Learnings from the National Trust's strategy process
Lucent had the privilege of supporting the National Trust through its strategy development - working closely with Colette Dorward (Director of Strategy Management) and her team to create the right environment for the organisation’s leaders to think afresh about the future.
We recently saw down with Colette to showcase the development of the Trust’s new strategy, and Colette shared her advice for others about to undertake a strategy refresh. Take a look at her top takeaways below.
Trust the process
“I think you need a process – and it’s not ‘any process will do’ but just having a process is really important because it gives people shape and helps people to navigate where you are in the map. So have a process.
And when your team tries to pull it apart, stop them and stick to the process. Everybody’s got a better idea, of course they have – but ‘we’ve agreed to do this one and we’re going to see it through’ is a really useful tool.
You may also need to take a few steps in the dark, and that’s okay. You know what’s going to happen, be brave about what you’re trying to do.”
Use the process to start the change
“It’s what the whole process says about you, about the organisation. Think really carefully about ‘what is this going to look like from the outside?’.
What do you want from it? What are you communicating through the process, through the way you’re talking and engaging and thinking and designing. So be really mindful of that would be my advice, not least because you start the change from day one if you do it that way – it just becomes so much easier as you move through.”
Get your head around the measurements early
“Getting your head around measurements early is really important but don’t expect to solve it all from day one. It’s a tough thing to really build the proper measures in place but do not neglect that.
I think it’s the thing that will have the longest legs here in terms of being able to sustain us through because we’ll be able to track, see, measure, build, create the case – and as we go through year by year it will be really important.”
Don’t see the strategy launch as an endpoint
“Strategy is only a means to an end so once you’ve got it it is not the end of the story. Move straight into implementation and don’t hang about would be my advice because the publication or launch or getting it ready is a moment in time and that is not going to last.
Use that opportunity to galvanise people around the changes that you want to make as a result of having a new strategy because the halo doesn’t last long. It’s only new for a day so get your pre-thinking ready about what you mean by what does it mean to have that strategy. How are you going to implement it? What is it that needs to change in the organisation?
So do think ahead, get yourself ready and don’t see the launch as an endpoint - see it as a very fleeting moment in time that you need to absolutely act on straight away, and get going to harvest the fruits of the work that you’ve put into the strategy itself.”
Are you looking for a partner to support you through your strategy process? We’d love to work with you.