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This can be achieved by pursuing a rigorous, focused approach and by
setting tight deadlines. It can help to focus on issues such as customer
needs and preferences, the strategic aims of the organisation, team and
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MAKING STRATEGIC DECISIONS
individual objectives, vision statements and goals that guide activities
and progress, and information about competitors and other industries.
Removing constraints. Embracing radical change and re-engineering
can help to foster innovation. Experience is valuable, but it is not every-
thing. Something may never have been tried before, but this does not
mean that it can never succeed. Another way to remove constraints is to
make further use of the resources that are available, notably data, it
and the knowledge and experience of others. Moreover, motivation is
important in driving innovation, and this means rewarding innovators.
Ensuring innovations are realistic. Whenever it is feasible, innovative
proposals should be tested against practical realities. Those who gener-
ate ideas are not necessarily the best ones to check the practical implica-
tions, though in some cases they may be the only ones who can do this.
Planning the implementation of new ideas. New ideas often fail
because of poor planning or execution, or because of a lack of commu-
nication and co-operation between the innovator and the implementer
in making sure the vision is fulfilled but adapted as necessary according
to practical and commercial considerations. Patient, critical analysis is
more important in planning implementation of new ideas than it is for
the initial process of innovation.
Brainstorming. One of the most popular methods of generating
answers to problems is brainstorming, whereby those involved in the
process come up with many solutions to a problem. Most will be inap-
propriate, but from the ideas generated it is hoped that a creative and
effective solution will emerge. Brainstorming is a process in which a
group employs all of its creative talent. However, it is only through the
adoption of several important principles that it is likely to work.
Quantity matters. Generate as many ideas as possible. Quality is
secondary to the quantity of ideas. The quality of each idea can
be assessed later.
Suspend judgment. Prevent criticism or evaluation until as many
ideas as possible have been produced, so that participants feel
free to contribute without fear that their ideas will be torpedoed
by others.
Freewheel. Encourage every idea, even ones that may seem wild
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BUSINESS STRATEGY
and silly. The ideas that at first seem outlandish may be the ones
of greatest brilliance.
Cross-fertilise. Allow participants to build on each other s ideas in
order to spawn new solutions that represent their collective
thinking. This is how brainstorming becomes truly productive.
Don t rush to judgment. Allow time between the generation of
ideas and the evaluation process. A methodical process of
elimination should be used to select the optimal solution. Set the
criteria on which to rate the ideas generated. This helps to whittle
down the ideas to a few promising solutions, of which one
should be labelled frontrunner and the others kept as back-up
alternatives.
Mind mapping. This is an approach that organises thoughts and ideas
into a clear form, from which patterns and new approaches emerge or
crystallise. Mind maps help to clarify issues, as well as to share and
communicate ideas. A starting point is to list the pros and cons of each
idea. Grouping issues into specific categories can also be useful. A popu-
lar example of this is swot analysis, which identifies internal strengths
and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats. Lastly, display-
ing ideas in diagrammatic form can highlight relationships between
ideas.
Heuristics. A heuristic system uses experience to guide future plans and
decisions. It is characterised by flexibility and tentativeness rather than
forcefulness or certainty, with decisions adjusted as events develop,
guided by a specific set of values. Thus heuristic methods work best in
situations where structured or systematic decision-making methods
cannot be applied, perhaps because the situation is new. Heuristics are
relevant to the world of business: core principles (such as meeting cus-
tomer needs or being an effective leader) combined with experience can
be applied quickly and flexibly to effect a solution.
Implementing solutions
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