| An organisation's basic philosophy is more important to | | | | interests of the company. Motivation to perform for |
| its result than technological and/ or economic | | | | the company diminishes, motivation to fight for one's |
| resources, organisational structure, innovation and | | | | own or one's own group's interests (against other's in |
| choice of time. Thomas Watson Jr. | | | | the company) increase. |
| This article contains no information about technological | | | | Man is also hierarchical. Without obvious leadership, a |
| trends, economical predictions or market analyses. It | | | | lasting struggle to establish the missing hierarchy starts |
| lays out five principle insights into how and why any | | | | off. This is wrongly often understood as expressions |
| enterprise in the world today should practise Strategic | | | | of a power need. This struggle is most often |
| Leadership internally in the organisation. | | | | superfluous. A clear-cut hierarchy based on Strategic |
| Both strategy and leadership are today a matter of | | | | Leadership is the necessary first step to prevent |
| course. How comes, then, that so very few | | | | 'power struggles'. |
| enterprises do actually practise Strategic Leadership? | | | | For all systems and organisations there is a theoretical |
| The reasons are many. Top managers want to keep | | | | optimum degree of openness: |
| all ways open, not being bound to follow previously | | | | - Closed systems and monocultures degenerate and/ |
| decided paths. They want to keep flexibility. | | | | or die out |
| Sometimes they have hidden agendas that would | | | | - Totally exposed systems lose integrity, identity and |
| surface if strategy was overtly formulated. In some | | | | focus |
| cases middle management hides from strategy and | | | | Free flow of information, and free discussion between |
| leadership because they want to have the liberty to | | | | organisational levels and lines is a necessity. No single |
| side with the top one day, the bottom the other - even | | | | person can be the informed specialist of everything in |
| on the same topic. Leadership is dangerous, many | | | | today's complex world. Strategic Leadership ensures |
| managers seem to feel. One sticks one's neck out, | | | | that this exchange of knowledge and opinion happens. |
| and it might be cut off. Strategic decisions might be | | | | The organisation should be a truly open system |
| unpopular. Ore one's incompetence as strategic leader | | | | internally - and of course externally. |
| might become evident. Sometimes processes as | | | | A system that is very open runs the risk of losing |
| those presented here are avoided simply because | | | | integrity, identity and focus. That is exactly another |
| they take time. There are so many good reasons - | | | | contribution from Strategic Leadership: a strategy that |
| and many of them are respectable and sensible. | | | | is owned by all hands implies integrity, identity and |
| No-strategy and no-leadership may be OK on a | | | | focus. |
| dreamy pacific island. However, in an environment with | | | | The effect of influences to the ecosystem and upon |
| ever faster changing technology, markets and | | | | organisations is dependant on: |
| international politics, and with an ever stronger | | | | - The content of the influence |
| competition long term survival depends on strategy | | | | - The context |
| and leadership. The competitively able enterprises of | | | | - The order in which the influences come |
| today and tomorrow are lean, delayered, decentralised, | | | | - The stage of development of the system |
| delegated and flexible. Such enterprises have strategy, | | | | The fruitful ongoing process of Strategic Leadership |
| it is known, owned and practised by more than a CEO | | | | should be strictly led and follow certain patterns. Unless |
| and leadership is practised at all management levels. | | | | this is taken seriously, the situation could turn to the |
| Strategic Leadership is based on five insights into the | | | | worse. Power struggles, bureaucracy, de-motivation |
| essence of organisations. These insights are here | | | | and wasted time could result. Content, context, syntax |
| formulated as principles: | | | | and the developmental stage of the system must be |
| Within the ecosystem, all components are dependant | | | | regarded. |
| on other components for their very existence. | | | | Ecosystems and organisations are governed by |
| Individuals and groups within an organisation are | | | | feedback. |
| mutually dependant on each other and have superior | | | | The strategically led company depends, as we said, on |
| common interests. | | | | free flows of information and opinion. The company is |
| Whenever destructive conflicts appear on the scene, | | | | a complex, self-organising and self-correcting system. |
| the main reason is that the 'parties' involved are not | | | | Any breach in feedback loops is a threat to the |
| aware that they are parts of a system on which they | | | | company. Feedback should be encouraged, and it |
| all depend. Usually there is a lack of common goals is | | | | should be seen as a matter of course, and an obvious |
| such situations. Strategy contains the common goals, | | | | duty of any employee. Feedback is encouraged and |
| identity and ethics. Without strategy, the organisation is | | | | put to system in Strategic Leadership. |
| fragmented into departments, professional groups and | | | | We see then, that Strategic Leadership has a |
| working groups without co-operation or synergy. | | | | theoretical basis. This will be further detailed throughout |
| Individuals and/ or groups of people defend their | | | | this booklet. Empirical knowledge also strongly supports |
| territory against intruders, and hierarchical positions | | | | the necessity of Strategic Leadership. The studies of |
| against rivals. | | | | successful enterprises in the eighties and nineties show |
| There is no doubt that man is territorial. Without | | | | that values and strategic goals are deeply rooted in |
| strategy, no common territory is defined. Then | | | | the corporate culture of those enterprises, and that |
| individuals and groups define their own territory, which | | | | their managers practise more active leadership than |
| is defended and given superiority, even over the | | | | mere administrative management. |