2019 Strategy Workshop

Create Your 2019 Strategic Plan
Best practices based on research and 20+ years of real-world
experience helping clients execute their strategy and win!
Presenter: Stephen Lynch
Role: President, Head of Strategy at RESULTS.com
Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/stephengeoffreylynch
Slides: results.com/slides
Software Demo: results.com/demo

VISION
Core Values
Core Purpose
BHAG
STRATEGY
Target Market Customer
Value Discipline
Core vs. Non Core Activities
Strategic Positioning
Key Benefits
Brand Promise
3 to 5 Year Strategic Moves
EXECUTION
Numerical Targets
SWOT Analysis
Current Strategic Projects
Metrics (Key Performance Indicators)
RESULTS.com Strategic Plan

“You need to operate with one eye focused on
the short-term, and one eye focused on the long-term.
Short-term planning is about improving your current
business, & meeting the needs of today’s customers.”

Often, this demands bold, disruptive strategic moves”
“Long-term planning is not performance improvement.
It is about forgetting the past and reshaping your
business to compete more effectively in the future.

3 to 5 Year Strategic Moves
(includes industry analysis)

"If you’re planning over a 3 year time horizon,
you're competing against a lot of people.
But if you're willing to invest on a 7 year time
horizon, you're competing against a fraction of
those people, because very few companies are
willing to do that.
We can't realize our potential as people or as
companies unless we plan for the long term."

“There’s an old Wayne
Gretzky quote that I love,
‘I skate to where the puck
is going to be, not to where
it has been’
and we’ve always tried
to do that at Apple”

Questions / Answers:
#RealStrategy || @RESULTSdotcom

“The questions
remain the same.
It’s the answers
that keep changing”

Rivalry between existing competitors

Who are your Key Competitors now? (the “players”)
What moves are they likely to make? Any Threats? Opportunities?
( Industry life cycle: introduction > growth > maturity > decline / Industry growth rate / Industry profitability / Number of competitors / Market
share / Capital requirements / Globalization / Commoditization / Cost advantages / Economies of scale / Friendly vs. Aggressive competition)
List your answers below:
What Strategic Moves do you need to make?

“If you don’t cannibalize yourself,
someone else will”

What New Entrants could disrupt you?
Any Threats? Opportunities?
( Industry barriers / Capital requirements / Learning requirements / Access to supplies / Access to distribution / Performance vs. incumbents /
Perceived differentiation in customers’ mind / Loyalty to incumbents / Switching costs / Retaliation by incumbents / “Innovator’s dilemma”)

What Substitute products / services could disrupt you?
( Technology changes / Industry structure changes / Availability of substitutes / Performance of substitutes / Perceived differentiation in
customers’ mind / Switching costs / Customer desire to seek out alternative solutions to satisfy their need )

“Who” or “What” do you need to
pay to run your business?

Who are your Key Suppliers? What moves are they likely to make?
( Cost of supplies / Negotiating power of suppliers / Access to alternative sources of supply / Switching costs /
Forward integration – supplier becomes competitor)

“An excessive customer focus
prevents firms from creating new markets
and finding new customers
for the products of the future.
They unwittingly bypass opportunities.”

“Asking customers what they want is a systemic flaw.
Customers can’t say what new product would be
desirable three years from today”
New ideas are generated by imagination, risk, trial &
error by the producer.”

Who are your Key Customers? What moves are they
likely to make? Any Threats? Opportunities?
( Customer demographic and psychographic description / Power to dictate prices or terms / Ability to influence other customers / Customer
reviews / Perception of differentiation between vendors / Loyalty / Switching costs / Backward integration – customer becomes competitor)

Political and Regulatory Factors

What political factors / laws / regulations are likely to impact you?
( Industry specific regulations / political spectrum left vs. right / political stability / laws / taxes / trade policy / wars / environmental issues /
health / safety / consumer laws / employment laws)

What economic factors / changes in buying behaviors
are likely to impact you? Any Threats? Opportunities?
( Economic growth / interest rates / exchange rates / inflation / availability of credit / investor interest in your industry / discretionary spending
/ changes in customer purchasing habits / use of debt and leverage vs. more frugal spending / new forms of payment)

STANDARDIZED
Industrial age
work
CUSTOMIZED
Digital age
work
LABOUR:
obedience
systems
processes
productivity
TALENT:
initiative
innovation
creativity
passion
Management 1.0
Management 2.0

“We are going to have to
reinvent management; the way
we lead, we plan, we organise,
we hire, we motivate...because
today, organisations are facing
a set of challenges that
are truly unprecedented"

Baby Boomer
1946 -1964
Generation X
1965 - 1980
Millennial / Gen Y
1981 - 2000
Key life influences Cold War nuclear threat, NASA
moon landing, Vietnam war,
Civil rights, Hippie culture
AIDS, Divorce, MTV, Cold War
ending, Personal computer,
Microsoft
Internet, Always connected,
Share everything online,
Facebook, Apple and Google
Work environment Long hours, Office only Formerly Office, Increasingly
working from home
Office, Home, Wherever,
Desires flexible work hours
Work ethic Workaholic, Quality focus,
Team player
Clear direction, Get tasks done,
Self reliant, Free agent
Craves Variety, Multitasking,
What’s next?
Management style Hierarchy, Chain of command Everyone should manage
themselves, Challenge people
Collaboration, Consensus
Personal Motivators Salary, Job title, Feeling valued
and respected
Money, Freedom, Break the
rules and do it your own way
Meaningful work, Maintain
personal life, Training, Mentoring
Mentoring Does not like feedback. Does
not take negative feedback very
well
Does not think feedback is
necessary. Will ask for it they
want it
Wants frequent management
feedback, Feedback on demand
at the push of a button
Internal
communication
Face to face meetings focused
on process, Memos
Face to face meetings focused
on results, Emails
Face to face participative
discussions, Emails, Instant
messaging
Client
communication
Face to face, Phone Face to face, Phone, Email Email, Social Media, Instant
messaging
Career Goals Climb the ladder at one
company, Job security
Build transferable career with
variety of skills & experiences,
Build a business.
Build several parallel careers or
businesses simultaneously

What social factors / trends / attitudes / behaviors
are likely to impact you? Any Threats? Opportunities?
( Demographic trends / career attitudes / health issues / environmental concerns / communication styles / social behaviors / online behaviors /
media consumption / cultural differences / generational differences / income equality / society’s evolving attitudes, values & beliefs)

What technological factors / trends / are likely to impact you?
(New technologies / Rate of technology adoption / Impact of internet and mobile / Social media / New devices & interfaces / Jobs replaced by
technology / Business models disrupted by technology)

“Many managers do not
understand the importance
of having a clear strategy.
Strategy is about
making trade-offs.
The essence of strategy
is choosing what NOT to do.”

What are the top 3 long-term strategic moves
to position your firm for future industry success?
(will be implemented within the next 3-5 years)
3-5 Year Strategic Move Person Accountable
1.
2.
3.

Could someone do the opposite,
and would that be a valid strategy?”

★ Research your early adopter customers
★ Subscribe to thought leaders who comment on industry trends
★ Attend industry conferences
★ Learn from other industries - peer networks
★ Conduct thorough industry analysis at least every 12 months
○ Porter’s 5 Forces + PEST
○ Survey your staff to get their input too
★ The questions remain the same. The answers keep changing
★ Strategy requires tradeoffs. What are you NOT going to do?
★ Sniff Test - Would doing the opposite also be a valid strategy?
★ Review strategy every quarter - does it still make sense?
3 to 5 yr Strategic Moves - best practices

Be specific with your SWOT: Use 3-5 word statements
“Our People” is not a strength
What is it about your people that makes your team strong?
E.g. “Highly qualified software engineers”
“Marketing” is not a weakness
What is it about marketing that is weak currently?
E.g. “Cost of Customer acquisition too high”
“Communication” is not a weakness
What is not being communicated?
E.g. “Strategy not well understood”

Think like an investor. Would they agree with you?

What are the top strengths / assets / competencies within your
business you can leverage (or build) in the next 12 months?
Rank your Top 5 Strengths in order:

What are the biggest weaknesses within your operation
that could be fixed or improved in the next 12 months?
Rank your Top 5 Weaknesses in order:

What opportunities can you pursue over the next 12 months
that will help position your organization for future success?
Rank your Top 5 Opportunities in order:

What external threats do you need to reduce
(or closely monitor) to ensure they do not derail your plans?
Rank your Top 5 Threats in order:

★ Review and update SWOT every quarter
★ Use your 3 to 5 year Strategic Moves as the context for SWOT
★ Survey your staff to get their input
★ Act like an outside investor doing due diligence on your firm
★ No fluff. Tell the truth. Be specific
★ Use 3 to 5 word descriptive statements
○ e.g. “Marketing” is not a weakness.
○ What is it about marketing that is weak currently?
○ e.g. “Customer acquisition cost too high”
★ Use SWOT as basis for choosing your key projects each quarter
SWOT Analysis - best practices

“You need to clearly explain
the top 3 things the company is
working on. If you can't,
then you're not leading well”
“We can only do three”

“If you have more than
three priorities,
you don’t have any”

What are the top 3 Strategic Projects your organization
needs to execute in the coming period (quarter)?
- Relevant: each must address 1 or more issues described in your SWOT analysis
- Balance short-term business improvement initiatives (improving “what is”)
vs. building long-term strategic capability for the future (creating “what will be”)
Current Strategic Project Due
Date
Person
Accountable
1.
2.
3.

In Scope
Not In Scope
Not In Scope

Metric off track? Project overdue?
What’s happening here?
What 1 thing can we do this week to
improve this?
What support do you need?

★ 3 to 5 year Strategic Moves and SWOT provide the context for
choosing Strategic Projects
★ Review and update SWOT & Strategic Projects every quarter
★ Clearly describe what is In Scope / Not In Scope
★ Conduct Pre-Mortems to avoid the “planning fallacy”
★ Set conservative due dates for Projects and Tasks
★ Meet to discuss progress on Projects and Tasks every week
★ Capture “The 1 thing” - the most important Task that will get
done each week to move each Project forward
★ Follow up every week to make sure these Tasks get done
★ “Weed the garden” to drive accountability
Strategic Projects - best practices

Create Your 2019 Strategic Plan
Presenter: Stephen Lynch
Role: President, Head of Strategy at RESULTS.com
Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/stephengeoffreylynch
Slides: results.com/slides
Software Demo: results.com/demo
Best practices based on research and 20 years of
real world consulting to RESULTS.com client firms

2019 Strategy Workshop

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