Based on twenty years of research (including data from more than 20,000 managers in a diverse number of global industries) and real-world experience, two thought leaders bridge the very big but under-connected fields of strategy and leadership. They show how--in an unpredictable business environment--to be more strategic by looking outside-in (viewing problems from the perspective of the external marketplace) and future-back (enjoying a longer-term vision to see how the organization needs to change now).
Many are great operational leaders. They make budget, meet deadlines and get things done. But there is a key distinction between operational excellence and strategic savvy - between doing things right (being efficiency focused) versus doing the right things (being effectiveness focused).
Operational excellence, for example, might be about how to optimize supply chains to meet current and near-term objectives as efficiently and reliably as possible. Strategic leadership is a discipline for seeing the bigger picture, being aware of pitfalls, seeing the links to other decisions, spotting undercurrents, noticing people problems etc.
The discipline of strategic leadership is also about setting direction and knowing how to get there while making timely adjustments along the way. It requires the ability to anticipate shifts in the environment, challenge long-standing assumptions, interpret disparate or complex information, and make strategic choices under ambiguous conditions.
Nathan Mayer Rothschild, a member of the great nineteenth century German banking family, noted that "great fortunes are made when cannon balls fall in the harbor, not when violins play in the ball-room." This book shows how leaders can become more strategic in the face of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.