Essentials of Strategic Thinking

Business has always operated in an environment that is complex, dynamic, unpredictable, and filled with interdependencies. However, the current challenges of globalization, technological change, regulatory complexity, and environmental and social changes have made the need for strategic thinking more important than ever.

Furthermore, the old idea that strategic thinking is only needed by the “C-suite” is out of date and absolutely wrong. Strategic thinking is needed at every level of leadership.

This course addresses the four fundamental responsibilities of every leader as they accept the overarching need to be a strategic thinker.

Furthermore the pace of change is accelerating, so the challenge of strategic thinking is ongoing. If a leader learns how to think and act "fast enough" then this leader is in a potion to actually lead. It's your choice -- keep up or fall behind.

• Introduction 02:19

  • 1: Introduction to the course Preview 02:19

• Creative Destruction 10:41

  • 2: Move fast enough or become irrlevant Preview 04:40
  • 3: Are you a deliberate thinker? 06:01

• The Sense-Response Cycle 33:00

  • 4: An introduction to the Sense-Response Cycle 05:21
  • 5: Sense the signal of change 07:50
  • 6: Make sense of what you see 09:01
  • 7: Decide on a course of action 05:26
  • 8: Act and Learn 05:22

• Summary and Checklist 02:49

  • 9: Back to the big picture 02:49

This course provides a process for keeping up the increasing pace of change in business and the need to thinking strategically about the ongoing changes and challenges. Fundamentally, every leader at every level is faced with four responsibilities:

1. Sense the signals of change -- Pay attention to your "mental radar screen and work to get out to the edge. What's on the edge and coming in fast?
2. Make sense of these signals -- This is the work of thinking crucially about what you've sensed.
3. Decide on a course of action -- Now is the time to recognize the risks you are willing (or unwilling) to accept.
4. Act on the decisions and learn -- Do you have the project leadership skills to enact the decisions you've made?

These responsibilities can be viewed as a cycle (Sense - Make Sense - Decide - Act) that has to be run "fast enough." Note that problems enacting any one of the four phases of the cycle will slow the cycle -- and you risk becoming irrelevant. And we can't think of anything worse for a leader to be seen as not needed. Keep up or drop out.

This course is for those leaders who must think about the future of their team, department, business unit or organization. But this is not simply an exercise in thinking, The challenge is to balance strategic intention with the ability to execute on that intention. Sensing changes in the environment and making sense of those changes is certainly important, but deciding on a course of action and then acting on those decisions is essential, and the heart of real leadership.

There are no formal prerequisites for this course. However, you should be engaged in the context of a real-life business and its challenges. The emphasis is on applying proven tools and techniques "in the real world."

You want and need to be recognized as a "strategic thinker" as you progress in your career. Especially in this new "let the AI do it" environment. This course will help if you're a manager who has or wants "a seat at the strategy table." Strategic thinking is essential to the role of real leaders.

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Reed Courses Certificate of Completion

Digital certificate - Included