Thought leader in Business Simulations, Strategy Execution, and President of Simulation Studios where he advises top companies globally.
getty
In the June 2021 article "Employers Face Hiring Challenge as Boomers Retire in Record Numbers," Kathy Gurchiek of SHRM aptly stated, “With more than 75 million Baby Boomers retiring sooner rather than later, it's clear that employers will need a strong workforce plan for replacing exiting workers.” The Pew Research Center found that about 28.6 million Baby Boomers retired in the third quarter of 2020 alone. This exodus creates new opportunities for Gen-X and older Millennials to step up into senior-level positions. The question that concerns executives is do our new managers have the strategic thinking skills they need to navigate the rapidly changing and highly competitive business landscape? Many worry that the answer is a loud and sobering no.
Over decades, a strategic thinking workforce was created organically. Business moved slower and the competition landscape was milder. Ask pretty much any business leader and they will tell you times have drastically changed. A good place to start is to create a level set on what constitutes a strategic thinker.
The Five Pillars Of A Strategic Thinker
1. Effective Leadership
When most people think of strategy they think of skills such as financial acumen, competitive analysis, operations, economics, etc. It is critical to remember that effective leadership is the foundation of strategic thinking. This includes having an enterprise-wide mindset, understanding how to lead yourself, lead teams and lead the organization. Without this fundamental skill, strategic thinking is an island that stands alone in a sea of knowledge.
2. Analytical Thinking
We’re not talking about deep math; we’re talking about having a practiced ability to think objectively about a business challenge. A strategic thinker must be able to understand and take work from a variety of inputs such as financial statements, key performance indicators, digital analytical data, analyst reports, market data, customer data, employee data, trends and more in order to synthesize some sort of output (which can come in many forms).
3. Cross-Functional, Team-Based Problem Solving
Being able to solve challenges is one thing. Being able to solve cross-functional team problems is an entirely different challenge. This is exceptionally hard to teach and is more frequently learned from practice. This is not necessarily a hard skill to learn but it is a skill that executives have mastered over years of practice. A strategic thinker must be able to solve complex multi-function problems that span multiple teams.
4. Effective Communication Skills
A manager can be highly effective at a specific skill such as finance, operations, marketing, technology, etc. but without a practiced and purposeful ability to effectively communicate, almost all is lost in ineffective translation. Most know this, but it is important to remember that effective communication is a practice and not a set skill.
5. Resilience To Decision Making In Rapid Change
You may think this is obvious but what is more obvious to a seasoned manager is people’s instinctive resistance to change. If you ask most employees, they will say they are extremely resilient. But put them in the real position of having to make exceptionally uncertain impactful decisions due to overnight changes and they’ll freeze. Thinking strategically includes a practiced ability to effectively think through and make decisions during times of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.
The Challenge: The Complexity And Lack Of Time For Development
An extremely common question is, “How do I rapidly and effectively create strategic thinkers?” There is no simple answer to this. Some of the most successful global companies work through this challenge every day. The best teacher is a slow transition to management. Considering time is not on our side, there are three shortcuts worth considering:
1. Intra-Company Mastermind Groups
When people think of Mastermind groups, they often think of outside groups. Some successful companies sponsor remarkably effective internal mastermind groups that meet monthly. These groups are often led and facilitated by an internal executive. The focus is solely on knowledge exchange, support and development.
2. Business Simulations In Leadership Development
In full disclosure, I write business simulations for a living, but these come in infinite shapes and sizes. Using a business simulation of your company enables leadership development participants to learn and practice strategic thinking hands-on in real-world scenarios. This creates a safe place to practice applicable skills, which can reduce skill development time by decades.
3. Formal University Education
This is a highly effective route but takes longer. University-level education teaches the fundamentals of strategy development. These skills are not unique to your company or industry but still develop the fundamentals over a year or two.
The challenge of returning to work post-pandemic has created a “silver tsunami,” with senior managers retiring in droves. The goal now is to stay ahead of the knowledge deficit and develop strategic thinkers who can lead the organization to new heights.
Forbes Coaches Council is an invitation-only community for leading business and career coaches. Do I qualify?
