Programme overview
Technical depth: Conceptual · Practical mode: Case study
Introduction
Senior leaders are expected to set direction in markets and policy environments that shift faster than annual planning cycles, yet many strategies are lists of goals rather than coherent choices, and they stall once day-to-day pressures return. The problem is rarely a lack of analysis; it is weak diagnosis, avoided trade-offs and no execution rhythm. This Core Concept course sharpens how senior leaders think about strategy and how they drive it, using Rumelt's strategy kernel, the Playing to Win cascade and proven execution disciplines. Participants leave with a Strategic Choice and Execution Brief for their own organisation.
Course Objectives
- Diagnose the critical challenge facing an organisation using systems thinking and structured environmental scanning
- Formulate coherent strategic choices with Rumelt's strategy kernel and the Playing to Win choice cascade
- Judge competitive position and sources of advantage using Five Forces, Blue Ocean and VRIO analysis
- Frame complex decisions and test strategic assumptions before committing resources
- Diagnose execution barriers and set lead measures and an execution rhythm for the leadership team
- Produce a Strategic Choice and Execution Brief ready for board or leadership team discussion
Target Audience
- Chief executives and general managers accountable for organisational direction and results
- Divisional and business unit heads responsible for unit strategy and performance
- Heads of major functions who translate corporate strategy into functional priorities
- Senior public sector leaders responsible for policy delivery and institutional reform
- Heads of strategy and transformation who advise the top team on strategic choices
Course Outline
Day 1: The Strategic Mind and the Changing Context
- Deliberate and Emergent Strategy in Mintzberg's Strategy Formation Model
- Liedtka's Five Elements of Strategic Thinking
- Systems Thinking with Causal Loop Diagrams
- Future Context Scanning with PESTLE and the Three Horizons Model
- Strategic Thinking Self-Assessment Profile
Day 2: Frameworks for Strategic Choice
- Rumelt's Strategy Kernel: Diagnosis, Guiding Policy and Coherent Action
- Playing to Win Strategic Choice Cascade
- Porter's Five Forces and Generic Competitive Strategies
- Blue Ocean Strategy Canvas and the ERRC Grid
- Resource-Based View and VRIO Analysis
Day 3: Making and Communicating Strategic Decisions
- Cynefin Framework for Framing Complex Decisions
- Pre-Mortem and Red Team Challenge of Strategic Assumptions
- Strategic Trade-Off Matrix for Resource Allocation Choices
- One-Page Strategy Narrative and Communication Plan
- Board Decision Brief Structure for Strategic Proposals
Day 4: Execution Barriers and Strategic Risk
- Kaplan and Norton's Four Barriers to Strategy Execution
- The 4 Disciplines of Execution: Wildly Important Goals and Lead Measures
- McKinsey 7-S Alignment Check for Execution Readiness
- Decision Quality Checklist for Cognitive Bias in Strategic Choices
- Strategic Risk Appetite Review under ISO 31000:2018
Day 5: Case Work and the Strategic Choice and Execution Brief
- Incumbent Disruption Case Study: Diagnosing the Strategic Challenge
- Public Sector Reform Case Study: Choices, Trade-Offs and Execution Rhythm
- Strategy Kernel and Choice Cascade Build for an Own Organisation
- Strategic Choice and Execution Brief Drafting
- Executive Peer Challenge and Brief Defence
Skills You Will Gain
- Strategic Diagnosis
- Systems Thinking
- Competitive Positioning
- Strategic Trade-Off Judgement
- Assumption Testing
- Strategy Communication
- Execution Governance
Why Attend This Course
- Return to work with a Strategic Choice and Execution Brief for your organisation, already tested by executive peers
- Tell a real strategy apart from a list of goals, in your own plans and in proposals brought to you
- Lead top-team discussions that end in explicit choices and trade-offs rather than consensus on aspirations
- Compare strategic dilemmas with senior leaders from other sectors and countries
Conclusion
Strategy creates value only when a leader diagnoses the real challenge, makes clear choices and keeps the organisation acting on them. This course moves from strategic thinking habits and future context, through the principal frameworks for strategic choice, to decision framing, assumption testing, execution barriers and strategic risk. The final day turns that material into a Strategic Choice and Execution Brief that participants take back to their board or leadership team, giving them a coherent and defensible basis for the direction they set next.