Dansk
The future is unpredictable. So stop trying to predict the next big change and instead put your efforts into preparing your business to seize what's coming.
It's hard to predict - especially the future. There's an old saying that applies to the present.
I'll spare you countless repetitive examples of rapid societal change and just give you one I came across recently: When I was a kid, I wasn't allowed to pick up the phone and call my friend to ask if she could play. It cost too much, my mom said.
Today, grade 0 students are facetiming with each other via their junior smartwatches. Not only has the phone gone wireless - it's apparently being phased out.
Some business owners look at the speed of development with concern. Others see opportunity. Personally, I'm pretty excited. Never have so many people and businesses had so many opportunities to create a bright future.
I also disagree with those who say that strategy and future planning has become futile because change is happening so fast anyway: "We can hardly start working on a strategy before ChatGPT has changed everything - again", I sometimes hear.
That would be true if strategy was only about the ability to predict the future. Fortunately, in my opinion, good strategy is more about being prepared for the future.
Let me give you an example: Even though I don't know much about football, I can be fascinated listening to national coach Kasper Hjulmand. He can't know if the team will be behind from the first minute or have to play with 10 men in the second half. Therefore, he prepares for many different scenarios and has a basic plan for what to do if that happens.
Many companies and organizations can learn from this when preparing for rapid changes that we can't exactly predict. But we can only succeed if we as companies and organizations work with strategies and plans in a new way.
Gone are the days when a year and a half of analysis, strategizing and planning culminates in 35 tightly written pages that serve as an indispensable bible for the next three years.
Because as early as the next quarter, changes may have occurred that require a deviation. That's why we need to see strategy and plans as something we work with and adapt all the time.
Does this mean that every day of the week should be spent on internal workshops, brainstorming sessions and new customer value propositions? No - that would drive everyone crazy.
Instead, it means that strategy work must be sufficiently effective and manageable that it becomes an integral part of your company's work.
This requires an agile setup and the strategy work to be spread across the organization.
Even the most astute leader can't keep track of the many opportunities, needs and scenarios that are constantly changing. That's why future strategy work is a team sport, where it's all about creating a clear plan for the future that can be quickly adjusted.
This column was published on Jyllands-Postens Finance and in Jyllands-Posten, Erhverv on June 6, 2023
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