Simplicity is the name of the game
Top management often develops the strategy using language familiar to them. However, this language may be too complicated for the rest of the employees to understand.
Empathy is key
The strategy should not just be announced and cascaded down the chain of command. Leaders should table the strategy within their respective teams and explain the finer nuances embedded in the strategy. They should then solicit feedback and ideas to improve the strategy. This creates ownership of the strategy as well as a sense of contribution.
Make sure the strategy comes first
The next challenge is giving priority to the strategy. In today’s turbulent environment, there are a multitude of demands on employees, and everything on their plate may seem important:
“Because we don’t know what is really important to us, everything seems important.
Because everything seems important, we have to do everything.
Other people, unfortunately, see us doing everything, so they expect us to do everything.
Doing everything keeps us so busy, we don’t have time to think about what is really important to us.”
So, a clear understanding needs to be shaped between what is really important this year (the new strategy) and other seemingly important tasks that need to be done (the day job). And based on this understanding, employees need to be trained on how they manage their priorities and time between the two.
