How Aligning with the Business Strategy Increases Impact
Lots of product people never “get” their company’s business strategy.
Even if they understand strategy, in theory, most people do nothing with that knowledge.
And to the executives and managers who already get the business strategy, you look like a lost zombie.
The Zombie Analogy
Imagine you and everyone you work with is a zombie…
Most of the time, zombies are just aimlessly wandering. There is no big plan. They react to what’s around them and try to eat anything in front of their faces.
Most product people are like that. They focus on whatever is put in front of them.
They think about the latest tool, sprint goals, and whatever they heard in last month’s user interview. They react to the new and recent without considering the market and the long-term stuff.
There’s nothing wrong with this kind of zombie, but they’re not the most effective.
They’re the zombies that get lost. In the grand scheme, they do nothing for the zombie cause.
You don’t want to be this kind of zombie because you’ll have to rely on luck to get your hands on something worthwhile.
In the movies, nobody is scared of this kind of zombie. One zombie by itself is not a threat.
But in the movies, something always happens to jolt the zombies out of autopilot mode. Some noise or movement triggers them into a feeding frenzy.
And it’s in that feeding frenzy when zombies are most effective. Any single zombie can be dealt with. But a swarm? Nobody can stop the swarm.
No barricade can stop the swarm, and when zombies swarm, zombies always win. The only defense is to get out of there fast and concede the ground to the zombie swarm.
Strategy is like the noise that starts the zombie swarm and keeps it moving in the right direction. No competitor can possibly compete with the full force of a united organization that aligns with a good strategy.
So, if you’re stuck being a zombie, shouldn’t you at least be the one that leads the swarm and eats first?
Otherwise, you’ll have to wait for something to wander into your grasp, which might take a while.
Strategy (in general) and what it does
Okay, so you want to be an employee who understands strategy and maybe even shapes it with your work.
Let’s get clear on what strategy is.
If I had to explain it in one image, this is what strategy (in general) is to me:
[image by Jeff Humble]
So, the strategy combines what the company offers and the customer desires…in a way that the competition does not provide.
Most companies get one of the circles right but don’t get the overlap right.
Now that you do, you’re already the smartest strategist in the room.
If a company is smart, it constantly observes how it is perceived by users and customers while trying to differentiate itself from the competition.
As you can see, this is a full-time job. And it’s what strategic product people do.
Wait–what about product strategy?
Product strategy is different than the business strategy. In fact, most company strategies are subsets of the business strategy.
[image by Jeff Humble]
People tend to forget this when they talk about strategy. Salespeople will call the sales strategy simply “the strategy” without realizing it’s a subset of the business strategy.
Product people have this problem, too. Product managers love discussing product strategy like it’s the end-all-be-all for strategy, but they forget that it all starts with the business strategy.
Understandably, they’re focused on the stuff their boss cares about. But to start a product strategy, you must first go higher into the business strategy layer.
(more on the 3 levels of strategy here)
You want to know what your boss’s boss cares about.
That’s where you will start to achieve a level of alignment and priority with the business strategy that will set you apart from the junior employees who don’t understand what their company is trying to do.
Even if you want to create a strategy from scratch (like we do in my course), you still need to start with the business strategy. The first step in creating a design strategy is understanding and aligning with the business strategy.
Even if it doesn’t exist on paper, it’s locked inside the executive’s heads.
You’re going to have to do your homework to get it.
What product people have to gain by learning business strategy
It won’t be easy.
Business strategies are usually so vague and filled with buzzwords that they’re next to impossible to decipher.
But your company’s business strategy is worth decoding.
Here’s why:
- It’s future-oriented: business strategy is the most important future-oriented artifact in the company
- It makes you autonomous: business strategy should help you make decisions without constantly checking with leadership
- It’s lasting: business strategy should be your company’s chosen direction for the next 1-5 years
- It’s your starting point: any product strategy you create should start by aligning with the business strategy
- It’s your target for organizational change: if you can learn to shape the business strategy, you have an instant impact on every part of the org
Examining your company’s business strategy can improve every action you take—that’s why it’s there. Aligning to the strategy promises that everyone in the organization will focus their work on it.
Every action through the strategy should put you in the right direction.
Aligning your actions with the executive team can be a huge career booster. Your managers will marvel at your continuous focus on company goals.
Maybe you’ll finally catch up to the strategists in your company. Maybe you’ll start a new rush that swarms the competition.
Either way, you’ll always be heading in the right direction.
Hire Jeff to align your team
Do you have a great business strategy that nobody understands?
Book a consultation call with me and let me help you make that strategy crystal clear.