2 minutes
It's critical for CEOs to think strategically about the coming year
“In the daily hustle of running a company, it’s easy to put off the simple task of sitting down and thinking strategically about the future. Yet this is a critical responsibility of every CEO,” writes Joel Trammell, CEO of Khorus, in Predictable Performance in 2016: The CEO’s Prep Guide for Success in the New Year.
In this downloadable e-book, he provides exercises, worksheets and a checklist to help CEOs map out a plan for the new year. “If you’re like most chief executives, you’re looking toward 2016 with a mix of excitement and concern,” he noted. “Your company probably had some great wins this year, but maybe there were some troubling misses, too. Perhaps you aren’t entirely certain your team is on the same page. Maybe it seems like they aren’t always working on the right things”
To help get your team on the same page, Trammell recommends looking at where you want to be in December and pulling “the single most important theme” from the priorities that will help you get there. “This is Patrick Lencioni’s concept of a “thematic goal” or “rallying cry”: what is the one thing that matters most for your company in the next three to 12 months?”
“The rallying cry is intended to create a sense of focus for everyone, and to drive all decisions and actions,” Trammell writes.
According to Lencioni, rallying cries should be:
- singular (one thing),
- qualitative (not specifically measurable),
- temporary (lasting one to four quarters) and
- shared (supportable by all members of the leadership team).
After coming up with a few rallying-cry ideas, it is critical for CEOs to get the perspective and buy-in of the leadership team, writes Trammell, noting that “Lencioni advises asking each person on the leadership team to individually answer the question, ‘What is the single most important thing that we must get done this period in order for us to succeed?’ Then share and debate the ideas, before deciding on a rallying cry” for the year.
Here are a few samples:
- Become a leading voice in our industry.
- Win market share with XYZ acquisition.
- Eliminate internal waste.
