How can you use the Strategy Map to align your strategic goals with your organizational culture?

From my experience it is impossible to overcommunicate the vision, mission, values, and strategy of the business. However, I believe that the most powerful motivator for employees is the noble purpose of the organization. What do they do that truly makes a difference in the lives of others? An organization must have a vivid, compelling, and well communicated vision and strategy for growth. But a powerful purpose, aligned with those things, creates a culture where people are personally dedicated to achieving the vision and strategy.

Think of Steve Jobs when you are trying to identify your vision and mission. Your vision and mission need to be just descriptive enough to be specific, but so simple that there is no room for misinterpretation. Here are Steve's own words to describe that mission and vision for Apple: "Apple is dedicated to the empowerment of man—to making personal computing accessible to each and every individual so as to help change the way we think, work, learn, and communicate" It's simple, concise, & specific and that is a winning recipe!

One of my favorite strategies comes from the classic book, "The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People" (Covey). Habit 2 - Begin with the End in Mind - is a crucial part of any Strategy and Strategy Map. The end goal, what you want to accomplish, needs to be clearly articulated along with the "why". The "why" is the reason the strategy helps to reach the desired result. Where possible include others in the conversation at an early stage. In my career, when I've remembered Habit 2 this approach helped me to the achieve the end goal. The times that I neglected this habit, the change journey was much more difficult. So, in your Strategy Map, remember to be clear with the desired end result and why you are taking this journey, together.

A well-crafted Strategy Map is a powerful tool for ensuring your strategic goals align with your organizational culture and are effectively communicated and executed throughout your organization. Here are 12 steps that I have found helpful with creating and using a Strategy Map to translate a strategic plan into actionable steps. 1.Start with Clarity & Purpose; 2.Identify Key Perspectives; 3.Determine Objectives & Measures; 4.Establish Cause-and-Effect Relationships; 5.Cascade the Objectives; 6.Select Relevant Key Performance Indicators (KPIs); 7.Communicate & Share; 8.Monitor & Adjust; 9.Cultivate Organizational Culture (Culture eats strategy for lunch); 10.Continuous Learning & Improvement; 11.Celebrate Success; and 12.Seek Feedback.

The strategic map deals with "how" we do things in organizations. Daily, we report "what" we are doing in a simplistic way, understanding that the result is just a number. So, we need to reframe what results or performance are! We need to understand that as important as the number we deliver ("what") is also how the delivery journey was ("how"). This journey or path to the result is represented by the choices we make daily to achieve our goals. These choices must be based on the principles and values of the company. This entire decision-making process shows us what the culture of this organization truly is like.

Strategic themes are crucial because "What gets measured gets managed." It’s like assembling a jigsaw puzzle - you need to see the whole picture (the financial perspective) to know where the smaller pieces (the customer, internal, and learning and growth perspectives) fit in.

People make this (strategy) harder than it needs to be. It starts with vision. Where are you now? Where do you want to be in a year, 5 years, 10 years? Once decided, what is your strategy to get there? Hint: It must be measurable over the course of the time. Strategy leads the organization to develop implementation plans and programs, suspenses, etc.

Defining strategic themes and objectives on the Strategy Map is like marking key waypoints on a map. Managers can use this tool to set clear, measurable objectives that resonate with the organization's culture and long-term vision. Just as explorers plan their journey in stages, managers can break down complex strategic goals into manageable, achievable steps. Foster a shared sense of purpose and direction among team members by introducing them to the Strategy Map as a powerful mind tool. Encourage collaboration in defining objectives, ensuring that everyone understands and contributes to the organization's strategic direction.

The process of aligning strategic themes and objectives with stakeholders is an ongoing one. Regular reviews and adjustments are often needed to stay on course and respond effectively to changing circumstances.

Remember to reward what you want to see repeated. It's vital that everyone sees that what the leaders say is important is actually rewarded because they are. Align the KPIs to measure what it important. Set them up in SMART Goals, and measure frequently.

In the world of remote operations, creating a Strategy Map is akin to charting our journey. Our team's unique dynamics and geographical dispersion make this process vital. Starting from the top, we connect our objectives across the financial, customer, internal, and learning perspectives. It's not just about outcomes; it's about how remote collaboration, innovation, and skills drive success. The Strategy Map, with its cause-and-effect relationships, helps us navigate remote complexities and align our actions with our vision. In remote work, clarity and connectivity are our guiding stars.

Nas minhas aulas de Estratégia, nos MBAs onde leciono, acostumo falar que o mapa estratégico ajudará a visualizar como os objetivos estão interconectados em quatro perspectivas: Financeira, Cliente, Processos Internos e Aprendizado e Crescimento. Exemplo: Perspectiva Financeira: Objetivo Estratégico: Aumentar a Lucratividade Perspectiva do Cliente: Objetivo Estratégico: Melhorar a Satisfação do Cliente Perspectiva Interna: Objetivo Estratégico: Aprimorar a Eficiência Operacional Perspectiva de Aprendizado e Crescimento: Objetivo Estratégico: Desenvolver Competências em Tecnologia Avançada

Strategy is everything. Without a clear plan of action, companies tend to flounder. But how can you ensure that your business strategy is effective? One solution is to create a strategy map - a visual tool that displays the objectives, initiatives, and metrics that your business needs in order to succeed. While it may seem like a daunting task, mapping your strategy can be a highly beneficial exercise. By taking the time to think through your company's goals and how they relate to each other, you can better align your resources and ensure that everyone on your team is working towards the same endgame. With a strategy map in hand, you can make informed decisions, set priorities, and track your progress in a meaningful way.

Alinhar a cultura com o Mapa Estratégico não é uma tarefa única, mas um processo contínuo. Requer comprometimento e envolvimento de toda a organização, desde a liderança até os funcionários de base. Uma cultura alinhada com a estratégia pode impulsionar o desempenho e a realização dos objetivos estratégicos da organização, ao mesmo tempo que cria um ambiente de trabalho positivo e engajado.

A cultura de uma organização é a mola mestra para todo o resto. Missão, visão, valores, estratégia, objetivos, metas e indicadores.

Imagine your culture as the instrument, and the Strategy Map as the sheet music guiding the performance. Begin by assessing your existing culture, understanding its strengths and areas that need adjustment. Like a musician practicing scales, leaders should identify cultural elements that align with the Strategy Map's themes and objectives. Aligning culture with the Strategy Map involves harmonizing values, behaviors, and practices. Just as musicians rehearse together to achieve synchronization, leaders should engage their team members in open discussions and collaborative efforts to ensure that the organizational culture complements and supports the strategic goals outlined in the Strategy Map.

Consider all the ways your team will interact with the components of your Strategy Map and build out opportunities for tangible integration of those individualized experiences. Your culture has the potential to accelerate all four components so there is a clear connection to how people show up for work and find motivation in their role. A way to promote this development within your team is to operationalize values. Identifying the behaviors linked to your organizational values, and understanding how they support the overarching strategic initiatives you've laid out in a Strategy Map, will ground employees in the "why.” Seeing a direct impact of everyday goals to the strategic vision is a sweet spot for high performance and engagement.

La frase “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” atribuida a P. Drucker ejemplifica muy bien la importancia que la cultura corporativa tiene para el despliegue de la estrategia en la organización. Hoy en día, muchas organizaciones incluyen la digitalización dentro de sus objetivos y temas a nivel estratégico, pero fallan al no tener en cuenta el cambio cultural que debe acompañar a la organización. Cuando las creencias del tipo “aquí siempre se han hecho las cosas así” se acompañan de liderazgos paternalistas poco proclives al cambio y al crecimiento y se adereza con toma de decisiones centralizadas son el caldo de cultivo perfecto para abortar cualquier estrategia de innovación y cambio.

The Strategic approach of 2019 won’t work in 2023. The world has changes it’s foci from profit to people. Hence a people centric strategic approach will have three things 1) Personified: It will be customised as per the changing persona of the stakeholders 2) Multi-Perspective: Rather than generating linear one-point options; it will seek fractal multi point options created in the road map. 3) Participatory: With the shelf life of employees decreasing ;To keep the plan be stay alive it should be co-created with successors. Legacy component, phasing is critical for it’s success As a Gallup and ICF certified leadership coach when I see a leader struggling in this area ; common reason is un utilized Strategic Talent.

I would also Consider incorporating regular feedback mechanisms to ensure that your Strategy Map remains in alignment with your evolving organizational culture. Encourage open dialogues with employees at all levels, seeking their input on how the Strategy Map and culture can best support each other. Additionally, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and adaptability is crucial. Embrace change and be willing to update your Strategy Map to reflect shifts in culture, emerging market trends, and internal dynamics. By consistently revisiting and realigning your Strategy Map with your evolving culture, you'll not only enhance strategic execution but also build a resilient and dynamic organization poised for long-term success.

Remember its a strategy map is a pathway blueprint. It connects the dots between multiple factors that influence a proposed outcome. Identifying the paths to collaboration, isolate challenges upfront, and makes for a well-prepared, informed approach. This is very helpful in terms of managing providing clear direction for a plan and action items; and manage project scopes and delivery.

When it comes to aligning your strategic goals with your organizational culture, the Strategy Map is a tool that can help you accomplish this task. The Strategy Map is a visual representation of your organization's strategy which highlights the relationship between various objectives, measures, and initiatives. This tool is helpful because it provides a clear view of the organization's objectives, both the financial and non-financial ones, and how they interact with each other. When you are mapping out your objectives, it is essential to keep in mind your organizational culture as this can shape the way your goals are achieved. Understanding your culture will enable you to set goals that align with, rather than contradict it.

What team is not reflected in the strategy map? Are the “guardrails” clearly defined so being off track is easily spotted? Does the map include success points that can be measured so teams can be recognized?