There is nothing more energizing than a really good visioning session. The idea of laying out a vision for an organization or a business or even just a project without any boundaries hits my own personal sweet spot of purposeful creativity. I get that this may not be everyone's favorite work activity, but it should be the starting point for any significant planning effort your team or organization is taking on. Why you ask? Let me explain...
A good leader has a vision for what an organization or business has the potential to be. A good Strategic Plan is built on a foundation based on that vision. And what do
Planning is a VERB
When you think about any long term planning effort, it is important to keep in mind it is about the PROCESS and JOURNEY, not necessarily the plan itself. The Vision allows you to appropriately define a Strategy which can then be transformed into an Operational Plan which drives your tactical organization and business efforts. We will explore all of these steps of the journey over the next few posts.There are many ways to approach setting a vision and different methods might be more effective for different reasons. Some teams or leaders do best with a formal structure that asks specific questions and elicits answers and then probes for more detail. Other teams or leaders are good working with a whiteboard or sticky notes. Don't be afraid a combination of these efforts. Visioning for a business can be done by asking your key stakeholders and leaders the following types of questions:
What could they be without market barriers?
How would they change their industry? Why is the industry we are competing in limited? and what is the reason of the limit?
Are the regulatory limits/boundaries changing and how are we poised to take advantage?
What is your consumer going to be in 10 years? What external impacts are going to evolve that consumer from today to then?
Do we have the RIGHT levels of innovation? Why not?
Vision versus Innovation
The differences between these two key terms are pretty simple: a Vision is an unbounded view of what could be but Innovation is the means to the Vision and therefore will have some boundaries and specific outcomes that are intended to be achieved. Alignment of appropriate Innovation strategies is the key. Utilizing your key stakeholders to think beyond their day to day and year to year horizon is what supports the innovation when needed. Innovation is best delivered in a targeted, deliberate manner with a goal of specific outcomes, but successful visioning can engage many in the process without having to deliver specific outcomes.Just Do It
Answer the questions above with your key business leads, use tools such as SWOT, Value Chain assessments, or whatever tools help you vet and prioritize statements made. You do NOT have to spend a significant time researching validating statements made in visioning sessions.There are no wrong or right answers when working on your vision!Loosely validating that the vision components truly reflect the future is sufficient. You will spend more time on that research and validation process during the development of the actual strategies. Your organization is going to be an interesting mix of pragmatists and futurists. The trick is to engage a mix of views but also to reflect the culture and the mission of the company. Not always easy, but very energizing if led and facilitated appropriately. There are many examples of this type of effort resulting in significant employment engagement, look at Zappos or Disney if you want see a visioning culture.
So get out there and create a vision. Let yourself thing beyond what you know for sure. All perfectionists, detail oriented individuals, and control freaks can relax. The next step is the development of your Strategic Plan, and your Strategies will help ensure you still in control. 😀
