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Despite the universal call to 'think strategically', many leaders still find themselves being pulled back into the day-to-day of concrete workload. So what does it actually mean to be a strategic thinker?
Adaptive strategic leadership
Schoemaker is a renowned expert on strategy and decision making. In his many scholarly writings on strategic thinking, he consistently identifies six specific skills that he says distinguish what he calls 'adaptive strategic leaders' - those who thrive in today's uncertain environment.
According to Schoemaker, true strategic thinkers typically do the following things consistently and effectively:
- Anticipate - look for ambiguous threats/opportunities at the periphery of their industry, searching beyond the normal boundaries of their business.
- Think critically - question everything and seek to get to the root causes of things, challenge current beliefs and mindsets (including their own) and uncover any bias, manipulation or hypocriscy in organisational decisions.
- Interpret - take time to synthesise information from many different sources instead of jumping to quick conclusions, questioning assumptions and testing various hypotheses in light of ambiguous data.
- Decide - balance speed, rigour, quality and agility, taking a stand even with incomplete information or amid diverse views rather than falling prey to 'analysis paralysis'.
- Align - foster open dialogue, build trust and engage key stakeholders, especially when views diverge, bringing tough issues to the surface and understanding what drives other peoples' agendas.
- Learn - encourage and embody honest and open feedback, celebrating both success and well-intended failures that provide insight and organisational learning.
"Many people believe they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices."William James