Looking to the Future

When you control enough factors in your environment, you become the market leader and set the standards for the whole industry

One of the most important aspects of strategic management is predicting the things that will impact you and your organization in the future. Some of these are bigger than you, and you cannot change them. Others are within your power to change. Knowing what you can change and what you need to work around will help you to use your resources efficiently.

Macroeconomic (related to the big aspects of an economy, such as inflation, economic growth, recession, and levels of employment) factors are major forces that impact not just your organization, but also your competitors and your marketplace. They may impact other markets, the country, and sometimes the world economy. While you as a team or organization cannot change or control these things, you can seek to understand them and create strategies that fit in with them.

Many other factors are within your sphere of influence, and when you control them, you can set the agenda. When you control enough factors in your environment, you become the market leader and set the standards for the whole industry; if, for example, you decide to reduce your prices, your competitors are forced to reduce theirs.

Large organizations can exert huge control--even dictating government policy--but even if you cannot aspire to this level of power, you should attempt to implement strategies that give you as much control as possible. The more control you have, the fewer surprises you'll encounter and the more likely you are to survive in the longer term.

ACTION POINT: Set the agenda by understanding the factors that are within your sphere of influence.

The Gift of Knowledge and Reality

Your face, Lord, do I seek. Psalm 27:8

There is a certain humbling character that the Gift of Knowledge imparts -- namely that we are basically prone to illusion and that our way of looking at life is not the only way and certainly not the most accurate. Such knowledge opens us, like the
opening of mind and heart that we pursue in centering prayer, to the reality of God just as God is...The Gift of Knowledge is an intuition into the fact that only God can satisfy our deepest longing for happiness...The Spirit of God in response to our centering prayer practice provides perspective for the energy that is channeled into...the daily frustration of our immoderate desires. The Spirit says to us: "You will never find happiness in any of your instinctual needs. They are only created things, and created things are designed to be stepping-stones to God, and not substitutes for God." The Spirit presents us with the true source of happiness, which is the experience of God as intimate and always present.

Psalm 27:8 "Come," my heart says, "seek his face!"

Gaining Advantage

To be sustainable, competitive advantage needs to be difficult or impossible to copy.

Without sustainable competitive advantage, your organization will always be vulnerable. Imagine your organization will always be vulnerable. Imagine you run a pizza restaurant in a small town, where you share the market with two competing pizzerias. You decide to win more business, so you differentiate yourself by offering a home-delivery service. Within a month your turnover has doubled: you have achieved competitive advantage. But seeing your success, your competitors also start to offer delivery and within another month, your sales have returned to their previous levels.

The problem is that this competitive advantage was just temporary. To be sustainable, competitive advantage needs to be difficult or impossible to copy. In this example, this could mean investing more expensive premises--located between the shopping center and the cinema, say--that a large number of people will pass by. Your rivals cannot occupy the same site, so you have a sustainable competitive advantage over them.

What are the potential sources of sustainable competitive advantage that your organization should seek to develop? Location is clearly key in the retail sector, but sources of sustainable competitive advantage can be identified in every industry:

• Size: being bigger gives you control of the market and achieves economies of scale.
• Knowledge: a big-city law firm, for example, may have more knowledge than a smaller firm.
• Resources: control of limited resources of any kind.
• Relationships: key relationships with decision-makers cannot be easily coped by your competitors.
• Brand: while it is easy to copy a product, it is difficult to copy the emotions customers feel about a particular brand --that's why organizations invest so heavily in brand identity.

ACTION POINT: Identify the knowledge, resources and relationships that can help you gain competitive advantage.

Leading Your Competitors

Competition is not limited to organizations providing the same service or selling the same products.

Your business, and every team within it, must have a source of competitive advantage--an overriding reason why customers will want to do business with you rather than a competitor. Understanding, identifying, creating, and sustaining competitive advantage is at the heart of good strategy.

Competition is not limited to organizations providing the same service or selling the same products. Much of your competition may be indirect. For example, for the strategic manager of a bowling alley, another bowling alley in town is a direct competitor. However, bowling is a form of family entertainment, so that manager also needs to consider competition from the movies and the local pizzeria. The leader of a team within an organization will be in direct competition with other teams within the organization that can provide the same service, but will face indirect competition from external companies that could also provide the is service.

ACTION POINT: Identify who your direct and indirect competitors are and develop a competitive advantage against them.

Unifying the Organization

A well communicated strategy sends the message: "We're all in this together."

A clear strategy acts as a unifying force within an organization. You may have worked in organizations where the staff focus only on their job and don't understand how it fits into wider processes and objectives (and perhaps don't even care). This results in confusion, frustration for staff and customers alike, and ultimately a short-term future for the organization.

By creating a clear strategy and sharing it with your team or organization, everyone knows where they are going: people are then far more likely to adjust their behavior to make the whole enterprise work better. A well communicated strategy sends the message: "We're all in this together." Having a destination is very powerful in terms of human motivation because we are motivated in one of two ways: "away from pain" or "toward pleasure." The former leads to behavior that achieves a short-term result, but having moved away from pain we may end up in a place we are not so keen to be. If we move toward pleasure we will be more likely to achieve a goal that we want to sustain.

ACTION POINT: Move away from pain toward pleasure.

A Peaceful Inclination

The Spirit...will guide you to all truth. John 16:13

The Gift of Counsel is a peaceful inclination to continue to do what we are doing or to change what we are doing. We can ignore it. It is a suggestion. Take it or leave it. To develop that sensitivity requires work on our part to maintain interior silence, but once it is established the only time we have to take action is when we notice a loss of peace. That means that we are off course. As long as that peace is in place, we are in deep prayer all the time, whether we are praying formally or not. whether we are counseling or doing heavy manual work, as long a that sense of inner quiet and peace is there, God is not asking us to think about or to judge the situation. He merely wants us to stay on course, to do his will in the present moment.

Be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2

Rules of Thumb II

Blasting a Stump - You can blow most tree stumps out of the ground if you use one stick of dynamite for every four inches of stump diameter - Joe Kaiser

Monster Enters Left - Horror film makers know that the human eye has a tendency to drift slightly to the right side of the screen when viewing a movie, so they have the shocks and surprises come from the left side - Will Musham, writer

Re-Orient Express - Culture shock occurs only in the first three countries you visit; after that you'll subconsciously focus on similarities rather than differences. Gary Gaile, photographer

A Silent Charging Dog - If a dog is charging you and barking, it is merely defending territory and will not bite. But a dog that's charging and not barking is going to attack. Rulesofthumb.org Review Board

Reducing your personal backlog - Make a new "to do" list every day from your larger list of projects, goals, and things to do. If something gets transferred to the next day's list ten times, drop it. There's a reason you're avoiding the task. Rulesofthumb.org Review Board

Swapping Cat Food - When introducing a new food, allow three days for the cat to pout before you decide to try a different food. Rulesofthumb.org Review Board

Storytelling Precision - If you can't fit the idea of your story into one simple sentence, you don't understand your story. Craig Moorehead, writer

A Poorly Fitting Suit - If your lawyer tells you that the prospective lawsuit is a "slam dunk," retain a new lawyer as soon as possible. Stephen Verbit, attorney

Mickey's Mob - At Disney World, the crow is most likely to turn to the right. Therefore, the rides to the left are less crowded. Carolyn Lloyd

Stirring up a cocktail party - Make sure to have at least 12 guests at a cocktail party. With fewer guests, the party becomes one conversation in which only one person speaks at a time. But with 12 people, the conversation splits into two or more groups with more chance for interplay and movement. - Tom Nelson, photographer

Counting the Benefits

...a good strategy will attract many benefits besides ensuring you're more likely to reach your goals.

Whether you are managing a team, a start-up business, a local government department, a large commercial organization, or a charity, having a good strategy will attract many benefits besides ensuring you're more likely to reach your goals. It also helps you to map out your future, attract funding, and establish a team of treat people to work with.

First, a good strategy acts as a road map. it should clearly identify where you want to be at a given point in time, say, three years. For example, one of your goals may be to increase sales by a factor of ten. Your strategy should set out how you will achieve this target. Boosting sales by this amount will clearly require actions bolder than printing a new sales leaflet.

A strategy has more than the destination in mind. It enables you to map the roads and junctions along the way, so that you can plot your way and, critically, measure your progress. Three years is too long to wait to see if you made the right decisions, and you need frequent reassurance that you are on the right road.

Second, a clear strategy attracts interest and funding from third parties. This might be start-up finance for a new business, internal funding (where you have to compete with other teams for resources), or a bid for sponsorship. In every scenario, funders want to know that you are in control of the situation. They can't predict the future, so they seek reassurance from your confidence in your plan for the future. A considered strategy demonstrates that their funds will be well used and that they will receive a healthy and secure return.

ACTION POINT: Devise a strategy that has a destination and attracts interest.

Setting Off

It means identifying signposts that confirm you are heading in the right direction, and making good progress on the journey.

Devising your strategy means setting the direction and scope of your organization and planning how to meet the needs of your customers over a period of years. It means identifying signposts that confirm you are heading in the right direction, and making good progress on the journey.

The following indicators can be used to see if you are on or off track:

On Track:

• Having clear destination in mind.
• Being willing to deal with the big picture.
• Knowing why you are better than your competitors.
• Feeling "on top" of leading the business to a brighter future.

Off Track:

• Being too busy with today to think about tomorrow.
• Being to quick to say why something shouldn't happen.
• Not being able to quickly give the reasons why your business exists.
• Making decisions without referring to your overall strategic direction.

ACTION POINT: Know the signposts that indicate your are on track with your strategy

Defining Triggers

Internal reasons to change are similarly diverse


The need to change strategy is initiated by changes in your organization (internal triggers) or in the business environment (external triggers). External triggers include "big" events over which you organization has no control, but that can be anticipated and managed around, such as growth or decline in the economy, taxation changes, or new technology.

More specific external triggers include a new competitor in your market, your main customer no longer needing your services, or even changes in road layouts that mean that customers no longer drive past your shop.


Internal reasons to change are similarly diverse--a change of location for the business meaning old activities are more difficult or new activities are possible, for example, or the loss of an experienced member of staff.


ACTION POINT: Understand the external and internal triggers that indicate the need for change.

Understanding Strategy

It's not just the plan itself that has value, but all the thinking that goes into it. the questions you ask yourself, and the answers that come forward.


Strategy is about making sure that your business arrives where you want it to at a given time. As a manager, you need to know what good strategy looks like and understand how it can be used to create the future for your team or organization.

When you map out your business strategy you are creating a future that may be two, three, five, or more years ahead. It's not just the plan itself that has value, but all the thinking that goes into it. the questions you ask yourself, and the answers that come forward.


No organization can stand still. At the very least, the costs of running a business will increase year on year; prices of raw materials will rise, staff will expect higher wages, and rent will go up. This means that you must increase your output every year. And in time, you will inevitably reach a point where you cannot increase sales further in your current situation. At this point you will need to make a bigger change; this is the time to change your strategy. Strategies exist at many levels, from those that move the whole business forward to those that develop the individuals working within it.


ACTION POINT: Plan for change and keep moving to prepare your business for the future.

Strategic Management

insight into how to gain competitive advantage, which is at the heart of good strategy.

Strategy is about creating and delivering the future. It is about leading your team or your organization to a future in which you are able to compete more effectively and to achieve prosperity and sustainability. The skills of strategic management are applicable to those leading a team or planning the direction of any size of organization in all sectors-private, public, and voluntary.

Strategic management is for those taking, or wanting to take, their first steps to developing and implementing strategic changes. It gives you the tools you need to make effective strategic decisions, by helping you analyze your organization and the would it operates in, plan your strategic approach, and implement the changes. It provides insight into how to gain competitive advantage, which is at the heart of good strategy.

Strategic management is easier than many suggest, yet not all managers take the time to master it. If you do develop the ability to think strategically and learn the skills needed for strategic management, you will make yourself a valuable asset to your organization.

ACTION POINT: Develop your powers of strategic thinking so that they become second nature.

The Gift of Counsel

The Counselor...will teach you all things...

John 14:26

The Gift of Counsel...not only suggests what to do in the long range, but also what to do in the details our daily lives. The more open we are to the Spirit, the more the Spirit takes over our lives...Three stages frequently occur in action that is prompted by the Spirit.

The first is that you feel called by God to do something that requires great effort, and sometimes the project is initially a huge success. The next stage is that your initial success fails. You feel that you made a mistake and are humiliated. You resolve never to take a similar risk. Finally, there is the triumph of grace, often totally unexpected. Those three elements almost always got together...All you have to do do is to take the first step.

Psalm 73:23-24

You hold my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel...

Developing the Skills III

Some of the best results have always been achieved through the "coaching" of subordinates by superiors.

Conceptual skill, like human skill, has not been very widely understood. A number of methods have been tried to aid in developing this ability, with varying success. Some of the best results have always been achieved through the "coaching" of subordinates by superiors. This is no new idea. It implies that one of the key responsibilities of the executive is to help his subordinates to develop their administrative potentials. One way a superior can help "coach" his subordinate is by assigning a particular responsibility, and then responding with searching questions or opinions, rather than giving answers, whenever the subordinate seeks help. When Benjamin F. Fairless was president of US Steel he described his coaching activities:

When one of my vice presidents or the head of one of our operating companies comes to me for instructions, I generally counter by asking him questions. First thing I know, he has told me how to solve the problem himself.

Obviously, this is an ideal and wholly natural procedure for administrative training, and applies to the development of technical and human skill, as well as to that of conceptual skill. However, its success must necessarily rest on the abilities and willingness of the superior to help the subordinate.

Another excellent way to develop conceptual skill is through trading jobs, that is, by moving promising young men through different functions of the business but at the same level of responsibility. This gives the man the chance literally to "be in the other fellow's shoes."

ACTION POINT: Use searching questions and opportunities to "wear others shoes" to develop conceptual skills.

Developing the Skills II

As a practical matter, however, the executive must develop his own human skill

Human skill, however, has been much less understood, and only recently has systematic progress been made in developing it. Many different approaches to the development of human skill are being pursued by various universities and professional men today. These are rooted in such disciplines as psychology, sociology, and anthropology.

Some of these approaches find their application in "applied psychology," "human engineering," and a host of other manifestations requiring technical specialists to help the businessman with his human problems. As a practical matter, however, the executive must develop his own human skill, rather than lean on the advice of others. To be effective, he must develop his own personal point of view toward human activity, so that he will (a) recognize the feelings and sentiments which he brings to a situation; (b) have an attitude about his own experiences which will enable him to re-evaluate and learn from them; (c) develop ability in understanding what others by their actions and words (explicit or implicit) are trying to communicate to him; and (d) develop ability in successfully communicating his ideas and attitudes to others.

ACTION POINT: Use recognition, re-evaluation, understanding and communication to develop your human skills.

Developing the Skills

The skill conception of administration suggests that we may hope to improve our administrative effectiveness and to develop better administrators for the future.

For many years people have contended that leadership ability is inherent in certain chosen individuals. We talk of "born leaders," "born executives", "born salesmen." it is undoubtedly true that certain people, naturally or innately, possess greater aptitude or ability in certain skills. But research in psychology and physiology would also indicate, first , that those having strong aptitudes and abilities can improve their skill through practice and training, and, secondly, that even those lacking the natural ability can improve their performance and over-all effectiveness.

The skill conception of administration suggests that we may hope to improve our administrative effectiveness and to develop better administrators for the future. This skill conception implies learning by doing. Different people learn in different ways, but skills are developed through practice and through relating learning to one's own personal experience and background. If well done, training these basic administrative skills should develop executive abilities more surely and more rapidly than through unorganized experience.

Technical skill requires sound grounding the principles, structures, and processes of the individual specialty, coupled with actual practice and experience during which the individual is watched and helped by a superior, appear to be the most effective.

ACTION POINT: Develop your skills through practice and personal experience.

The Gift of Piety

Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3:13

The Gift of Piety mellows the sense of reverence for God and over-strictness with ourselves. It inspires a great spirit of kindness and understanding toward others, meekness in bearing their faults, willingness to forgive, and genuine affection for them. The Gift of Piety awakens in us a child-like attitude toward God and also a sense that everyone is our brother an sister. It sees people as companions on the journey rather than competitors. An attitude of total forgiveness of everyone and everything is the most mature fruit of the gift of Piety. As the sense of belonging to the human family as a whole continues to grow through contemplative prayer and practice, the oneness extends to the earth, the environment and, indeed to all creation. One begins to perceive all things in God and God in all things.

Ephesians 4:32

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

At The Top Level

One of the most important lessons which I learned on this job [the presidency] is the importance of coordinating the various departments into an effective team, and, secondly, to recognize the shifting emphasis from time to time of the relative importance of various departments to the business.

Conceptual skill, as indicated in the preceding sections, becomes increasingly critical in more responsible executive positions where its effects are maximized and most easily observed. In fact, recent research findings lead to the conclusion that at the top level of administration this conceptual skill becomes the most important ability of all. As Herman W. Steinkraus, president of Bridgeport Brass Company, said:

One of the most important lessons which I learned on this job [the presidency] is the importance of coordinating the various departments into an effective team, and, secondly, to recognize the shifting emphasis from time to time of the relative importance of various departments to the business.

It would appear, then, that at lower levels of administrative responsibility, the principal need is for technical and human skills. At higher levels, technical skill becomes relatively less important while the need for conceptual skill increases rapidly. At the top level of an organization, conceptual skill becomes the most important skill of all for successful administration. A chief executive may lack technical or human skills and still be effective if he has subordinates who have strong abilities in these directions. But if his conceptual skill is weak, the success of the whole organization may be jeopardized.

ACTION POINT: Understand the hierarchy of technical, human and conceptual skills and where they are applied most effectively.

At Every Level II

This would seem to be an excellent example of a situation in which strong conceptual skill more than compensated for a lack of human skill.

A recent research study provides an example of an extremely effective plant manager who, although possessing little human skill as defined here, was nonetheless very successful:

This manager, the head of a largely autonomous division, made his supervisors, through the effects of his strong personality and the "pressure" he applied, highly dependent on him for most of their "rewards, penalties, authority, perpetuation, communication, and identification.

As a result, the supervisors spent much of their time competing with one another for the manager's favor. They told him only the things they thought he wanted to hear, and spent much time trying to find out his desires. They depended on him to set their objectives and to show them how to reach them. because the manager was inconsistent and unpredictable in his behavior, the supervisors were insecure and continually engaged in interdepartmental squabbles which they tried to keep hidden from the manager.

Clearly, human skill as defined here was lacking. Yet, by evaluation of his superiors and by his results in increasing efficiency and raising profits and morale, this manager was exceedingly effective. This suggests that employees in modern industrial organizations tend to have a "built-in" sense of dependence on superiors which capable and alert men can turn to advantage.

In the context of the three-skill approach, it seems that this manager was able to capitalize on this dependence because he recognized the interrelationships of all the activities under his control, identified himself with the organization, and sublimated the individual interests of his subordinates to his (organization's) interest, set his goals realistically, and showed his subordinates how to reach these goals. This would seem to be an excellent example of a situation in which strong conceptual skill more than compensated for a lack of human skill.

ACTION POINT: Understand when to use the various skills to motivate your team for performance.

At Every Level

These findings would tend to indicate that human skill is of great importance at every level, but notice the difference in emphasis.

Human skill, the ability to work with others, is essential to effective administration at every level. One recent research study has shown that human skill is of paramount importance at the Foreman level, pointing out that the chief function of the foreman as an administrator is to attain collaboration of people in the work group. Another study reinforces this finding and extends it to the middle-management group, adding that the administrator should be primarily concerned with facilitating communication in the organization. And still another study, concerned primarily with top management underscores the need for self-awareness and sensitivity to human relationships by executives at that level. These findings would tend to indicate that human skill is of great importance at every level, but notice the difference in emphasis.

Human skill seems to be most important at lower levels, where the number of direct contacts between administrators and subordinates is greatest. As we go higher and higher in the administrative echelons the number and frequency of these personal contacts decrease, and the need for human skill becomes proportionately, although probably not absolutely, less. At the same time, conceptual skill becomes increasingly more important with the need for policy decisions and broad-scale action. The human skill of dealing with individuals then becomes subordinate to the conceptual skill of integrating group interests and activities into a whole.

ACTION POINT: Understand the importance of human skill at the various levels of your organization.

At Lower Levels

As the administrator moves further and further from the actual physical operation, this need for technical skill becomes less important, provided he has skilled subordinates and can help them solve their own problems.

Technical skill is responsible for many of the great advances of modern industry. it is indispensable to efficient operation. yet it has greatest importance at the lower levels of administration. As the administrator moves further and further from the actual physical operation, this need for technical skill becomes less important, provided he has skilled subordinates and can help them solve their own problems. At the top, technical skill may be almost nonexistent, and the executive may still be able to perform effectively if his human and conceptual skills are highly developed.

For example, in one large capital-goods producing company, the controller was called on to replace the manufacturing vice president, who had been stricken suddenly with a severe illness. The controller had no previous production experience, but he had been with the company for more than 20 years and knew many of the key production personnel intimately. By setting up an advisory staff, and by delegating an unusual amount of authority to his department heads, he was able to devote himself to coordination of the various functions.

By so doing, he produced a highly efficient team. The results were lower costs, greater productivity, and higher morale than the production division had ever before experienced. Management had gambled that this man's ability to work with people was more important than his lack of a technical production background, and the gamble paid off.

ACTION POINT: Use your human and conceptual skills to direct those on your team with strong technical skills.

Relative Importance

...the technical, human, and conceptual skills of the administrator vary in relative importance at different levels of responsibility.

We may notice that, in a very real sense, conceptual skill embodies consideration of both the technical and human aspects of the organization. Yet the concept of skill, as an ability to translate knowledge into action, should enable one to distinguish between the three skills of performing the technical activities (technical skill, understanding and motivating individuals and groups (human skill), and coordinating and integrating all the activities and interests of the organization toward a common objective (conceptual skill).

This separation of effective administration into three basic skills is useful primarily for purposes of analysis. In practice, these skills are so closely interrelated that is is difficult to determine where one ends and another begins. However, just because the skills are interrelated does not imply that we cannot get some value from looking at them separately, or by varying their emphasis. In playing golf the actions of the hands, wrists, hips, shoulders, arms, and head are all interrelated; yet improving one's swing it is often valuable to work on one of these elements separately. Also, under different playing conditions the relative importance of these elements varies. Similarly, although all three are of importance at every level of administration, the technical, human, and conceptual skills of the administrator vary in relative importance at different levels of responsibility.

ACTION POINT: Develop all three skills, technical, human and conceptual, to administrate effectively.

Gift of Fortitude

I am with you always... Matthew 28:20

The Gift of Fortitude...gives energy to overcome major obstacles in the way of spiritual growth...The spirit shows us how to sanctify our role in life so that we remain in the divine presence. This is why methods of remaining in God's presence are so valuable and necessary if we are seriously pursuing the spiritual journey...Little by little, the Gift of Fortitude, in conjunction with the other Gifts, transmutes the energy of anger designed by nature for defensive purposes into zeal for the service of God and the needs of others.

It sustains difficult ministries and welcomes the vicissitudes of daily life instead of fighting or resisting them or giving way to feelings of frustration. It establishes a certain firmness of mind and heart in doing good and enduring evil, especially when these are difficult. It manifests its inspiration in the Beatitude: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall be satisfied" Matt. 5:6

Romans 12:11

In the service of the Lord, work not half heartedly but with conscientiousness and an eager spirit.