PPB August 2018

Strategic Foresight | FEATURE To calculate your score, add the numbers you have circled. RECOMMENDATIONS • Score below 25: Given your organization’s constraints, we recommend you start with the plays that help you map your business environment and understand your internal operations better. Try Customer Comments, Internet Inspections or Qualitative ROI—Stories that Tell. If your score is lower on Operational Excellence than Strategic Foresight, try the plays Shifting Perspectives and Identifying Weaknesses. • Score between 26 and 49: Your organization has access to the market intelligence it needs, but may need to improve in execution. Where is your score lower, Operational Excellence or Strategic Foresight? If lower in Strategic Foresight, you would benefit from focusing on scanning the environment and taking action to fuel rapid growth of your capacity for strategic foresight. Try these plays: Judo for Disruptions and Agile Efforts. If your score was lower in Operational Excellence, add these plays: Shifting Perspectives and Identifying Weaknesses. • Score above 50: Yours is a high-performing organization. By adopting this playbook, you are about to raise the bar on an organization that has potential to go to scale. You need strategies that take you beyond your current modus operandi. We recommend you start with the play Corporate Thinktank, then move on to Agile Efforts, and After-Action Reviews or P.L.O.W.S.. If your score was lower in Operational Excellence, add Risk and Risk Mitigation and Shifting Perspectives. If your score was lower on Strategic Foresight, add Expert Examinations or Multiverse Charts. CAPACITY FOR OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE My organization… STRONGLY DISAGREE STRONGLY AGREE 1 2 3 4 5 has been profitable for the past three years. 1 2 3 4 5 can identify a range of potential customers. 1 2 3 4 5 has grown in recent years as measured by sales, employee count and/or customers served. 1 2 3 4 5 has access to the resources we need to scale our growth. 1 2 3 4 5 understands how it generates profits (its business model), including which offerings generate the best income. 1 2 3 4 5 observes trends among competitors’ business models. CAPACITY FOR STRATEGIC FORESIGHT My organization… 1 2 3 4 5 can describe our target market in specific terms regarding customer segments, traits, goals and needs. 1 2 3 4 5 is able to identify our closest three competitors by name and source of competitive advantage. 1 2 3 4 5 can describe our position relative to market leadership in our industry—number 1, number 2, etc. 1 2 3 4 5 has developed several viable business strategies for evaluation. 1 2 3 4 5 can detect trends reshaping our industry, including faint signals of emerging trends. 1 2 3 4 5 has insight into the business environment affecting our customers, including sociocultural, technological, ecological, political and legal factors. 1 2 3 4 5 is cognizant of global trends and factors affecting our customers and/or supply chain. 1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Neutral, 4 = Agree, and 5 = Strongly Agree. PPAI Strategic Foresight Readiness Profile Strategic foresight and operational excellence are mutually reinforcing activities. Your organization must perform well in both to successfully influence or respond to evolving markets. Respond to the following “health check” questions to assess your readiness to execute. For each of the questions below, circle the response that best characterizes how you feel about the statement. | AUGUST 2018 | 27