In these high pressure, social media influenced times, we like our wisdom pre-digested. There are lists: “Ten things all CEOs should know”, and then there are pithy quotes which attract us through their simplicity.
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast” is an aphorism usually attributed to “management guru” Peter Drucker, although there is no evidence that he ever used the phrase. It’s a graphic image, bringing to mind a “culture vulture” feasting on the lifeless body of company strategy.
It’s an important insight, but like any collection of five words, it can only express a limited truth, and does not capture the complexity involved in successfully and sustainably leading any organisation.
Usually when we think about strategic planning, we have in mind a process that runs from clarifying a company’s mission and vision, through a market analysis, to the development of objectives and plans to achieve those objectives. At the end, the work is parcelled out to teams and departments as Key Performance Indicators.
What we are being warned about in those five words, is that this is a technical process that exists only on paper, and that execution depends on people. And people are either motivated to get the work done, or they are not; they are either encouraged to take initiative and solve problems, or not. They either believe that the company has purpose and that their work contributes, or they do not.
No strategic plan can be successfully implemented by a demotivated, demoralised and dull work force. In this sense, it is true, if somewhat obvious, that culture eats strategy for breakfast. It is an important warning to organisational leadership to pay attention to company culture, and to take employee engagement as seriously as it takes its plans for marketing or investing in new technology.
But as with any snappy quote, it is a simplistic rather than a simple truth, and it incorrectly suggests that strategy and culture are two different things with a sometimes antagonistic relationship.
At Thornhill, for a number of reasons, we prefer to see culture and strategy as two essential elements of a successful business.
Firstly, any strategy worth the name will take stock of the resources available to the company, and concentrate on getting the best out of them. This is true of a company’s financial capital, its brand value and the technology it deploys. It should certainly also be true of the people who work for the company. Their value will largely be determined by their level of engagement, which, in turn, is a function of company culture.
Secondly, we know that the “company culture” does not exist entirely separately from the strategy and its implementation. If we are to spend forty or more hours a week “at work”, it is highly likely that we would like to know:
- What is this company’s purpose? (Vision)
- How does it achieve that purpose? (Mission)
- What are its plans for the next year? (Strategy)
- What is my role in all of this? (Job spec, KPIs, etc.)
This suggests that a clear strategy, well communicated, contributes significantly to giving meaning to people’s lives at work. It is unlikely that there will be a more positive culture if people pitch up to work each day without a clear sense of what they are doing there.
Thirdly, it is also true that both strategy and culture will be enhanced if staff feel that they have had the opportunity to contribute to the development of the company strategy.
We should think of strategy and culture as overlapping and feeding into each other, rather than separate and feeding off each other.
They overlap, and they have their separate domains. Whatever the strategy, it is important that employees feel safe, respected, valued and supported.
Similarly, planning processes including market analysis, product development and financial modelling are essential and have an existence separate from the prevailing culture.
A blog posted by the Alternative Board puts it like this: “While strategy defines direction and focus, culture is the habitat in which strategy lives or dies”.
This discussion, however, needs an essential third element: In the end, business success will not result only from a good strategy and a conducive climate working together. It comes from effective implementation, flexible decision making and the ability to adapt to new opportunities and threats which emerge despite the best laid plans. If strategy is the game plan, and culture the team spirit, it is what you actually do on the field of play that counts. The execution.
There is a dynamic interplay between execution, strategy and culture. A good strategy, poorly executed, will fail. A positive culture will wither in the face of poor execution and business failure. And execution becomes exponentially more difficult when staff are not positively engaged in the work.
Effective business leadership
| Cultivating and blending these three essential ingredients, and putting them to work every day in the service of the organisation, is what we call business leadership. It is a great skill to understand how they are different yet interdependent, and to keep them in balance. This is why leadership is so important to business success. It is a capability that leaders should be continually refining. |
Thornhill has the tools to help company leadership focus on and enhance these capabilities. They are embodied in our 360° leadership assessments which are organised in dimensions dealing with “Head, Heart and Hands” where:
HEAD = Strategic leadership
HEART = Building a positive culture
HANDS = Ensuring effective implementation
And we assess the individual’s overall leadership impact, provide a report that gives detailed insights, and offer feedback coaching to help executives and managers understand how to improve their leadership impact.
When strategy, culture and execution work together, there is measurable magic, that is reflected in the company climate.
We also have great surveys for assessing climate in every part of your organisation.
Does “culture eat strategy” for breakfast in your company?
Contact us to discuss how Thornhill can help you ensure that culture doesn’t eat strategy, and that leadership is exercised in a balanced way.
For information on Thornhill’s various products and services, please contact us on admin@thornhill.co.za.