of opportunity. It is not unusual for professionals in sole-contributor roles to face challenges in finding opportunities to flex, in this case, the strategic thinking 'muscles'. More so, there is the added pressure of performing if their organizational culture does not foster stretch goals and associated growing pains. Still, there are always options to work on one's development and one that stands out is seeking voluntary leadership roles in non-profit or similar organizations. The change in environment and role expectations will provide opportunities to stretch and grow in preparation for your next step. With the added benefit of having an impact on a cause you care about.

The most strategic leaders share common traits of curiosity, cognitive flexibility, and future-mindedness. They synthesize broad information into decisive, aligned actions. Things that I suggest my clients 1. Journal strategic reflections on decisions, analyzing what went well or poorly. 2. Analyzing emerging trends and creating future scenarios. Clients practice forecasting and considering long-term implications. 3. Expanding knowledge across disciplines through reading, courses, conferences.

Franklin Covey said it best: begin with the end in mind. I've implemented HR Information systems and cultural changes, and the most important thing is sometimes the simplest: where do I want to go, and how do I get there? Who has to buy in? What does their current state look like, what will the future state be, and how can I paint the picture best to influence them? Let's face reality head-on as well: there will be bumps and stumbling blocks, and we need to recognize them when they happen and mitigate them. Leading change needs to be transparent. It can have some misses, but taking feedback and continuing to enhance the change builds buy-in.

By incorporating strategic thinking into your daily routine and setting aside dedicated time to consistently reflect on broader contexts. You can't foster creativity while operating under the pressures of tight deadlines and burnout. Creativity flourishes through engaging in meaningful discussions, focused deep work, extensive reading, and nurturing your innate sense of curiosity.

Get involved in the design of future states to address both technical and adaptive challenges. Find ways to get involved in activities to address challenges in areas that you have little experience in. Focus first on context/ecosystem then on outcomes and work your way to solutions and new outcomes.

Work with key stakeholders to think through and align on the vision for change by answering the questions: 1) What’s changing? 2) Why are we changing? 3) What’s in it for the organization, customers, the delivery team, and other relevant stakeholders? Make this change vision your collective North Star.

To lead organizational change using strategic thinking skills, I recommend: - Create a comprehensive plan outlining the change's objectives, strategies, and anticipated outcomes. - Prioritize gaining buy-in from key stakeholders, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and desired culture/behaviors. - Understand the change's impact on the organization and identify what remains unchanged. This understanding helps in formulating strategies to mitigate potential resistance and ensure a smoother transition. - Maintain open and frequent communication at every stage of the change process is vital. Transparent communication builds trust, manages expectations, and addresses concerns, ultimately facilitating a successful organizational change.

Strategic thinking will help shape a more comprehensive and effective response that can creative change that can thrive in a dynamic or complex environment. It can ensure the 'why' and 'what's in it for me' is clearly planned, managed, communicated to the relevant impacted stakeholders. It ensures planning better survives first contact. It better embeds the change, makes it real and last for its stakeholders. It identifies and mitigates the risks and opportunities early, reducing waste in implementation, reducing challenges and misunderstandings.

Le réflexion stratégique doit avoir lieu à tous les niveaux de l'organisation. Peu importe le rôle que nous avons, la stratégie est omniprésente et elle s'exerce au quotidien. Elle n'appartient ni à un rôle spécifique, ni à un moment défini.

There are many ways available to help people develop their strategic thinking skills. Among all of them, coaching would be the most productive one. In this way, you can: 1. Model strategic thinking behaviors and attitudes. show them how you approach strategic challenges, ask strategic questions, share your own experiences and insights, and be open to sharing your thought process with others. 2. Provide opportunities for others to practice strategic thinking. This could involve assigning them to lead or participate in real strategic projects or tasks, or encouraging them to take on new challenges that will require them to think strategically.

Challenge them, especially to adaptive challenges. Use care when setting up teams to put all the necessary solution design application skills on the team. Be there and be responsive when the team gets stuck and then resist solving problems, coach the team s to solve its own problems. Pay particular attention to Risk Assessments. The scope of risk sources and impacts is an indicator of the team having thought through the system within which the solution must be delivered.

Plan, do, check, act. You do, they follow, then reverse the exercise. Provide coaching and support in the form of sharing what good looks like, examples, exchanging do's and don'ts and what to do in various scenarios. Expect iteration, and continuous improvement. Encourage rapid experimentation even if outcome is to fail (which can be ring-fenced), so long as learning is also rapid, and supported.

At several organizations, I re-implemented Change Management to distribute the work among People Leaders at all levels, HR Generalists, Project Managers, and small core team of Change Readiness and Benefits Realization specialists. These organizations to not Manage change, they Lead it.

If one wants to be future-ready and drive long-term success, strategic thinking is imperative. During org change it drives clarity, and vision and supports communication that is simple, helping people draw what's in it for them. This builds faith and aligns people to business to deliver results.

I‘ve made good experiences with shaping a change leadership coalition and setting up a change agents' network which we aligned with the latest news on the project, what will / why we will change - and the opportunity to ask questions and giving us (critical) feedback. This bottom-up approach helped us a lot in a global project with an impact for 15,000 people. My biggest learning was that you really have to earn the trust by listening to the concerns of the change agents and deliver concrete answers to their questions. If you are planning to revise / change your processes, implement a new organisational structure or introduce a new software, put your people first! They will make your change successful or a big failure. #Itsallaboutpeople

In my experience, giving space to reflect on the different possible scenarios is a good starting point to develop strategic thinking. At least thinking about the best, intermediate and worst possible scenarios, foreseeing actions to take advantage of the opportunities in each case, facing their risks and anticipating contingent situations, will allow you to project the future with greater amplitude and will give you elements to manage it with greater agility, adaptability and competitiveness.

Strategic thinking equips leaders with the ability to envision the future, formulate a comprehensive plan, and navigate complexities of organizational change effectively. By analyzing the current state and anticipating challenges and opportunities, strategic thinkers can develop a clear, adaptable roadmap for change. They ensure alignment among stakeholders, fostering a shared vision and commitment to the transformation. Moreover, strategic thinkers actively manage risks, communicate transparently, and set measurable goals, enhancing the chances of success. In uncertain and dynamic environments, strategic thinking provides the clarity, direction, and agility needed to lead change initiatives that drive organizational growth and adaptation.