Thinking Backwards to the Future

Today, organizations must keep pace with the changes in their environment and reduce current expenses, waste and bureaucratic operations. they must completely reinvent their future vision, and then begin thinking backwards to this future with the strategies needed to remain successful. They must commit passionately to the disciplined management of the changes that occur along the way toward becoming a customer-focused, high performance, learning organization. This is true for any business or non-profit organization, regardless of size. Our work at the Haines Centre for Strategic Management is based on three main premises: Premise #1: Planning and change are the primary jobs of leaders. The rapidity of change in today's world requires that managers at every level focus on both planning and future change while handling the day-to-day aspects of their jobs. A strategic plan is necessary to focus the organization on a common vision and mission and the strategies required to accomplish them. At the same time, leaders need to be prepared to make changes to that plan as the environment around them changes - competition, regulations, etc. Premise #2 People support what they help create. A core planning team of 8 to 15 people from the collective leadership should lead the strategic planning and management process, do the hard work, and make the tough decisions. this becomes the Change Leadership Team. A crucial part of leading strategic change is the formation of the Parallel Involvement Process - involving the rest of the management and key stakeholders by gathering their input on all draft documents and gaining their buy-in and ownership of the plan and strategies. They and their teams will be the ones to implement the plan. Premise #3 Use Systems Thinking to Focus on the Customer. By using Systems Thinking, you focus on outcomes, with the ultimate outcome being to serve the customer. Our approach to strategic planning and management uses a unique, integrated decision-making framework based on systems thinking. It forces you as a leader to think backwards from your future vision, keeping your desired outcomes in mind as you create the strategies and action plans necessary to close the gap from your current state today to where you want to be at some future date. Visit www.hainescentre.com to read more about this process and download the free article: The ABCs of Strategic Management.