Description
TLC Zoom
Wednesday 13th September 2023 @ 18:00 BST
Strategy is a Dirty Word…and Why it Doesn’t Have to Be.
Jason Poole & Andrew Firth (Aperture Strategy)
It seems that everywhere one looks business people and publications are talking about and writing about strategy, what it is and how to ‘do’ it. Strategy is certainly a key word, perhaps an over-used one, but in many quarters it is also perceived to be a dirty word.
Citing a series of high-profile and high-level failures of strategic management over the last twenty years, growing numbers of senior leaders appear frustrated by, cynical about, or indeed dismissive of the form and function of strategy, driving their organisations instead through the power of personality, the application of management techniques and tools, or by reaching for short-term targets. Others are seriously concerned that the concept of strategy has lost its way in this manner, recognising the continuing – indeed increasing – need for organisations to establish and pursue a direction of travel that accounts for complexity and uncertainty. Why has Strategy become a dirty word for many senior leaders?
Andrew and Jason will suggest a general overview of what it believes has gone wrong with the design and implementation of strategy and what might be done to restore faith and confidence in its role and contribution.
About Aperture Strategy: Jason and Andrew established Aperture Strategy twenty years after first coming together as the plans team for the UK’s first response military headquarters. Their experience and education has given them a unique perspective on the practical challenges with strategy design and implementation, and more importantly how they might be addressed. The Aperture Framework offers an innovative and iterative approach to strategy development which includes critical aspects of complexity and systems theory and is aimed at driving learning organisations.
Jason Poole: Jason’s career in the Royal Navy spanned 38 years. He started as a Mine Clearance Diver and moved on to Anti-Air Warfare Officer with service in the tanker and Gulf wars, Falkland’s, Caribbean, Baltic and Far East. In 2003 he was selected for Staff College completing a Masters in Defence Studies – this focused his career towards Joint Operational and strategic planning with subsequent appointments in the UK’s Joint Forces rapid deployment HQ, Navy HQ and Defence Intelligence. His career then progressed into policy and diplomacy with service aboard in the Pentagon and UK embassies in Washington, Tripoli and Tunis, as well as the Foreign Office and Cabinet Office. His last appointment, before leaving the RN in 2019, was to drive MOD policy for the Middle East and North Africa, for which he was honoured with an OBE. Since leaving the Service, Jason has consulted on Middle East issues and supported a Tech Start-Up as CEO.
Andrew Firth: Andrew retired from the British Army in 2009 after 23 years commissioned service. He completed a considerable number of diverse operational deployments from Northern Ireland and the Former Yugoslavia to Georgia and Sierra Leone before attending the prestigious United States Army School of Advanced Military Studies where he took a Masters Degree in Strategy and Operational Art. During his later military career Andrew held a number of senior planning roles in the UK Ministry of Defence and the Cabinet Office, focused mainly on government strategy and policy in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since leaving the Army, Andrew has worked in consulting roles to governments, international organisations, and large corporations in the Middle East and Africa. He Chairs the Governing Board at a special educational needs school in Hereford and is a vice-president of Luctonians RFC where he is often heard bemoaning the parlous state of Welsh regional rugby!
