Strategic thinking

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[edit] Strategic thinking vs. strategic planning

According to Liedtka (98) strategic thinking differs from strategic planning along the following dimensions of strategic management:


	Strategic Thinking	Strategic Planning
Vision of the Future	Only the shape of the future can be predicted.	A future that is predictable and specifiable in detail.
Strategic Formulation and Implementation	Formulation and implementation are interactive rather than sequential and discrete.	The roles of formulation and implementation can be neatly divided.
Managerial Role in Strategy Making	Lower-level managers have a voice in strategy-making, as well as greater latitude to respond opportunistically to developing conditions.	Senior executives obtain the needed information from lower-level managers, and then use it to create a plan which is, in turn, disseminated to managers for implementation.
Control	Relies on self-reference – a sense of strategic intent and purpose embedded in the minds of managers throughout the organization that guides their choices on a daily basis in a process that is often difficult to measure and monitor from above.	Asserts control through measurement systems, assuming that organizations can measure and monitor important variables both accurately and quickly.
Managerial Role in Implementation	All managers understand the larger system, the connection between their roles and the functioning of that system, as well as the interdependence between the various roles that comprise the system.	Lower-level managers need only know his or her own role well and can be expected to defend only his or her own turf.
Strategy Making	Sees strategy and change as inescapably linked and assumes that finding new strategic options and implementing them successfully is harder and more important than evaluating them.	The challenge of setting strategic direction is primarily analytic.
Process and Outcome	Sees the planning process itself as a critical value-adding element.	Focus is on the creation of the plan as the ultimate objective.

[edit] References

Abraham, S. (2005), “Stretching Strategic Thinking,” Strategy & Leadership, 33(5), 5-12.

Bonn, I. (2001), “Developing Strategic Thinking as a Core Competency”, Management Decision, 39(1), 63 - ___.

Graetz, F. (2002), “Strategic Thinking versus Strategic Planning: Towards Understanding the Complementarities”, Management Decision, 40(5/6), 456-462.

Hussey, D. (2001), “Creative Strategic Thinking and the Analytical Process: Critical Factors for Strategic Success”, Strategic Change, 10(4), 201-213.