THE EVOLVING NEED FOR STRATEGIST IN PROJECTS — Choosing The Right Strategy
A solid strategy is important for the growth of any business. Obviously, the first step is to establish a vision and mission, from which key business goals are derived. These are then translated into a strategic plan that can fuel business growth. So does this plan always remain the same? No!
Business strategy changes from time to time, as newer developments are made and more innovative technology emerges. Changes are also made when businesses want to win over competition or take the first step in new directions. Some companies go on to change the vision and mission as well, which is then reflected in the strategic plan.
But how does a business figure out that their strategies need a change? How do they realize that they can grow more quickly if they adopt a different process or technology? Hiring a strategist is the simple answer. A strategist is concerned with business goals and develops procedures through which they can be achieved. They analyze what the competition is doing, where the market is headed, and accordingly, suggest changes to the c-suite.
But the role of a strategist has yet to be realized in the architecture and construction industries. The growth rate is meniscal in comparison to the revenue rate in the construction industry The US construction industry expects revenues worth $47 billion by the end of this year, and the business growth rate is a mere 0.4% on average. The numbers themselves state huge differences, and rightly so. When it comes to a concrete strategy that can generate growth, the architecture industry is still naïve and can definitely pick up on a few things that we derive from the other sectors
What Is Meant by Business Strategy?
In the simplest of terms — a business strategy is a company’s master plan that helps them achieve their vision and core set of goals. Business strategies prioritize objectives, ensure they are completed successfully, optimize financial performance, and maximize operational efficiencies. When deployed effectively, businesses gain a competitive position, generate effective revenue streams, and enjoy satisfied customers.
A business strategy can be broken down into three main levels: corporate-level strategy, business-level strategy, functional or operational strategy.
And like any good plan, there should be a B version to rely upon in case Plan A fails.
What Is Project Strategy?
Architectural businesses often take on new and different projects. In that context, the project strategy is generally concerned with project objectives and goals. But a more feasible approach is to extend this strategy to tactical and institutional levels. Benefits Realization Management (BRM) is a PMI recommended approach for aligning projects, programs, and portfolios under the umbrella of corporate strategy.
What Exactly Does a Strategist Do?
At the very basic level, a strategist does think about the strategy and all that makes it great. Though planning is an important part and is given second priority, there are several other items on their to-do list. The goal is to build a few signature strengths, the USPs in other words, which can make the business stand out in the industry. Planning is only one part of the process. Strategist ensures that the business is capable of deploying the strategic plan, allocate and reallocate corporate resources, identify new opportunities, continuously track progress, and turn data into meaningful information and valuable insights.
Strategic Planning Doesn’t Stop… It’s an Ongoing Process
Effective and successful organizations have already realized the importance of strategic planning, and treat it as an ongoing process. Dialogues are often set up between the leadership team and senior executives. Budgets are planned, allotted, and reallocated at regular intervals throughout the year. Some companies take it a step further and enable company-wide participation from all employees either through social technology or a game-based approach.
McKinsey claims that companies that enjoy greater profitability consider themselves very effective developers of strategies and are more likely to review their plans on an ongoing basis. In fact, most of them even have a process that does more than simply aggregate strategies of their key business units.
Understanding the Five Arenas
The role of a strategist is divided into five main arenas or archetypes:
The Architect — Analyses are based on facts. The goal is to understand industrial shifts, trends, and elements/features that give the company a competitive advantage. Since organic growth is the main concern, this kind of strategist ensures that business performance is aligned with the plan and will lead to the accomplishment of goals.
The Mobilizer — These strategists build additional capabilities and often work on special projects. They ask questions, analyze assumptions, and encourage company-wide participation of talented employees at strategic meetings. Thus, mobilizers ascertain that the company learns and ensures that the strategy is cohesive, simple to understand, and can easily be translated into actions.
The Visionary — Their role is to forecast trends and identify potential risks. Accordingly, they decide effective elimination and exploitation of strategies. Visionaries often make use of big data to gain valuable insights and because of their skills, they are entrusted to lead and manage innovative processes and organizational changes.
The Surveyor — This kind of strategists observe disruptions and quickly make business changes, ensuring that the company continues to perform. With their eyes always on the horizon, the surveyors monitor and respond to inherent risks, ensuring that business is impacted positively.
The Takeaway
Learn from the IT sector! Hire a strategist and let them act as a growth catalyst for your firm. Adopt best practices and continue making amendments whenever the construction and architecture industries undergo a change.
