As a business leader responsible for developing a strategy for your business, do you know the 4 critical success factors that must be adhered to to achieve a successful outcome? Here’s a cheat sheet:

Consistency: 

• Do problems in coordination and planning continue to exist despite changes in people?
• Does the objective structure in your organisation mean success, for one department but mean failure for another?
• Do operating problems continue to be brought to top management for the resolution of policy issues despite attempts to delegate authority?

Consonance:

• Does your business have a clear understanding of the market it’s in as a whole and why it generally exists?
• Will the value created by your organisation’s strategy be disrupted in the current or forecasted changes in economic, social, environmental or societal conditions?
• Will new technologies or changes to supply chains disrupt the current strategy and create risks to the growth and value creation objectives of your organisation?

Advantage:

Does your organisation:

• Have relevant and superior RESOURCES for your industry that allow you to do more or do things better than your competitors?
• Have relevant and superior SKILLS for your industry that allow you to do more or do things better than your rivals?
• Would it be so costly for rivals to capture that it deters them from attacking this business?

Feasibility:

Has your organisation:

• Got the physical, human, and ­financial resources available?
• Demonstrated it possesses the problem-solving abilities and/or special competencies required by the strategy?
• Demonstrated the degree of coordination and integrative skill required to carry out the strategy?
• Does your strategy challenge and motivate key personnel and is it acceptable to those who must lend their support?