7.9 Case Study 9: Faith and Health For instance, lets say that you make $100 per week in income and you focus on increasing that income by just 1% per week. The good news is that there are only three that we anticipate will react this way. These new habits move you toward the big change. It took a little longer, but eventually, I consistently hit that milestone as well. A useful tool I have used in my workshops and classes is writing down experiences and thoughts related to a cultural situation. Next, we had to adapt when the restrictions increased and the weeks of delay turned to months. Address the problem by showing such employees the benefits of change and offering them support. Belief in magic is NOT a leadership competency. It is always created within the context of your vision. Once we realized this, we were able to improve the quality of our training sessions and our instructors exponentially. A strategy explains how an organization will achieve its goals and objectives. Active listening focuses your mind on the speaker, and, if done repeatedly and successfully, you are able to build trust and a relationship with others. The process includes planning combined with adapting to changes in order to reach the ultimate goal." This dichotomy between the creative versus the Developing Strategic thinking within your firm requires a series of systemic actions that influences the culture of the firm. Email her at[emailprotected]. You can best achieve that by encouraging problem-solving behavior on every organizational level. Think about it as playing cultural detective: You ask your peers questions, and they clarify the information for you, and when they ask you questions, you clarify your thinking process for them. Strategy is about the big-picture choices that have a broad and long-term impact. Since we had that expertise, we were able to quickly adapt to the new needs of the market. Next was $10,000. You need to develop strategic thinking and create a culture of strategic thinking within your organization. A strategy that is often employed in the practice of cultural strategic thinking is to create peer-learningWorking with peers to question and explore cultural interactions to resolve cultural problems. proposes that when you change your questions in any given situation, this allows you to change your thinking. It doesnt matter if its just a few minutes per day; what matters is that you make it a part of your day. Observation is acquired through day-to-day activities in your life by making a conscious decision to be open and alert. Strategic Thinking: 5 Characteristics of Strategic Thinkers Written by MasterClass Last updated: Jun 7, 2021 2 min read Strategic thinkers excel at problem This content was accessible as of December 29, 2012, and it was downloaded then by Andy Schmitz in an effort to preserve the availability of this book. While strategic thinking is a valuable skill The easy answer is to make sure that you are measuring your progress. In my case, I opted for sometimes, it depends or mostly for each question. Note. Someone who holds a negative perspective about, or who had a negative experience, working with different cultural groups will continue to have difficulty working with the groups. You can do this by reminding yourself or by setting goals centered around the following actions: Active listeningThe ability of an individual to understand, interpret, reflect on, and respond to what that individual just heard. There are two types of questions: questions that involve judgments and questions that involve learning. If your culture doesnt work, your strategy cant work. Yet, no one formally teaches strategic thinkingso it's critical to take the initiative and learn how to do it yourself. Through observation and active listening, you pick up what you normally do not see. Strategy is a long-standing practice. So, what is strategic thinking? We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website. A good strategy will anticipate how your opponent will move and plan your own moves well in advance. You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page. Spanish novelist Miguel de Cervantes said, The man who is prepared has his battle half fought. Reactive thinkers see this analysis as criticism. "acceptedAnswer": { What is an example of strategic thinking that illustrates this systematic approach? I wasnt sure exactly what the interviewer was asking. Watch this video for a quick summary before you keep reading. But the reality is that I lead a very talented team, and one of the ideas that we have tried to engender on the team is that good ideas can come from anywhere. Profitability and cost savings. I realized that we were measuring the wrong thing. In week number one, your annual income is just $5,200 ($100 X 52 Weeks.) When I see that action, I can capitalize on it. We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Content is out of sync. Practicing to be an active listener is making a conscious choice about your responses to others. WebStrategic thinking is the ability to envision, plan, and execute long-term goals and initiatives that align with your organization's vision and mission. James Clear wrote a fantastic book about this subject called Atomic Habits. To download a .zip file containing this book to use offline, simply click here. The Importance Of Practice And Our Reluctance To Do It, The Science Behind The Art Of Storytelling. It does so by sharing with them a language and a process, and by helping to point out the cultural strategic thinking pieces of the process, which can be done by asking and clarifying the situation for them. Give yourself an hour to grow each week by clicking on the calendar icon. evaluate the strategies you have put in place. In this way, strategic thinking is part of everyones job whatever their role or level of responsibility. I encourage you to write down your emotions and feelings, the ambiguities and inconsistencies, and the challenges and successes of working interculturally. Good ideas can come from anywhere. Most of us recognize the wisdom embedded in that statement, yet we still see strategy as the realm of our organizations senior leaders. Not every senior leader thinks about their strategic planning process as an opportunity to enhance their organizational culture. It does so by sharing with them a language and a process, and by helping to point out the cultural strategic thinking pieces of the process, which can be done by asking and clarifying the situation for them. It is a critical skill in cultural intelligence because the behavior acknowledges that you have really heard what another person has said. Cultural intelligence improves my strategic thinking and sits at the core of my approach to planning. This forces you to think and plan You can do this by reminding yourself or by setting goals centered around the following actions: Active listeningThe ability of an individual to understand, interpret, reflect on, and respond to what that individual just heard. One instructor, though, was getting five-star results on the exit surveys, but also had a few oddities. By the way, I did get a nice job offer from that company. Web2. This section of the chapter provides ideas that will help you to increase your cultural strategic thinking. WebDiscussion 2 - What two specific cultural strategic thinking techniques have you observed within - Studocu University of the People Management in Global Economy Discussion 2 Recommended for you 3 Discussion unit 1 - How does an organization accurately identify the elements of its own culture? Senior leaders often hire teams of individual contributors to help with strategic problem-solving. How do you know if you are not also an expert strategic thinker? Its important to schedule time for strategic thinking, just like we all love exercising or walking. The basics of developing and practicing cultural strategic thinking are to (a) connect new information to the old, (b) select the appropriate strategies, and then (c) plan, Todays organizations are more dispersed and less hierarchical than ever before. This section of the chapter provides ideas that will help you to increase your cultural strategic thinking. I saw the words dozens of times every day. There are many definitions of strategic thinking. Are your plans and actions bringing you closer to the things that matter the most? While strategic thinking is a valuable skill for everyone in an organization, it becomes increasingly essential as you ascend the ladder. WebCultural intelligence has three key parts: thinking and solving problems in particular ways (cultural strategic thinking), being energized and persistent in ones actions (motivational), and acting in certain ways (behavioral). Strategic thinking is basically the practice of selecting a long-term goal and formulating an action plan toward reaching that goal. So, they acquired Bell Helicopter. Doing this provides you with a language for how you process cultural interactions and problems, and your peers can help you to create that language and help solve the problems. Marilee AdamsAdams (2004). opportunities to explore cultural interactions and resolve cultural problems. They also each have different problem-solving skills. This is your future goal. In your review of the situation, you may need to research unfamiliar terms or gestures used, or you may need to break down the picture and rebuild it, step by step, to understand if you really understood the whole picture. 16 Examples of Strengths for SWOT Analysis, 31 Most Inspiring Business Strategy Quotes, Top 7 Leadership Traits of an Effective Leader, What is Kaizen, how it works and top 12 benefits, How to be a critical thinker Top 7 skills. I printed, How can I make $1,000 in commission this week? onto a single sheet of paper. You will notice it when others marvel or comment at your ability to effectively manage cultural interactions. See All. Suspend judgments of people and their beliefs, Be open to experiences that are unfamiliar. For instance, years ago, I had about a dozen trainers on my staff. The content weve added is geared to helping people boost their productivity and effectiveness by making strategic thinking a habit, and includes practical ways that enable them to do so. Why is that person so clueless and frustrating? Cultural strategic thinking is essential because it is this higher strategic thinking that enables you to process the new information and reinterpret it in a new situation. Earley and PetersonEarley & Peterson (2004). This article shows a five-step approach on how you can keep track of It could be a certain amount of money you hope to earn or a dream job, or a target related to your current job that you hope to accomplish. Strategic planning vs. strategic thinking. Anticipate possible challenges and identify ways to deal with them before they occur. This section of the chapter provides ideas that will help you to increase your cultural strategic thinking. Basically, every time that I reached the new goal, I just increased the goal. According to Harvard Business Review, [Because] organizations face unprecedented challenges, fostering the creativity necessary to develop truly breakthrough ideas has become more important than ever.. Leaders on every level have to hold their reports accountable for fulfilling these expectations. Asking questions in a different way provides us with another perspective. You can also change your vision if something comes up that relates in some way to the original goal. Because cultural intelligence is intentional, you are also better able to regulate your emotions and feelings. Simply put, strategy is how you plan to achieve a goal. If you dont have milestones, it is hard to know what to measure. Expert strategic thinkers often credit their success to deliberate practice and life experiences rather than their innate ability. It cant be reduced to just any one of them. According to Harvard Business Review, [Because] organizations face unprecedented challenges, fostering the creativity necessary to develop truly breakthrough ideas has become more important than ever." The strategic plan includes your compelling vision and your mission, both defined based on the core values of your organization. ", Negative attitudes and impressions will hinder your work. We feel like if they are enthused about the change, the rest of the sales team will be as well.. Strategic Thinking (Critical Thinking) is a process of identifying ways to move a person, team, or organization toward a long-term goal. Many of these customers had little or no experience organizing big virtual meetings. Think about a situation in your past where you were working on a project or putting together a plan. In strategic planning, leaders gather data and decide on the path the organization will take to achieve its goals. Then, I posted copies of that printout at my desk, my car audio console, and my bathroom mirror. It also serves as a memory of your experiences, which you can later refer back to and learn from. Mostly we use this technique already without paying attention that we are using it. Because cultural intelligence is intentional, you are also better able to regulate your emotions and feelings. All Rights Reserved. This forces you to think and plan several moves ahead than you would normally. To make strategic decisions, you need people on all sides of an issue to speak their minds. With strategic thinking, employees at all levels and in all functions continually scan for new ways to contribute to the organizations success. Weve been using the principles from ancient times for a long time. Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33301 DonorsChoose.org helps people like you help teachers fund their classroom projects, from art supplies to books to calculators. wrote that learning about a new culture requires putting all the pieces of a pattern together when you do not know the totality of what that whole picture should look like. Culturally intelligent leaders must have excellent observation skills, never failing to hear and see the tangible and intangible. Cultural strategic thinking helps you to discard what you think you know and to apply new information concerning what the situation could be. Harvard Business Publishing is an affiliate of Harvard Business School. When applied How vision, Strategy, and tactics are related? Strategic thinking is the key to the long-term survival of your organization. "@type": "Answer", "@type": "Question", Practicing to be an active listener is making a conscious choice about your responses to others. In fact, multiple new ideas for every challenge are critical to success. You also have to measure your progress toward the goal. Tactics: He would conduct a pilot program to test this Strategy. Spend the early part of the strategic planning process identifying multiple possible solutions to each challenge. At the very start of the spread, our strategy was to reschedule meetings postponed due to meeting restrictions. A better strategy is to study the pitcher. It is hard to understand how these different concepts relate to us. Webstrategic culture and behavior should be approached with a great deal of care. Every outdated idea today was once a unique business strategy that set the world on fire. In cultural strategic thinking, it is important to talk about what you will do or what you have to do. Pay attention to the verbal and nonverbal cues of various situations; look around your environment and note the various symbols and artifacts. The Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) fosters community and engagement for staff, develops programs and experiences for employees to increase their racial literacy and cultural fluency, and is committed to creating a community where all employees can be their authentic selves at work everyday. The more times that you do this, the more strikes are against you. Think about it as playing cultural detective: You ask your peers questions, and they clarify the information for you, and when they ask you questions, you clarify your thinking process for them. As a result, they made another fortune selling the US military helicopters. For example, lets say we are rolling out new software for a sales team to submit their sales reports. Strategic thinking is basically the practice of selecting a long-term goal and formulating an action plan toward reaching that goal. However, this question stunned me. If he doesnt, I make an adjustment on the second pitch. This process takes a lot of discipline. Why is that person so clueless and frustrating? Their licenses helped make this book available to you. Working with peers to question and explore cultural interactions to resolve cultural problems. Legal. Suppose you start paying attention to some of the statements around the word strategy in your organization or the media. ", For each problem, we can think about different strategies before committing to one. The person interviewing me asked, In this company, we like to hire strategic thinkers. We want to become the most efficient organization in our manufacturing sector., We want to use technology to transform the way we work., We want our employees to put customers first.. Using that cultural situation as a Kodak moment, take the opportunity to reread the picture to see if you really understood how that cultural fact was used. Earley and PetersonEarley & Peterson (2004). Then, 16 weeks later, youd double another time. Its true that strategic thinking skills are valuable, and some people (like senior executives or policymakers) need them more than others. You think strategically when you pick a long-term goal and plan how to get there. Then, once that becomes a habit, it is fairly easy to run one-and-a-half-miles per day then two miles. All change starts at the top, so your first Strategy is knowing what to do when there is nothing to do. By training your mind to think at a higher level, you create new maps of cultural situations, which help you to function more effectively. Your writing serves as a reflection of your thinking processes and how you have dealt with, or how you could not deal with, the process. Having a culture like this will give a big boost to the growth of the company.