1. Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to
Unleash Your Career
BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE
January 15, 2013
Michelle Randall, MBA
President
Enriching Leadership International

2. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Welcome
• Identification
– Defining strategic contribution
– Identifying strategic abilities
• Implementation
– Removing obstacles
– 8 steps to becoming more
strategic
– Your next steps
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 2

3. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
A Day in the Life of Your Boss
- What concerns?
- What priorities?
- What interruptions/crises?
- What’s desired from you?
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4. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Strategic
or Not?
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5. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Characteristics of Strategic
Contribution
• What are they
and why?
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6. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Strategic Contribution and Career Development
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Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 6

7. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Strategic Abilities
When asked:
“Obstacles I see getting in the way of my
managers making an optimal strategic
contribution.”
Nearly 60% responded
“Lacking in strategic abilities.”
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 7

8. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Business Understanding
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I understand my company’s goals and how to align with them.
2. I understand customer issues and use that information to provide
valuable guidance to account teams.
3. I understand the value of my area of responsibility and align the actions
of myself and my team to maximize it.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 8

9. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Alliances
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I have a number of great working relationships with people throughout the
company.
2. I work in the mutual best interest of myself and my peers in the company.
3. I maximize opportunities to make key influencers in the company look
good.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 9

10. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Big Picture View
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I make regular critical assessments of what is and what can be for my
area of responsibility.
2. I prioritize the work of my team in alignment with the long term of the
company.
3. I focus on the future ideal state of my area of responsibility (i.e. growth,
expanded scope, geographic reach).
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 10

11. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Know the Context You’re Working In
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I believe that strategy is a set of options to get to a future state.
2. I regularly grow my understanding of external forces on our company and
our clients.
3. I make timely, surgical adjustments based on new information – as little as
necessary.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 11

12. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Be Subversive
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I manage my manager.
2. I’m creating opportunities to get myself a seat at the table where larger
strategic direction is being set.
3. I’m developing my team to think strategically.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 12

13. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Self Assess
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I measure the value created by my area of responsibity.
2. I regularly assess my next areas for development.
3. I regularly assess my employees development needs.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 13

14. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Prove Value
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. I know my company’s culture and communicate in the terms of those
values.
2. I cultivate a team of cheerleaders for my area of responsibility – and they’re
people who are relevant to key decision makers.
3. I track and show the value of my area of responsibility.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 14

15. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Self Assessment Quiz
Be Global
Rate yourself:
1=not really, 3=pretty much, 5=yes
1. My team and I have the cultural fluency to successfully work with
others from any country.
2. My team and I are easy for professionals from any country to work
with.
3. We have zero cultural missteps with delegations from all countries.
Subtotal your answers
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 15

16. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Developing Strategic Abilities
•Prioritize areas to focus development
•Identify resources & training
•Learn, use, learn more, keep using
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17. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Removing Obstacles
When asked:
“Obstacles I see getting in the way of my
managers making an optimal strategic
contribution.”
Nearly 60% responded
“Lacking in time and resources.”
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 17

18. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
4 Types of Obstacles
• Self made
– i.e. capable person syndrome
• Getting others to do what we want
– i.e. delegation and developing champions
• Systemic
– i.e. measuring the wrong things
• Infrastructure
– i.e. lack of automation
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 18

19. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
8 Steps to Becoming More Strategic
• Operations running smoothly
• Create capacity for strategic contribution
• Acquire skills and knowledge in self and team
• Build key alliances
• Recognize and maximize opportunities
• Provide tremendous value
• Get out of your own way
• IMPLEMENT
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 19

20. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
What’s Your Commitment?
• What are your top three priorities for increasing
strategic contribution in next 90 days?
• “The first step – that I will take next week – is…”
• Email michelle@enrichingleadership.com
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 20

21. BEST PRACTICE INSTITUTE Sharpen Your Strategic Acumen to Unleash Your Career
Resources
Articles
Assessments
E-books
Podcasts
Webinars
Visit Michelle’s Website:
www.enrichingleadership.com
Randall © 2013 Enriching Leadership International 21