The real nature of strategic work and how to become excellent at it
Many people aspire to do a large expansion study, the one that will predict years in advance where the units will be opened.
That's the wrong goal, and most of them won't do much of that kind of work.
The problem isn't that there isn't much strategic work to be done, it even exists, but it changes the game very little.
There is a certain charm in participating in big decisions, those that have no turning back, that involve predicting several steps in the future.
These kinds of decisions rarely happen, and most people don't spend much time on them, even if they're on the senior leadership team.
However, there is a different type of strategic work in extreme abundance, and that's what comes after Masterplan.
- How to choose the best spots within cities?
- Where to start an expansion in a city that accommodates 4-5 units.
- How to assemble an analysis model based on geospatial data?
Being good at this type of decision is something totally different.
You're not trying to predict many steps in the future, you're just trying to get clarity about what's actually happening now so you can decide what to do next.
And speed matters just as much as accuracy.
You want to try to get those decisions right if you can, but you also want to give yourself as much time as possible to keep trying if you're wrong.
It's something like “good decisions per hour”.
Making good decisions quickly requires four elements, and let's explore how to become good at each of them:
- Intuition, consist of shortening the problem as much as possible and arriving at a hypothesis quickly
- Data analysis to quickly validate or invalidate this hypothesis
- Experience enough about expanding networks so you can recommend the right things to try
- Synthesis, the ability to bring together everything you've learned into a story that's cohesive, true, and that sticks in people's minds in just a few minutes
Intuition
Intuition is a machine that takes questions and produces good hypotheses as answers.
In the context of Geomarketing, developing this intuition means deeply understanding the market, customers, and geospatial trends.
How do you develop this?
Intuition can be enhanced if you are intentional about understanding the problem space at three levels of depth:
Understand who the customer is and what they truly value.
You need a mental model of how he decides between alternatives and which variables are most important.
Competitive scenario, understand the cost structure of the main competitors and in which variables they are strong.
Identify which factors are flexible and which are difficult to change.
Conflicting schedules, understand what is happening within your own company, collaborate with colleagues, attend meetings, and learn why the goals are being achieved or not.
Data analysis
Once you've formulated hypotheses, it's time to validate or invalidate them.
An important part is being clear about what your hypotheses are and what conditions must be true for them to be valid.
Then, use tools, such as Mapfry, that allow you to quickly assess these conditions.
expanse
Now it's time for recommendations.
Generating ideas isn't the most difficult part; the challenge is to know which ones are worth implementing and in what order.
Feasibility, only mention something if the idea is compatible with the available resources and time
Consider the potential impact that the solution will have on the company's objectives.
Recommend which idea should be implemented first based on viability and impact
This requires knowledge of internal operations, schedules, and potential dependencies.
Therefore, strategic work must be closely linked to execution.
Synthesis
The most important skill is communication capable of bringing together data, insights, and recommendations into a cohesive and compelling narrative.
Present your ideas clearly and concisely.
Make sure that all parts of your argument connect logically.
Create a narrative that's interesting and relevant to the target audience.
Mapfry offers a module that converts studies into interactive presentations