Passion. Motivation. Rallying a diverse group of people around a common cause.\u00a0 Obsession with a shared goal.<\/p>\n
There are strong overlaps between growth strategies and sports.\u00a0 Our organizational language is also filled with sports terms, from Monday morning quarterbacking to taking a punt.\u00a0 Metaphors matter, and for growth strategy some sporting lessons help in building an understanding of the needed alignment, adaptation, and coordination necessary for a successful growth strategy through uncertainty.<\/p>\n
Five sports metaphors to borrow\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Finish lines matter:\u00a0<\/strong>One of the biggest reasons companies do not execute their strategies is they have no idea what it would look like if they did.\u00a0 While this sounds silly, as many articulate strategy through a long list of goals and objectives, endless charts, and – often competing – dashboards, leaders have action steps but often lack an understanding of how they intersect and align. A ‘goal’ is not a finish line: a finish line is the aligned end state our critical priorities should take us towards.\u00a0 We need a clear, compelling, ambitious and achievable end state where we all agree we’ve ‘won’ this cycle.<\/p>\n Setting finish lines can be challenging when facing uncertainty, which is why we must distinguish between destinations and directions.\u00a0 When facing a shareholder event (IPO, exit, new ownership), we need destinations: a clear end state with objective metrics.\u00a0 When facing extreme uncertainty, a business model shift, or disruptive innovation, we instead should embrace directions.\u00a0 Directions provide alignment and pace towards where we are going but give us room to move.\u00a0 Consider the difference between taking a trip and aiming for a specific exit on the highway (destination) versus going hiking and choosing a compass heading (direction).<\/p>\n If your team does not know the finish line, they cannot make day-to-day decisions that are aligned with others.\u00a0 It is like attempting to run a marathon without telling your team where the finish line is: if you accidentally ran an extra 10k in a marathon, you are not happy.\u00a0 This is what we do to our teams when we want action but fail to provide them with clarity of the finish line, they waste a lot of resources going to potentially the wrong place.<\/p>\n Power of boundaries:<\/strong>\u00a0Strategies with finish lines can still lack the more critical piece: boundary conditions.\u00a0 \u00a0 Boundaries are the non-negotiables we must stay within while we are running towards the definition of success.\u00a0 Margin, profit, risk, customer dependency, culture, or engagement could all be boundary conditions. \u00a0 Returning to a marathon, this is staying within the course of the race.\u00a0 Boundaries are not what you are trying to optimize, the main intent is, but they are critical as they cannot be broken.\u00a0 The challenge is not just acknowledging the importance of boundaries but also articulating them clearly enough to be useful.<\/p>\n Too often we give our leadership teams strategies that contain contradictions which become obstacles to execution.\u00a0 We give goals to our teams such as \u2018make $100 million in revenue at 10% profit.\u2019\u00a0 When our direct reports ask what is more important, of course we reply with \u2018both, both are important!\u2019 \u00a0 Let us say, though, it is the last day of the quarter, and our top salesperson can sign a customer deal that allows us to reach the revenue goal but doing so will make profitability drop below 10%.\u00a0 Come Monday, are they the hero, or in the penalty box?<\/p>\n This is strategy not doing its job of enabling good decisions. Instead of providing a framework, it gives a checklist that paralyzes action.<\/p>\n Instead, leaders should say: \u2018make $100 million in revenue within the boundary of 8% profit; the goal is 10%, but the absolute boundary is 8%.\u2019\u00a0 Then I know while I am aiming for 10%, I can go to 8% if I must to reach the main intent.\u00a0 I have just been empowered to make decisions.<\/p>\n This is the power of boundaries: when clearly articulated they provide leaders freedom.\u00a0 If you want to win in uncertainty, this leadership empowerment so they can make good decisions quickly is critical.<\/p>\n Scoreboard metrics:\u00a0<\/strong>When arriving at a sporting event late, we take one unifying action: we look at the scoreboard.\u00a0 When we do, something powerful occurs. In one second, we have 90% of the information we need: the score and how much time is left.\u00a0 While true fans want to know details, such as timeouts left and who is injured in the locker room, the scoreboard provided immediate helpful context.<\/p>\n The scoreboard metrics are not the strategy, but they provide information on how we\u2019re progressing across our priorities that help us know how well we are executing towards our finish line.\u00a0 Knowing what\u2019s working and what\u2019s not is a necessary ingredient when aligning goals and actions.<\/p>\n When we reset strategy and priorities, we must also reset metrics.\u00a0 Metrics have two goals: they help us know if we are making needed progress and they enable us to make better, faster, more aligned decisions.\u00a0 The test of a good metric is if the power it gives us for enhanced decision-making outweighs the resources (time, treasure, talent) it takes us to measure it.\u00a0 We put a lot to the test in our organizations, but we do not often test whether we are measuring the right stuff.<\/p>\n Play the long game versus getting some points on the board:<\/strong> Strategy is an articulation of value creation, where value creation is the priorities that drive the biggest gap between our customers\u2019 or clients\u2019 willingness to pay and our total cost of delivering that value.\u00a0 In efforts towards value creation, we need to focus on the true \u2018needle moving\u2019 activities versus being distracted by thousands of competing objectives.<\/p>\n Strategy is midterm, so as leaders we must distinguish between distracting tactical activities versus \u2018quick wins\u2019 that maintain momentum and energy around the main goal. Strategy momentum demands bursts of energy and constant reminders that give continued clarity that we are working towards something great.\u00a0 In sports, as in business, you often need to \u2018get some points on the board\u2019 to keep belief in the strategy.<\/p>\n Breakthrough growth, though, is playing the long game.\u00a0 It demands relentless focus and patience on what will truly make the difference \u2013 from brand equity to talent development to growing new, emerging markets.\u00a0 In sports we speak about the endurance needed for long matches, which can demand conserving energy or switching tactics to wait for the right opening.\u00a0 The same is true for your team \u2013 highly engaged teams giving their all are most likely candidates for burnout if we do not direct, lead, and manage for the long game.<\/p>\n Need for adaptability:<\/strong>\u00a0The differentiator in most championship winning teams is not relentless focus on the goal, it is the ability for the coaches and players to change plays, styles, and choices for the emerging situation.\u00a0 Teams have strengths and playbooks that cater to them but clinging to these when facing changing circumstances usually leads to broken plays.\u00a0 We know this when watching our favorite teams. You have probably shouted at the field a few times when despite the elements or an innovative strategy from the opponents, your team insists on operating the tried and true.\u00a0 Many of us are relentless in our fandom in expecting change yet tolerate sameness in our organizations. Many teams start each year with the same templates, the same set of priorities, the same execution cadence, and the same talent – yet they expect to win in a changing environment!<\/p>\n The 2019 Super Bowl when the New England Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams is seen by non-fans as \u2018boring,\u2019 but from a strategy view it was one of the most thrilling.\u00a0 Coach Belichick abandoned most of their season-winning playbook for a completely different strategy, moving to zone coverage, a different offensive strategy, and utilizing the players in different ways.\u00a0 The team shifted everything more so at halftime, and ended up winning the game, cementing the legacy of the Brady era at the Patriots.\u00a0 Despite your team allegiance, we can all learn from the willingness to adapt, move from tested strengths, and build new strategies in new environments.<\/p>\n Have you built adaptability into strategy from day one? Does your team know how and when to adapt to keep focus on the finish line?<\/p>\n Sporting breakdown:<\/strong><\/p>\n The analogs between the passion in sports and strategy does not always hold. Here are the top three where comparisons break:<\/p>\n\n
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