Connecting All The Pieces

Strategy, planning, change, execution, innovation, learning and leadership are not separate pieces in a puzzle. They are all connected and the degree that your business connects these forces into a coherent picture is going to determine your level of success for today and in the future.

There are seven important components the Integrated Strategic Framework pays close attention to:

1. Use time wisely

     There is only so much time in the course of a day. The planning process makes the best use of  
     management's most precious resource, time, by steering away from inconsequential issues and 
     focusing on what is essential.

2. Create new thinking

     What got the business where it is  today and what delivers today's business results most likely
     won't get the business where it needs to go tomorrow. The Integrated Strategic Framework 
     takes the best from the past, without getting stuck in the past, and integrates new thinking,
     ideas and ways of doing things.

3. Effective decision making

     There are numerous directions an organization can move towards and usually only a handful
     actually fulfill management's expectations. The process guides management in making reality
     based and appropriate decisions that match the requirements management wants.

4. Maximize simplicity - Minimize complexity

    Organizations can make things more complicated and complex than what they already are or 
    need to be. The process simplifies what management wants so strategy and plans are less likely 
    to crush under their own weight.

5. Deal with dilemmas / Trade-offs

    Challenging plans and ambitious operational goals surface dilemmas between difficult choices 
    that can create predicaments that have a "damn if you do and damn if you don't" perspective. The
    Integrated Strategic Framework process helps to resolve dilemmas and trade-off issues.

6. Engaged participation

     How well information flows and knowledge is used is a major determinant in the level of success
     management experiences in the execution of plans. Tapping the combined wisdom of the  
     organization is a critical part of the process.

7. Take corrective action

     Plans are rarely implemented exactly as planned. Disruptions can occur along the way that 
     management reflects on and determines if course corrections are necessary.  If something is 
     not working the way it was intended, adjustments need to be made.