Strategy: 17 Years to a Goal

You probably don't need to wait that long but... this one worked.

Here is some easy bonus reading for your weekend.

I’ll assume your company has a strategy. There are goals you set out to achieve and actions you need to take to get there. Because the goals typically have a longer timeline, it’s naturally tempting to shift strategies if they appear to not be working.

But how do you know if they are working or not? How long should you wait?

This article by Roger Martin landed in my inbox recently. It’s about tennis. But it’s not about the strategy of the game, it’s about the strategy Canada employed to become a contender in the world of international tennis. It turns out that being cold and sparsely populated can be an obstacle to growing a crop of exceptional tennis players. Yet in 2005, Tennis Canada set some lofty goals (an individual Grand Slam title and a major team title).

They achieved their goals in 2022. It took 17 years. How did they stick with it over that period of time when surely many were asking, “Are we doing the right thing?”

Four takeaways:

• Have a Clear Strategy

  • Outputs vs Inputs. Tennis Canada focused on and funded athletes based on performance standards as opposed to funding specific development programs.

• What Would Have to Be True

  • They figured out exactly what they needed to demonstrate (to themselves) that the strategy could work.

• Watch for Green Shoots

  • Seven years into the plan, they started to see increased success among their junior players.

• Defend Against Self-Defeating Slippage

  • This had to be the hardest part. Well-intentioned individuals may want to execute ideas outside of the strategy, diluting the effort. Leadership needs to keep the organization focused.

If your company is struggling with the discipline to stick to a strategy or wondering when to shift, please share this article with the people who need to see it.

Photo by Erwan Hesry on Unsplash