ILLUSTRATION BY RACHEL REVILLA
As the fiscal year draws to a close, my team and I are inundated with requests to lead, conduct and moderate corporate strategic planning sessions for clients around the globe. This is one of the core areas of expertise of my group, and we have witnessed more corporate BS in these sessions than there are words to describe on this planet. Despite their best intentions, many businesses fail to set themselves up for success. This article highlights the critical mistakes that hold companies back from achieving their full potential and provides actionable insights to avoid these pitfalls.
The high cost of poor planning: Lessons from corporate failuresHistory is filled with once-dominant companies that fell from grace because of wrong or insufficient planning. Take Kodak, for instance. The company was a market leader in photography for decades but failed to anticipate the digital revolution, despite having invented the first digital camera. Instead of embracing this innovation, they sidelined it to protect their profitable film business. Poor planning and a lack of foresight caused Kodak to file for bankruptcy in 2012, a cautionary tale for every leader.
Article continues after this advertisementAnother striking example is Nokia, the pioneer in mobile phones. At its peak, Nokia controlled over 40 percent of the global market, but it was caught flat-footed by the rise of smartphones. Strategic complacency and resistance to change led Nokia to lose its market leader position to companies like Apple and Samsung. The absence of a solid plan to compete in the smartphone era marked the end of Nokia’s dominance.
FEATURED STORIES BUSINESS BIZ BUZZ: The crackdown on digital banking ‘backdoor’ BUSINESS ACEN set to replace coal plant with $1.5-B solar facility BUSINESS The uncomfortable truth: Why your business won’t hit its 2025 targetsThen there’s Blockbuster, which had the chance to buy Netflix for just $50 million. Instead of planning for the future of digital streaming, Blockbuster doubled down on its brick-and-mortar stores. The rest, as they say, is history. Netflix is now a streaming giant, and Blockbuster is nothing more than a memory.
These examples aren’t just stories of corporate missteps; they’re stark reminders that even giants can fall when leaders fail to plan effectively. Strategic planning isn’t just about avoiding failure; it’s about building resilience and foresight to thrive in a constantly changing world.
Article continues after this advertisement First of all, companies don’t set the right goalsGoal setting is where most businesses falter. Over 93 percent of them fail because they don’t know how to set goals properly. Most companies set minor or incremental targets, failing to tap into the full potential of their people and capabilities, thus always falling short of their true potential.
Article continues after this advertisementThe right way to set goals is to aim for stretch goals—ambitious targets that may seem out of reach at first. These stretch goals push teams to innovate and work harder because they don’t initially know how to achieve them. Jack Welch famously used stretch goals at General Electric to drive unprecedented performance. Similarly, Japanese companies have long practiced Kaizen, or continuous improvement, fueled by setting high-reaching goals.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Japanese automotive and steel industries exemplify this concept. From revolutionizing the global car market with Toyota and Honda to becoming the world’s top steel producers despite resource limitations, these industries succeeded because they dared to dream big and pursued goals many thought impossible.
Hope isn’t a strategyOnce companies set their goals, they often stumble at the next hurdle: crafting a robust and realistic plan to achieve them. Too often, corporate boardrooms become the breeding ground for beautifully designed PowerPoint presentations full of hopes and vague ideas, lacking the substance needed to execute effectively.
Article continues after this advertisementI recall leading a planning session for a large family business conglomerate. During the session, the founder and his next-generation leaders nodded along as executives presented their annual goals. However, as my team and I started asking probing questions—such as how last year’s goals were achieved—it became clear that the strategies were largely recycled and lacked the rigor to produce meaningful outcomes. This is a glaring example of what I call corporate BS—window dressing designed to confuse owner-operators rather than address the real challenges.
If your business hasn’t achieved its goals in the past, it’s time to ask whether your strategy is rooted in actionable plans or mere aspirations.
Design precedes executionMost companies are busy being busy—working hard but not smart. The reality is that success comes from having a clear, detailed plan in place before jumping into execution.
Businesses that spend sufficient time on upfront planning can focus fully on execution throughout the fiscal year, making only minor adjustments as necessary. On the other hand, companies that fail to prioritize planning find themselves repeatedly revisiting the drawing board, stifling their momentum. The result? Despite constant activity, these companies end the year feeling as though they’ve fallen short.
If this resonates with your experience, it’s a sign that your organization needs to invest more time in strategic design before diving into action.
What gets measured gets doneA key differentiator of high-performing companies is their ability to track and measure progress effectively. The most successful businesses we’ve worked with implement rigorous systems to monitor their performance at every level.
At the top, CEOs need what I call a CEO Control Panel—a concise dashboard of key performance indicators (KPIs) that provide a clear, 360-degree view of the business. These KPIs should be carefully selected to ensure they reflect the most critical aspects of the organization’s health and success.
Within the business, every team and department should have detailed metrics to guide their work. While it’s possible to measure too much, most companies err in the opposite direction, tracking too little or focusing on the wrong data. Without the right measurements in place, it’s impossible to make timely course corrections or hold teams accountable for their progress.
The hard truth: Overcoming corporate BSFinally, let’s address the elephant in the room: the pervasive culture of window dressing in corporate strategy sessions. Many executives have mastered the art of presenting plans that look impressive but lack real substance. It takes a trained eye to identify these flaws and ask the tough questions that reveal the truth.
In my experience, virtually every company is guilty of some degree of professional window dressing. The challenge for owner-operators and CEOs is to cut through the noise and demand accountability. By focusing on substance over style, you can create a culture of transparency and results.
Your 5 to thrive
Set stretch goals Craft a detailed and realistic strategic plan Measure what matters Prepare for the unexpected Engage external experts to validate your plansImplement these steps with urgency and clarity, and you’ll set your business up for long-term success. The time to act is now. INQ
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Tom Oliver, a “global management guru” (Bloomberg)vvjl, is the chair of The Tom Oliver Group, the trusted advisor and counselor to many of the world’s most influential family businesses, medium-sized enterprises, market leaders and global conglomerates. For more information and inquiries: www.TomOliverGroup.com or email [email protected].
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