As markets become increasingly competitive, and open to disruption, it's more important than ever to be able to respond to market changes quickly. In this talk I speak about how you can clearly define and communicate your organisations strategy in order to align everyone to a common purpose, and increase your responsiveness. If you want to know more about how we think about strategy at ThoughtWorks, I'd love to hear from you.

1. STRATEGY IN A LEAN ENTERPRISE
@OlipherSG
A g i l e M a n c h e s t e r

2. 75Years
1937

3. 12Years
2012

4. TECHNOLOGY

5. GORDON MOORE
Law Maker

6. TECHNOLOGY

10. Competitors

11. WHAT DO
WE DO
ABOUT IT?

12. Ollie C. Stevenson
Business Designer

13. MORE
RESPONSIVE

14. Market
Change
Change
Perception
Decision Deliver
Value
WE NEED TO REDUCE TIME IT TAKES TO
RESPOND TO MARKET CHANGES

17. HOW CAN WE ALIGN OUR ORGANISATION
TO A COMMON PURPOSE?

18. STRATEGY

19. “A plan of action … intended to accomplish a specific goal”

20. “[Strategy is] a pattern in a stream of
decisions”
HENRY MINTZBERG
Professor of Management, Author

21. WHAT’S
GETTING IN
OUR WAY?

22. CONFIDENTIAL

23. CULTURE

24. COMMAND
CONTROL
and

25. OASIS OF AGILITY
ANNUAL STRATEGY
HEAVY
ANALYTICAL
BUDGETING
STAGE GATES
COMPLIANCE TO
PLAN MEASURES
JUST ONE MORE
STAGE GATE
STOP
STOP
Design Develop
Design Research
Loop
Agile Development
Loop
Design/Delivery Loop
Users &
Product
Time
Cost Scope
IRON
TRIANGLE
STOP

26. WHAT DO
WE
CHANGE?

27. CLEARLY DEFINE
YOUR STRATEGY

28. COMMUNICATE
STRATEGY

29. LEAN
VALUE
TREE

30. AMBITIOUS MISSION
STRATEGIC
GOAL
STRATEGIC
BET
STRATEGIC
BET
PROMISE
OF VALUE
PROMISE
OF VALUE
PROMISE
OF VALUE
POD
What is our destination as an
organisation?
What does the organisation
need to achieve to get there?
What strategies are we betting
on to achieve the goal?
What value are we offering to
customers to help us to help us
do that?
How much are
we investing?
PROMISE
OF VALUE
STRATEGIC
GOAL
STRATEGIC
GOAL
PROMISE
OF VALUE

31. BE THE HIGHEST VALUE
EDUCATIONAL INVESTMENT FOR
PEOPLE WORKING IN A RAPIDLY
CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
EDU
ANY
TIME
MAKE EVERY
CLASS EXCELLENT
MAKE OUR
EDUCATION
AVAILABLE IN
EVERY LIFE
SITUATION
BE THE QUICKEST
AT RESPONDING
TO NEW
EDUCATIONAL
NEEDS
BREAKING THE
CONVENTION OF
FIXED SCHEDULE
EDUCATION
As a working parent
you will be able to
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free
As a group of co-
workers you will be able
to request a class at an
unconventional time
LEVERAGING
SMART CAR
TECHNOLOGY

32. AMBITIOUS MISSION

33. Who we are as an organisation
Executive Ownership
Specific enough to inform decisions
Implicitly says who we’re not
Long term, stable
AMBITIOUS MISSION
BE THE HIGHEST VALUE
EDUCATIONAL INVESTMENT FOR
PEOPLE WORKING IN A RAPIDLY
CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
EDU
ANY
TIME
MAKE OUR
EDUCATION
AVAILABLE IN
EVERY LIFE
SITUATION
BREAKING THE
CONVENTION OF
FIXED SCHEDULE
EDUCATION
As a working parent
you will be able to
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free

34. STRATEGIC GOAL

35. Outcome focused, avoids suggesting a solution
Guides for executive investment
Long term, stable
Can have focuses on different horizons
STRATEGIC GOAL
Should have a measure for success
CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
EDU
ANY
TIME
MAKE OUR
EDUCATION
AVAILABLE IN
EVERY LIFE
SITUATION
BREAKING THE
CONVENTION OF
FIXED SCHEDULE
EDUCATION
As a working parent
you will be able to
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free

36. STRATEGIC BET

37. Primary driver is to satisfy the Strategic Goal
Has it’s own measure of success
Just one way to satisfy the strategic goal
Bridge between Execs and Architects
Medium Term
STRATEGIC BET
EDU
ANY
TIME
BREAKING THE
CONVENTION OF
FIXED SCHEDULE
EDUCATION
As a working parent
you will be able to
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free

38. PROMISE OF VALUE

39. Architects Ownership
Medium Term
Allows delivery team room to ideate and experiment
Ownership of the problem, not the solution
PROMISE OF VALUE
EDU
ANY
TIME
EDUCATION
As a working parent
you will be able to
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free

40. POD

41. EDU
ANY
TIME
Delivery Team Ownership
Short Term
Scope defined by level of investment
POD
A set of time, people, and money set aside to deliver POV
Experimentation used to find the best solution
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free

42. THINGS TO
WATCH
OUT FOR

43. 1

44. THERE’S NO
STRATEGY
THERE

45. 2

46. A FAT LEAN
VALUE TREE

47. 3

48. OUTPUTS
OUTCOMES
Over

49. 4

50. HORIZON
CONFUSION

51. 5

52. FEEDBACK-PHOBIA

53. WHAT CAN
WE EXPECT?

54. 1

55. A SIMPLE WAY TO
TALK ABOUT
STRATEGY

56. 2

57. GET THE MOST OUT
OF YOUR TEAMS
(AND CONVINCE THEM TO STAY)

58. AUTONOMY
PURPOSE
MASTERY
DAN PINK
Author, Drive: The surprising truth about
what motivates us

59. 3

60. MORE EFFECTIVE
SOLUTIONS

61. 4

62. LESS WASTE

63. 5

64. FEEDBACK ON
YOUR STRATEGY

65. BE THE HIGHEST VALUE
EDUCATIONAL INVESTMENT FOR
PEOPLE WORKING IN A RAPIDLY
CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
EDU
ANY
TIME
MAKE EVERY
CLASS EXCELLENT
MAKE OUR
EDUCATION
AVAILABLE IN
EVERY LIFE
SITUATION
BE THE QUICKEST
AT RESPONDING
TO NEW
EDUCATIONAL
NEEDS
BREAKING THE
CONVENTION OF
FIXED SCHEDULE
EDUCATION
As a working parent
you will be able to
schedule tutoring any
time you’re free
As a group of co-
workers you will be able
to request a class at an
unconventional time
LEVERAGING
SMART CAR
TECHNOLOGY

66. 6

67. INCREASED
RESPONSIVENESS

68. Market
Change
Change
Perception
Decision Deliver
Value
Market
Change
Change
Perception
Decision Deliver
Value

69. QUESTIONS FOR THE AUDIENCE
How easily could you describe your organisation’s mission?
Are all employees encouraged to understand your organisation’s strategy, or
or is it considered only relevant for senior management?
How easy is it for your software delivery teams to understand how their work
relates to your organisation’s mission?
How could you help align your organisation around a common purpose?

70. THANK YOU
ostevens@thoughtworks.com
@OlipherSG