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What is a Strategic Leader? A Person of Imagination by Mark Rhodes
Recent attention to the Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission remind us of their key finding: A failure to “connect the dots” and imagine what was being planned by the terrorist community was an...
View ArticleStrategic Planning Primer by Michael Wilkinson
When developing strategy, managers are often called upon to interview executives and other managers on a variety of issues facing an organization. Questions often arise concerning the organization’s...
View ArticleWhy You Need a Plan: 5 Good Reasons by Michael Wilkinson
Developing strategy takes time and resources. It requires the time and commitment of some of the most highly paid and highly experienced people in your organization. So, if your team isn’t willing to...
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5 Essential Books for Strategic Thinkers by Mark Rhodes
Good Strategy Bad Strategy Click on book for more info This fresh approach to strategic thinking, just published in 2011, begins with tales of battles at sea in the days of Napoleon and continues to...
View ArticleThe Drivers Model: The Secret to Facilitating Strategy by Michael Wilkinson
Leadership Strategies has developed the Drivers Model, a method for taking a strategic approach to addressing a business situation. The model provides a simple communication tool for helping...
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Emily Dickinson on Strategic Thinking by Mark Rhodes
THE BRAIN is wider than the sky, For, put them side by side, The one the other will include With ease, and you beside. Emily Dickinson’s greatest accomplishment, I think, is that she taught us to...
View Article7 Key Activities for a Strategic Planning Facilitator by Michael Wilkinson
As the strategy leader, you have seven activities to which I recommend you pay close attention to build a strong strategy that has full buy-in and commitment. Gain your team’s commitment and buy-in to...
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Anatomy of the Drivers Model by Michael Wilkinson
The table below summarizes the definition of each component of the Drivers Model. Vision A picture of the “preferred future”; a statement that describes how the future will look if the organization...
View ArticleThere’s a difference: mission v. vision by Michael Wilkinson
Two critical components of the Drivers Model are the mission and the vision. When it comes to strategy, do you know the difference between the two? (And, yes, there is a difference!) Mission How we at...
View Article4 key strategy questions the Drivers Model answers by Michael Wilkinson
As you take on strategy development, a critical step is to ensure that you and your team have a common understanding of the language of strategy and a solid process to carry you through strategy...
View ArticleThe 7 Principles of Masterful Planning by Michael Wilkinson
The Drivers Model is Leadership Strategies’ methodology for strategic planning and the ultimate tool for masterful planning. The Drivers Model process covers seven key principles for masterfully...
View ArticleWhy Do You Need a Plan? by Michael Wilkinson
Developing strategy takes time and resources. It requires the time and commitment of some of the most highly paid and highly experienced people in your organization. So if your team is not willing to...
View ArticleLeading v. Facilitating Strategic Planning by Michael Wilkinson
A major difference between leading and facilitating is that a leader often tells; a facilitator always asks. In my book, The Secrets of Facilitation, 2nd. ed., I describe how I learned what I call the...
View Article7 Key Activities a Strategy Leader Should Do by Michael Wilkinson
As a strategy leader, you have seven activities to which I recommend you pay close attention to build a strong strategy that has full buy-in and commitment. Let’s examine each of these activities. 1....
View ArticleStrategies for getting your ideas on the table without overpowering the group...
In strategic planning, it is important that all voices be heard, and that includes yours. Unfortunately, if you are like most leaders, your voice comes with considerable baggage. When the boss speaks,...
View ArticlePositioning Strategies: How Do You Differentiate Yourself from the...
(Adapted from The Executive Guide to Facilitating Strategy) In the course of developing strategic plans, organizations often find themselves taking a step back to ask the question, “How can we...
View ArticlePainting the Picture – A Sample Visioning Exercise by Michael Wilkinson
(Adapted from my book, The Executive Guide to Facilitating Strategy) To help determine your organization’s goals, utilize a visualization exercise that guides the team through a scenario ten or more...
View ArticleYour (Leadership) Role in Establishing Goals by Michael Wilkinson
(Adapted from The Executive Guide to Facilitating Strategy) As a leader in your organization, part of your role during strategic planning is to help establish goals that provide a foundation for the...
View ArticleMy Concern About the Use of Strategic Planning “Templates” by Carter McNamara
It seems that the use of “templates” in strategic planning is on the rise. People want a simple and straightforward way to get the Strategic Plan written and finished. They want a “roadmap” that...
View ArticleRecommended format for defining strategies by Michael Wilkinson
(Adapted from The Executive Guide to Facilitating Strategy) During strategic planning, as your team arrives at the stage of defining the broad activities – the strategies – your team will undertake to...
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