Test your strategy statements before you build your plan around them

Most strategy documents fail not because of bad thinking, but because the thinking never made it into the words. Run any strategy statement through these three quick tests before you finalise it.

The Competitor Test: Is it genuinely uniquely yours, or could a competitor copy the words without changing anything? If yes, then it’s generic and not dealing with your unique challenge.

The Monday Morning Test: Would a manager know what to do on Monday because of this line, or would sticking to business-as-usual still be OK?  If not, it lacks the specificity to drive action.

The Newcomer Test: If someone relatively unfamiliar with your company were to read this, could they immediately point to obvious things you need to stop doing? If not, your trade-offs are invisible.

If you don’t like the answers, you just have a communications piece, not a strategic tool. The good news is that vague strategy statements are almost always fixable once you know what to look for.

Source: My “Field Guide 4.1: Crafting Strategy Statements That Actually Work” from my Strategic Mastery platform covers the full rewrite method and the full six validation tests in detail. If you’re interested in crafting great strategy statements, contact me for a brief consultation and apply the methodology at scale.

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