...
Give your strategy a SPARC with skefto strategy software

Organisational success is a multi dimensional phenomenon which is not able to be achieved using the exact same formula each time. Whilst we all welcome a stroke of luck, a well defined strategy usually couples with the journey to success.

Successful planning and execution of strategy is difficult as it generally focusses on change. Taking a leap of faith to implement change is daunting as it removes us from our comfort zone.

skefto provides direction , setting out a pathway which allows you grow and be sustainable. Most importantly it provides critical assessment of current and historical performance to help shape the future direction. Ultimately skefto sets the scene for the tactics employed to achieve future goals and realise your vision.

Most organisations do not achieve ultimate strategic success from the outset. Each organisation has weaknesses and strengths which a strategy aims to remedy.

skefto uses the SPARC framework to enable strategy analysis and formulation. As a result you are able to set clear direction considering all factors that could impact your outcomes.

Whilst skefto delivers many strategic benefits some of the key benefits include:

McKinset&Company Strategic Thinking for strategy formulation
SPARC Step 1A: Strategy Analysis

Understanding our purpose is the most critical factor when developing a strategy. skefto allows organisations to define a mission statement, setting the context for all goals and activities. When developing your mission ask the following questions:

Tesla provides an example of a great mission setting out “To accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”. This mission is inspiring, positioning Tesla at leader in renewable and sustainable energy as not just car manufacturing.

Equally important as your mission is defining a vision. This is a statement which describes the desired long-term results of your company’s efforts. skefto allow organisations to define their vision by providing a lens into their desired future state. The impact of an organisations vision is paramount as it shapes all future business planning activities.

Early on Bill Gates set the Goal of having “a computer on every desk”. This statement set a very ambitious vision for Microsoft providing a crystal clear insight into its potential future state.

Vision statements may be short, long, quantitative or qualitative. However regardless of their nature they should inspire and set a clear direction for the organisation, its staff and customers.

Finally our guiding principles and values significantly influence our ability to realise to realise of our mission and vision. They should consider a range of elements including our customers, staff, products and services. Our guiding principles and values determine our organisational beliefs, culture and underpinning our actions and behaviours.

skefto with defining and sharing your mission, vision and values with the entire organisation.

McKinset&Company a process for strategy formulation
SPARC Step 1B: Strategy Formulation

Henry Mintzberg in his article Crafting Strategy suggests Strategies can both “form” and be “formulated” . “A realized strategy can emerge in response to an evolving situation, or it can be brought about deliberately”. Mintzberg’s statement gives rise to the notion that strategy may require some crafting as opposed to scientific formulation alone.

Firstly events and the environment:

Strategy formulation should start by considering current events and understanding our environmental landscape. How could events such a global pandemic, global economic downturns, natural disasters and political policies impact a strategy? Similarly how can data about past performance combined with insights into future trends form a hypothesis that informs our strategy?

Frameworks exist which help us answer these questions. These include SWOT analysis, PESTEL analysis, VRIO analysis, TOC analysis, Strategy gap analysis and Risk Management to name a few. 

Secondly setting strategic themes

You may have heard of terms such as strategic priorities, strategic pillars, aspirations or strategic focus. These are all the same as strategic themes and critically important to the success of your strategy. 

Gail S. Perry in her article Strategic Themes – How Are They Used and WHY?, states “Strategic themes are very broad in scope. They apply to every part of the organization and define what major strategic thrusts the organization will pursue to achieve its vision”

skefto allows strategic themes to be defined. These are then used to develop a balanced scorecard and provide the foundation for the development of organisational goals.

Thirdly setting goals and objectives:

Put simply, goals provide a big picture view of the outcomes an organisation seeks to achieve (e.g. “Create a more inclusive workplace culture”). 

On the hand objectives define more specific and measurable outcomes (e.g. a 10% increase in women in leadership positions). 

Goals and objectives are a match made in heaven. Without goals, objectives will not focussed on achieving the organisational vision. Similarly without objectives, goals can not be achieved as they are not SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely).

skefto provides a simple, intuitive and structured approach for defining goals and objectives.

Fourthly developing a strategy map:

A strategy map is a depiction of the connections and dependencies between strategic themes, goals and objectives. A strategy map provides a basis for modelling and what-if analysis, showing cause and effect relationships.

Traditionally the scope of a strategy map has been focussed on the strategic plan. However also linking to lower level plan data will create tighter alignment between the orgnisation’s strategy and its operations.

skefto bridges the gap between planning and execution and creates alignment by linking organisational & staff performance.

Lastly measuring with KPIs:

KPIs support organisational goals and objectives. Without KPIs we would not know if we’re on track to succeed or fail in reaching our desired results. KPIs provide the information we require to alter our strategy and get us back on course where required. skefto allows KPIs to be defined and selected by priority ensuring those with the highest impact are monitored.

skefto uses the SPARC framework to assist organisations with strategy analysis and formulation. skefto SPARC bridges the gap between planning and execution and creates alignment by linking organisational & staff performance.