Book smokes out ways to improve business strategies
Anyone who has tried to break a bad habit knows how hard it can be. Every New Year’s Day millions resolve to lose weight, quit smoking or get better organized. And every Jan. 2, those making the resolutions are resolved to try it again another day.
In his latest book, "Strategy and the Fat Smoker," author David Maister equates business achievement with the struggle a smoker has when trying to quit the habit. Many try, but not all will succeed.
With business, as it is with smoking, Maister surmises some essential questions of strategy are not being asked and answered despite a plethora of practical wisdom that is well disseminated, publicized and understood.
Smokers who want to quit know that doing so will benefit their health and their wallets. Executives know a well-designed business approach will add to their bottom line.
There are a million good reasons for doing both. But turning reason into reality means thinking differently about strategy. Without answering some tough questions, the smoker lights up again or the business fails because of the pursuit of the same old failed strategy in hopes of a better result.
Those who lead organizations, according to Maister, must think differently about strategy. First, they must learn what drives and motivates people, then take that information to the next level by using it to figure out how to change and improve their businesses. Second, they must be ready to rebound from mistakes. The ability to recover from mistakes is a strategy move in its own right.
Maister’s book has opened my eyes to two important ways of looking at strategy.
First, it has helped me realize that creating a single resolve in a group to take action is more important than merely creating insights into what should be done. Getting everyone on board and, as Maister says, "sticking to the diet" can be a leader’s biggest challenge. If done well, however, it can also be the most rewarding.
Second, is the importance of taking an action-oriented approach to strategy cash advance loan. Problems should be addressed now, before something serious happens in the future, leaving what needs to be fixed beyond repair. Being successful means moving forward and implementing something management and your organization cannot ignore.
Maister also reveals his finding that success cannot be achieved if you rely on only doing things "well most of the time." For him, the pursuit of short-term goals is inherently anti-strategic and self-defeating. The time necessary to make noteworthy advancements cannot be undervalued.
He reminds us that anything worth putting an effort into, whether it is breaking a bad habit or building a better business strategy, will take time to bear fruit. You must forgo some of today to reach a better tomorrow.
Maister says strategies in business are applied more efficiently when presented as matters of principle and not just convenience. In establishing those strategies, business leaders must take into account that some people have an appetite for high-investment, future-oriented strategies they are willing to defer. Others, they will find, are reluctant to invest, even in their own future.
If you are willing to invest some of your time on a strategy book designed to make you a better manager, take a bite out of "Strategy and the Fat Smoker."
BENJAMIN OLA. AKANDE IS DEAN OF WEBSTER UNIVERSITY’S SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY. READERS ARE INVITED TO JOIN WEBSTER’S ONLINE BIZTALK BOOK CLUB. GO TO WWW.WEBSTER.EDU/SBT/BOOKCLUB TO JOIN AND PARTICIPATE IN THE BOOK CLUB CHAT FOR "STRATEGY AND THE FAT SMOKER" FROM NOON TO 1 P.M. TODAY. NEXT MONTH’S BIZTALK BOOK CLUB SELECTION IS "LIFE’S A CAMPAIGN: WHAT POLITICS HAS TAUGHT ME ABOUT FRIENDSHIP, RIVALRY, REPUTATION, AND SUCCESS," BY CHRIS MATTHEW.
‘Strategy and the Fat Smoker’ by David Maister The Spangle Press, $29.99