Question

Strategic intent is an unfettered ambition guided and monitored by an active management process. Strategic intent captures the essence of winning, is stable over time, and sets a target that encourages personal effort and commitment. In contrast to strategic plans, strategic intent reveals more about tomorrow's opportunities than about today's problems. Only with a carefully articulated and adhered to strategic intent will succession of year-on-year plans sum up to global leadership.

Questions

How is the strategic intent stated such that it captures the essence of winning?

Where is strategic intent documented and how is it conveyed to all employees?

How can strategic intent be managed such that it is stable over time?

What kinds of corporate challenges can be set such that strategic intent is encouraged throughout the company?

Can strategic planning hamper strategic intent?

"Strategic Intent".

State the strategic intent of your company and the method by which it is currently implemented and conveyed to all employees. Also discuss this year's strategic plan and how it guides and monitors the strategic intent. State two corporate challenges that could be added to next year's strategic plan such that the strategic intent is realized.

Answer 1

1. The strategic intent of a company is the extent to which the firm’s resources, processes and temperament are channeled towards attaining the strategic goals of business. It highlights the strategic direction of the company to attain its vision.

To capture the essence of winning, strategic intent must be depicted as short term projects taken by the company and its opportunities. Strategic intent must specially highlight the competitive factors of the company that comprise its competitive edge. They are the winning factors for any company and strategic intent tries to portray the same on the front.

2. Strategic intent provides a snapshot of the company’s vision and mission to its employees. Strategic intent of a business must be conveyed to the employees through the strategic agenda and plan of the company. It should be communicated with clear clarity so that every employee understands his role in the mission of the company to attain the vision. Micro details need not be communicated to everyone but the broader dimensions need to be presented accurately.

3. Strategic intent encompasses the vision and mission of the company that do not change over time. It highlights the long-term market orientation, which the company desires to attain through its business. Thus, strategic intent is considered to be stable over time.

4. To encourage strategic intent throughout the company, the employees’ strategic perspective must be aligned with the strategic plan and orientation of the company. When employees have the belief in the vision and mission of the company, they perform hard to attain them.

• Make awareness about the worst-case scenarios that the company can face. This way, the stakeholders pledge to work to avoid worst-case scenario becoming a reality.
• Show the real time benefits and progress that the stakeholders will attain if strategic intent becomes a reality. This way, stakeholders will connect with the strategic intent.
• Establish milestones of attaining strategic intent and celebrate them to encourage the culture inculcation of the strategic intent.

5. Strategic intent is basically the foundation of strategic plan of a company. The strategic plan aims to achieve the business goals, mission and vision of the company, which is highlighted by the strategic intent. Hence, strategic planning can’t hamper the strategic intent as the roots of the strategic plan lies in the strategic intent of the company.

I work for a manufacturing firm, which works with the strategic intent of becoming the number 1 quality textile producer of the country by 2020. There are big pictures of the strategic intent decorated all across the company premises. This helps in keeping the strategic intent statement on the minds of the employees. The strategic goals have been devised to attain this strategic intent. The doctrines of Six Sigma and Kaizen have been employed throughout the company to ensure quality adherence in anything and everything we do. The corporate challenges that the company faces sometimes is the strict adherence to quality and dedication to production timelines. To strictly adhere to quality, company conducts random audits, which check the quality of the produce. Timelines adherence is tracked through the adherence to WBS plan of any project taken by the company.