Research: what is the state of strategy?

The Great Shift

COVID-19 has created a new reality. It has a huge impact on the way organisations work, how we do business and how we collaborate with customers and partners in the value chain. It affects everything. We ask ourselves: how does it affect strategy? How does it affect sustainability, smart technology and ecosystems? A new way of making strategy is emerging.

So we launched a practical survey on the 'state of strategy'. How are Dutch companies doing? How are they currently handling their strategy and do they recognise a need to change?

Since 2012, Strategiemakers has been committed to developing sustainable and innovative organisations that are great places to work. We believe that current strategic practice must change to guide organisations towards 2030.

Learning from the current state of strategy

To look forward, we must first understand and observe. Move beyond preconceptions. Broaden our horizons. Look for inspiring examples.

We structure our research around five themes:

What value do companies pursue in their strategy and how do they measure success? What is the focal point of the strategy? What is the time horizon of the strategy and how are long-term and short-term aligned? What approach do companies take to developing and implementing their strategy? How is the involvement of employees and stakeholders organised?

We would like to understand the mindset of leaders: how do they view strategy and how is it put into practice? It is also interesting to discover whether there is a 'before' and 'after' COVID-19 and whether there is a change in thinking about the value and application of strategy within organisations. For example, how are sustainability, digital transformation, technological innovation and social impact being integrated into business strategy? Is there a need and willingness to change the way organisations develop strategies?

We will interview more than 20 major (Dutch) companies

We will conduct 20-30 qualitative interviews to gather insights, practices and inspiring examples from organisations with >250 employees, across different sectors.

We complement the results of the interviews with knowledge from strategy experts from academia, business and consultancy.

We aim to uncover a set of strategic capabilities that organisations need to successfully navigate towards 2030.

We will publish our findings in a report by the end of September. In the meantime, we will share as many interesting insights and examples as possible on our website and social media.

Would you like to contribute with your expertise?

If you are interested in being interviewed and sharing the (future) role of strategy in your business, please contact Pascal van de Poll or Myrthe Lemmen.