One of the most common concerns I hear for writing the Data Strategy or the IT Strategy is that the organisation does not have a Business Strategy. Is this an organisation issue or a perception of what constitutes the business strategy?
I’ve blogged before on the importance of aligning our Data or IT strategy to the business strategy to make the strategy compelling. Both of my courses on Data and IT Strategy on Udemy start by summarising the Business Strategy in a business context. In an organisation without a Business Strategy surely this is a blocker to progress? Yes, I think it would be, though I think the number of organisations without a Business Strategy is very very small. The issue is more often one of perception.
The foundation of a Business Strategy for Data or IT Strategy purposes is the mission of the organisation. Most organisations have mission statements. For one I worked at this was even embedded in the company song! Even if there is no mission statement then we can summarise what the company does, who it serves and how it makes money or is funded.
A strategy is a vision and direction (Henry Mintzberg’s definition) and drives the organisation forward. The organisation’s priorities are often set out by the CEO in the reports to the shareholders and market for traded companies and in communication to the employees. CEOs commonly talk about priorities and drivers for change. This is their future strategy transformation agenda. Perfectly set out to note down and cite in the Data or IT Strategy.
Executives will also communicate parts of the Business Strategy. HR frequently talk about employee engagement and the action plan to improve this. Marketing talk about market perception, product positioning and customer behaviour. Other executives add colour to the Business Strategy from their area of the organisation.
These sources are not going to talk about new products in development, future merges, acquisitions or significant changes in employee numbers. Such information may not be available to link to the Data or IT Strategy. These are only a small part of a business strategy compared to the large amount of information that is shared.
Do you work for a company without a business strategy? Or is it just that the strategy is not in a published book form? In the majority of cases looking to wider sources can avoid being blocked by a lack of Business Strategy.
To hear more on the Business Strategy and capturing it as a business content please take a look at my courses on Udemy:
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