Remaining Objective

...it is your responsibility to elevate the process beyond the personal agendas or opinions of stakeholders.

It can be hard to remain objective when deciding upon strategy. the final outcome is so important to the future of the organization that other factors, such as personalities and power politics within the organization inevitably have a strong influence on the strategy you opt for. However, it is your responsibility to elevate the process beyond the personal agendas or opinions of stakeholders.

Try to raise the level of debate by using objective scoring systems so that everyone can see the relative merits of each option. Calling in external consultants can help to free up objective thinking and help overcome barriers or inertia.

To test each of your strategic options against the criteria of suitability, acceptability, and feasibility, it helps to develop a simple scoring system rather than simply assigning a "yes" or a "no." Mark each option on a scale of one to 10 for each of the criteria, being honest and objective in your scoring. Add the scores for suitability, acceptability, and feasibility for each option to identify the best.

ACTION POINT: Objectively evaluate and score the strategic options you consider.