Best Practices for Strategy

strategy

A Modern Playbook for Resilient and High-Impact Organisations

1. Start with the Problem, Not the Plan

Before writing a single bullet point of a strategic plan, interrogate the problem. Too many strategies are solutions in search of a problem.

• Ask: What pain are we solving — for the business, customer, or employee?

• Avoid templated visions; aim for strategic clarity rooted in business reality.

2. Apply Strategic Precision

Ditch the “one-size-fits-all” model. Strategies must be tailored to business units, markets, and capabilities.

• Identify which areas should grow, optimise, or be divested.

• Use real-time performance data to guide differentiated action plans.

• Don’t force uniform KPIs across non-uniform functions.

3. Design Strategy Around People and Culture

Strategy is executed by humans, not PowerPoint slides. Aligning strategy with your culture and leadership capability is essential.

• Ensure buy-in through co-creation — not just communication.

• Prioritise workforce readiness, capability building, and leadership alignment.

• Assess whether your culture can support the strategy before launch.

4. Use Granular Data, Not Averages

Aggregate data hides weak signals. Great strategy is made at the micro level.

• Analyse value creation by product, customer segment, geography, and process.

• Track customer behaviour and internal metrics at granular levels.

• Allow local or team-level strategy adjustments where needed.

5. Build Agility Into the Strategy

The market will shift. Regulation will change. Customer needs will evolve. Your strategy must be fluid enough to respond.

• Replace 5-year roadmaps with rolling 12–18-month strategic sprints.

• Use OKRs or adaptive goal frameworks that can shift with context.

• Make iteration part of the process, not a failure of it.

6. Focus on Outcomes, Not Activities

Strategic plans too often become task lists. Instead, focus on the results you aim to create.

• Define outcomes clearly — growth in what? Margin from where? Efficiency how?

• Measure impact through business value and stakeholder value.

• Kill vanity metrics.

7. Avoid Strategy Theater

No one wants another vision workshop or a 100-page deck. Strategy should be living, actionable, and embedded in day-to-day operations.

• Translate strategy into 3–5 core behaviours and outcomes.

• Ensure leaders are measured and held accountable for strategic traction.

• Keep it short, sharp, and in the language of the people executing it.

8. Balance Growth with Sustainability

Strategy is not just about winning; it’s about enduring.

• Bake ESG, diversity, and wellbeing into your strategy design.

• Evaluate risks through long-term lenses, not just financial ones.

• Recognise that purpose, reputation, and culture are strategic assets.

9. Invest in Strategic Enablers

Strategy without execution capability is just hope.

• Strengthen systems: data, processes, decision-making tools.

• Build talent pathways for future capabilities.

• Invest in platforms like Hypothesis3 to simulate, test, and visualise strategic shifts.

10. Embed Feedback Loops

Don’t wait for quarterly reviews to find out if strategy is failing. Make your approach adaptive.

• Use employee and customer feedback to inform pivots.

• Run short-cycle reviews to stay aligned and responsive.

• Treat strategy like a living product, not a final document.

Final Thought:

A good strategy isn’t what you present to the board — it’s what survives contact with reality. It should evolve with your organisation, empower your people, and drive meaningful outcomes. 

At dBB Global & Partners, we help organisations move from outdated models to living, human-centred strategy systems — powered by data, design, and deep insight.