Introduction
Inevitably, business establishments across the world aim at gaining a competitive advantage and making huge profits on a regular basis. Many management teams of companies use different management styles, which yield various results. It is quite easy for companies to set their strategic goals, both short-term and long-term. However, management teams are required to go the extra mile for their firms to outshine their competitors in the market.
The author of “The strategist: Be the leader your business needs engages various leaders to think about their roles in promoting the adoption of various strategies” that would be applied in organizations to attain excellent performance outcomes (Montgomery 1). Montgomery uses the book, in an interesting manner, to present her arguments and concepts that would be applied in the real world to make both long-term and short-term changes.
She starts by appealing to business executives and leaders from around the world by asking them whether they are strategists. Although the question seems easy, it would require a reader to analyze the facts and thoughts presented in the publication. Nonetheless, the query is effective at drawing the attention of readers, who are encouraged to read the publication.
The Main Idea
Montgomery notes that the processes of designing and owning strategies typified traditional companies. However, things have changed due to the fact that the business environment has experienced high levels of dynamism, which require business executives and leaders to think outside the box.
Currently, many managers involve experts to design excellent strategy frameworks. “In many ways, strategy has become the bailiwick of specialists” (Montgomery 2). The author encourages chief executive officers (CEOs) to reclaim strategy in their organizations. The author uses many case studies, which can help readers to evaluate what has been used in some firms to yield good results.
A reader is satisfied with the facts that the author presents in the book. For example, it is a fact that “specialists help managers to analyze their industries and position their businesses for a competitive advantage” (Montgomery 6). As a result, “strategy has become largely a job for experts and/or something confined to an annual planning process” (Montgomery 6).
It can be argued that business managers view leadership and strategy from two different perspectives. However, the author contends that strategy and leadership are intimately connected, and leaders should have excellent skills in innovating strategies that are unique to their industries. In fact, inimitable strategies have high chances of enabling firms to attain a competitive advantage.
There is a tendency for experts to leave once they identify strategies for firms. This implies that managers are left to implement approaches, which they have not crafted. In most cases, there are challenges in executing strategic plans that are not owned by workers in an organization. Thus, many outsourced strategies do not lead to improved performance outcomes in the short-term and long-term. The author argues that “good strategies are never signed, sealed, and delivered” (Montgomery 200).
No matter how unique a strategy appears to the management, it would ultimately fail if managers view it as a product that cannot be improved. For example, strategies need to be changed on a regular basis to reflect market dynamics. Several aspects would require clarifications before implementation. Furthermore, bad and good contingencies exemplify strategic plans.
A strategist has a duty of shepherding the ongoing processes of improvements that are aimed at making a strategy deliver the required outcomes. In fact, in some instances, a strategist can decline some market opportunities and follow other pathways to achieve long-term or short-term goals, which can result in better outcomes. It is notable that consultants’ expertise and perspectives from workers may go a long way in helping firms to realize their business goals.
From a business point of view, it is worth to note that the author has acted as an advocate for the development of the skills and sensibilities that are associated with strategic planning and execution of plans.
In the contemporary business world, business leaders should focus on adopting effective strategies that would act be crucial for every company. The author asserts that “no matter how hard you and your people work, no matter how wonderful your culture is, no matter how noble your motives are, if you do not get strategy right, everything else you do is at risk”(Montgomery 87).
Practically, one of the “most important roles of a CEO is to assess the position of an enterprise over the next years, for example, five to ten years” (Montgomery 12). After the assessment, he or she should design an approach that would be utilized to get there. Modern business environments call for executives to demonstrate high speeds in making decisions, which go a long way in strategizing the growth processes of business establishments.
Although consultants may be necessary with respect to crafting strategies, they should work hand-in-hand with top managers. In addition, within an organization, the involvement of “the chief executive officer and the board of directors” is instrumental (Montgomery 156).
For optimal successes, modern managers need to “think differently to face extraordinary challenges that result from quick environmental changes occurring on a daily basis” (Montgomery 76). Thus, a strategy that can be executed within a specified deadline is a handy tool toward achieving business and related objectives.
Conclusion
The book promotes the notion that “a strategist is a visionary person with the ability to set up principles of business productivity for the next ten years” (Montgomery 139). However, he or she should modify the adopted strategy on a regular basis with the goal of taking into an account changes in the form of real numbers that are experienced in daily business events.
That notwithstanding, Montgomery has failed in providing personal thoughts that would inspire a reader. She has relied too much on case studies, such as Masco, Ikea, and Gucci. Thus, the book, from a critical perspective, does not provide new insights. In fact, most of the business insights in the publication can be found in other books around world.
Examples of the concepts that are replicated in the publication are focus on value and utilization of business data to make decisions. The publication may be a worthy resource to persons who are new to management books.
Although the book is typified by the above shortcomings, it will be utilized by professionals and leaders to improve their ideas, which would go a long way in creating and owning strategic plans in their organizations. It provides important information to business leaders attempting to maneuver their way out of complex situations in a competitive business world. The book might inspire millions of people to become strategists in the future.
Works Cited
Montgomery, Cynthia A. The strategist: Be the leader your business needs. New York, NY: HarperBusiness, 2012. Print.