Business Management

In business sometimes, "humorously", people relate strategic thinking to something expensive or very clever.
In the academic circles, it is certainly a word preserved for the gurus to use as they please, not to mention using it as a buzzword to attract the attention of rich business leaders.
In career industry, the word strategic thinking almost certainly crop up in any conversation to do with promotion or demotion of an individual. "You don't think strategically" or "he thinks strategically".
Does this ring the bell?
Trying to decipher the meaning of the word by reading the strategy gurus' books, takes you into the jungles of an intellectual pursuits that will end up making you feel not so clever after all.
It may also force you to hire some of these strategy gurus to do this expensive thinking for you in the end.
Let's try to work this one out and see what this strategic thinking is all about.
The word Strategic comes from the word Strategy. We all know that the word strategy is actually more expensive than the word strategic, and of course, it is the cause of this entire expensive business world we live in.
Strategy simply put is "a way of thinking", the thinking of the General, or the leader on the battlefield of war or business.
Generalship is all about winning, how do they do that? by utilising all the resources available to the them systematically to achieve the purpose of war. The same definition applies in business; strategy is for winning by utillising all the organization resources to systematically achieve the purpose of the enterprise.
The word "Strategic" therefore, means what is "essential" to strategy or in line with the strategy.
This mean that any function within the organisation that acts or plans without taking into account the overall strategy or purpose of the company, is by nature not strategic.
This brings us to strategic thinking which I hope you figured it out by now...
Any thinking that is in line and guided by the company purpose and strategy is "Strategic Thinking".
Let me give you an example.
Few years ago, British Gas in the UK changed its vision and wanted to expand its activities. The new "mission" statement indicated a new direction for the company, "We take Care of the Essential" they announced.
This mission statement suggested that British Gas intended to enter new businesses that is essential to achieve this new purpose .i.e. utilities must now include electricity, telephones, water as being essential. Other essentials such as roadside recovery, home appliances maintenance and so on and so forth were now needed to fulfil this new purpose.
In fact creating a "monolithic" IT System to cross sell products from all these "essentials" became also "essential" and a became a major IT strategy too.
British gas went and bought the AA (The Automobile Association), which was certainly a "strategic" move and essential to the overall company mission and strategy.
Now, the AA in its infinite wisdom decided to buy a "golf club" and establish a new business and facility for its customers.
Such a business is certainly not strategic because it is not in line with the overall company mission or strategy.
How such a new business venture was approved by the main board of the company is beyond anyone understanding.
Nevertheless, speculating on the continuity of such a business venture must really be a child play.
Low and behold, within two years the business was closed down as not being "strategic" or in line with the company overall strategy, in other word, not a strategic business.
Now, when British Gas decided to change its direction completely and focus solely on energy; forced by the turmoil in the energy market, most of its businesses became non-strategic instantly. The demise of these non-strategic businesses to the trained eyes of any "strategic thinker" was a matter of time.
As it happened, Within couple of years, British Gas sold its banking business, the Automobile Association, and the Telecoms business.
Thinking Strategically, the company started to search for more energy assets to secure supply for its customers, short and long term while of course staying in line with company overall "new" purpose" and overall strategy.
This example shows you that, the same thinking i.e. buying the AA and then selling the AA were both strategic thinking and correct at the time of execution.
Strategic thinking therefore is NOT that complex or must be preserved for the elites of society to do. It is basically non-emotional thinking and essential to a specific strategy or mission that one has in mind.