New Strategists Creating Leaders at All Levels

Preface Acknowledgments About the Authors PART ONE: STRATEGY: WHAT, WHY, WHEN, WHERE, AND HOW? 1. Strategy: Myths, Misconceptions, and Wrongheaded Notions "Strategy? That's the CEO's Job" "Strategy? It's in the Binder" "First You Plan the Strategy Then You Decide on the Tactics" "Strategy? It Comes to You in the Shower" 2. Beyond the Boardroom: Why Strategy Is Everyone's Business Focusing on Your Customers and Markets Staying Flexible and Responsive Holding Onto Valuable, Knowledgeable Employees Avoiding Management Burnout It's Happening Anyway 3. Dilemmas in Strategy-making: Damned If You Do... Involving More People Takes More Time Aren't We Trying to Make Decisions More Quickly in Order to Be Responsive to the Market? Who Makes the Final Decisions? Should We Be Trying to Eliminate Hierarchy? How Can We Maintain Strategic Focus If We Are Constantly Running After New Opportunities? 4. Empowerment with Teeth: Getting People Involved in the Formal Strategy Process The Case Against Traditional Strategic Planning The Evolution -- Not the Death -- of Strategic Planning "Down" with Planning: Moving Responsibility for Planning to Lower Levels Break Down the Barriers Listen Hard Building a Participatory Culture 5. Structured Improvisation: Planning for Strategies to Emerge Delegating Decision-making Authority to Lower Levels Getting Customer Input Keeping It Loose: Building an Improvisational Culture PART TWO: THE NEW STRATEGISTS 6. The Role of the Front-line Strategist Voice of the Customer Hunter/Gatherer Cross-functional Magnet 7. The Strategy Integrator: The Role of the "Manager" Ambassador Facilitator Juggler 8. The Strategic Leader: The Role of the Senior Executive Focus The Failure of Vision Balance Coordination PART THREE: BECOMING A STRATEGY EXPERT-KEY SKILLS FOR STRATEGIST AT ALL LEVELS 9. How to Think Like a Strategist If You Know What State You're In....If You Don't ... Principles for Strategic Thinking 10. Getting It Done: How to Gain Support for Your Strategic Initiatives Degrees of Support Power Influence Developing an Influence Plan IN CONCLUSION... Appendixes A. Self-Assessment Questionnaires B. Strategic Planning Process C. Developing New Skills Notes IndexWall, Stephen J. is the author of 'New Strategists Creating Leaders at All Levels' with ISBN 9780028740584 and ISBN 0028740580.