Playing to win: How strategy really works

by A.G. Lafley

a strategy is a coordinated and integrated set of five choices: a winning aspiration, where to play, how to win, core capabilities, and management systems.

Without supporting structures, systems, and measures, strategy remains a wish list, a set of goals that may or may not ever be achieved.

A strategy discussion is not an idea review. A strategy discussion is not a budget or a forecast review. A strategy discussion is how we are going to accomplish our growth objectives in the next three to five years.

Creating a truly robust strategy takes the capabilities, knowledge, and experience of a diverse team—a close-knit group of talented and driven individuals, each aware of how his or her own effort contributes to the success of the group and all dedicated to winning as a collective.

In any organization, the choices at the top must be precisely and evocatively stated, so that they are easily understood. Only when the choices are clear and simple can they be acted upon—only then can they effectively shape choices throughout the rest of the organization.

For measures to be effective, it is crucial to indicate in advance what the expected outcomes are.

clearer, simpler strategies have the best chance of winning, because they can be best understood and internalized by the organization.

In the end, building a strategy isn’t about achieving perfection; it’s about shortening your odds.