Strategic Thinking Competencies
Liedtka observed five “major attributes of strategic thinking in practice” that resemble competencies.
The first competency, a systems perspective, refers to being able to understand implications of strategic actions. "A strategic thinker has a mental model of the complete end-to-end system of value creation, his or her role within it, and an understanding of the competencies it contains."
A second competency underlying strategic thinking is intent focused which means more determined and less distractible than rivals in the marketplace. Crediting Hamel and Prahalad with popularising the concept, Liedtka describes strategic intent as "the focus that allows individuals within an organisation to marshal and leverage their energy, to focus attention, to resist distraction, and to concentrate for as long as it takes to achieve a goal."
Thinking in time means being able to hold past, present and future in mind at the same time to create better decision making and speed implementation. "Strategy is not driven by future intent alone. It is the gap between today’s reality and intent for the future that is critical." Scenario planning is a practical application for incorporating "thinking in time" into strategy making.
A fourth strategic thinking competency is being hypothesis driven, ensuring that both creative and critical thinking are incorporated into strategy making. This competency explicitly incorporates the scientific method into strategic thinking.
The final strategic thinking competency is intelligent opportunism, which means being responsive to good opportunities. "The dilemma involved in using a well-articulated strategy to channel organisational efforts effectively and efficiently must always be balanced against the risks of losing sight of alternative strategies better suited to a changing environment."
Read more about this topic: Strategic Thinking
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