Let's Talk About Strategy (extended workshop): what it is, why it matters, and how to do it well - Sophie Dennis

1. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Let’s talk about strategy…   slides: slideshare.net/sophiedennis Sophie Dennis  service design and product strategy  @sophiedennis

2. From Org Design for Design Orgs by Peter Merholz and Kristin Skinner (O’Reilly, 2016). Informed by Jesse James Garrett’s classic The Elements of User Experience (New Riders, 2010) strategy, structure, and surface layers

3. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis On post-its write 1. one thing that bugs you about “strategy” 2. one thing you hope to get out of this session 3. one question you’d like answered Write each one on a separate post-it  Share them with your neighbour

4. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis It’s all b******ks

5. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Why even bother?

6. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Culture eats strategy for breakfast — (probably not) Peter Drucker

7. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is easy

8. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis It’s implementation that’s the hard part

9. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The strategy is delivery — Mike Bracken  Government Digital Service

10. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis JFDI

11. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis [shortest workshop ever]

12. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis What is strategy?

13. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efﬁciency what should not be done at all” — Peter Drucker

14. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy tells us Where are we going? What will be different when we get there? Where are we now? How are we going to get from here to there? What might stop us and how will we overcome that?

15. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy helps make decisions

16. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy gives us purpose

17. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy enables us to delegate control and decision making

18. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy makes us more agile

19. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Bad strategy

20. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Our strategy is collaborative growth. We will lead a customer focused effort of the market through our use of digital business and internet of things ecosystem to build a cloud based revolution. By being both innovative and open, we will drive competitive advantage throughout the organisation. Synergies between our data leaders and agile culture will enable us to capture the upside by becoming networked in a big data world. These transformations combined with disruptive insight from data due to our digital ﬁrst platform will create a learning organisation through value and efﬁciency.

21. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Our strategy is collaborative growth. We will lead a customer focused effort of the market through our use of digital business and internet of things ecosystem to build a cloud based revolution. By being both innovative and open, we will drive competitive advantage throughout the organisation. Synergies between our data leaders and agile culture will enable us to capture the upside by becoming networked in a big data world. These transformations combined with disruptive insight from data due to our digital ﬁrst platform will create a learning organisation through value and efﬁciency. Simon Wardley, A quick route to building a strategy  Make your own at https://strategy-madlibs.herokuapp.com/

22. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The “yeah, right” test   The “so what?” test   The “yes! and…?” test

23. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The “yeah, right” test

24. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Cornwall is going to be the next silicon valley Insert your city or region here

25. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The “so what?” test

26. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis apps        Not a strategy

27. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis apps, digital transformation        Not a strategy

28. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis apps, digital transformation        Seriously Not. A. Strategy , wearables, chatbots,, AI,, personalisation,, a new logo, a rebrand,, content marketing,, agile,, Agile, user experience,, lean UX,, service design, innovation… …

29. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The “yes! and…?” test

30. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The “yes! and…?” test

31. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The “yeah, right” test   The “so what?” test   The “yes! and…?” test

32. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis So what makes a good strategy?

33. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change

34. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change Strategy is about changing something

35. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change Strategy should achieve a goal

36. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change Strategy should be coherent

37. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis coherent kə(ʊ)ˈhɪər(ə)nt/    adjective    1. (of an argument, theory, or policy) logical and consistent  ‘they failed to develop a coherent economic strategy’ 2. Forming a uniﬁed whole  ‘the arts could be systematized into one coherent body of knowledge’   https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/deﬁnition/coherent

38. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Moon Shotshttps://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aldrin_Apollo_11_original.jpg

39. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Exercise Read through Kennedy’s moonshot speech In your group discuss: 1. What is the concrete, tangible goal? 2. What is the signiﬁcant positive change Kennedy hopes achieving it will bring? 3. What leads Kennedy to believe   the goal is achievable? 4. What are the most signiﬁcant   barriers to success?

40. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change What was the concrete, tangible goal?

41. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “before this decade is out [to] land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth”

42. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change What significant, positive change is it trying to bring about?

43. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change How does he show the goal is achievable?

44. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “we have examined where we are strong and where we are not, where we may succeed and where we may not…we possess all the resources and talents necessary”

45. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis accelerate the development of the appropriate lunar space craft… develop alternate liquid and solid fuel boosters… additional funds for unmanned explorations… 531 million dollars in ﬁscal ’62…   7 to 9 billion dollars additional over the next ﬁve years

46. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis many years… heavy costs … a degree of dedication, organization and discipline which have not always characterized our efforts… we cannot afford inﬂated costs of material or talent, wasteful interagency rivalries, or high turnover of key personnel

47. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis there is no sense in agreeing or desiring that the United States take an afﬁrmative position in outer space, unless we are prepared to do the work and bear the burdens to make it successful. If we are to go only half way, or reduce our sights in the face of difﬁculty, in my judgment it would be better not to go at all.

48. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis coherent kə(ʊ)ˈhɪər(ə)nt/    adjective    1. (of an argument, theory, or policy) logical and consistent  ‘they failed to develop a coherent economic strategy’ 2. Forming a uniﬁed whole  ‘the arts could be systematized into one coherent body of knowledge’   https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/deﬁnition/coherent

49. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Focus and leverage

50. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis start enduser journey pain points

51. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis start enduser journey tactical solution pain points

52. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis start enduser journey pain points strategic solution

53. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “It’s just a website We’re not going to the moon” Mikey Dickerson on ﬁxing healthcare.gov    Photo by Matt Jukes @jukesie from the Ofﬁce for National Statistics Alpha/Beta team digitalblog.ons.gov.uk/2015/03/24/ons-digital- sxsw/

54. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Structured data capture and storage

55. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Pattern Library & Style Guide

56. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. Diagnose the problem  what is the true nature and extent of the problem? what are we really trying to achieve? what’s really going on here? 2. Find the unifying idea  what overall approach will enable us to cope with and overcome the obstacles identiﬁed in the diagnosis? what is the common thread in the problems we’ve found? where can we focus in order to apply leverage? 3. Craft a coherent plan of attack  what is the co-ordinated set of actions or steps we should take that will work together to accomplish our goal?

57. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy User needs Organisation values & objectives Constraints

58. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. Denial - our thing is not broken 2. Anger - we hate you for telling us 3. Acceptance - holy crap our thing is broken Dan Hon, ‘Stages of Transformation’, 11 April 2011   tinyletter.com/danhon/letters/s4e10-stages-of-transformation

59. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “A good diagnosis simpliﬁes the often overwhelming complexity of reality by identifying certain aspects of the situation as critical.” Richard Rumelt  Good Strategy/Bad Strategy

60. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Fog

61. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Make a map Do an audit

62. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis gds.blog.gov.uk/2015/08/18/mapping-new-ideas-for-the-digital-justice-system-2

63. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Build the end-to-end big picture

64. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Making the map   is as valuable   as having the map

65. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Trust the process

66. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. problem statement 2. opportunity/objective 3. situation/constraints/context 4. recommendation: Big Idea 5. recommendation: smaller ideas/ releasing early value/validation 6. principles, models Diagnosis Unifying idea Coherent plan of attack I wrote about this a bit more at   medium.com/@sophiedennis/weeknotes-s01e01-what-a-diﬀerence-a-day-makes-from-dwp-to-nhs-digital-d1fe54ﬀ0cb0

67. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Design Principles  cxpartners.co.uk/our-thinking/design-principles

68. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Short form creative brief  articles.uie.com/short_form_creative_brief

69. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Questions?

70. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Vision and goals

71. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy is a coherent plan to achieve a goal that will lead to signiﬁcant positive change

73. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy helps make decisions

74. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy gives us purpose

75. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy enables us to delegate control and decision making

76. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Good strategy makes us more agile

77. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Does it get you closer to the mountain?

79. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis [I imagined] that where I wanted to be – an author, primarily of ﬁction,… supporting myself through my words – was a mountain. A distant mountain. My goal. And I knew that as long as I kept walking towards the mountain I would be all right. And when I truly was not sure what to do, I could stop, and think about whether it was taking me towards or away from the mountain. I said no to editorial jobs on magazines, proper jobs that would have paid proper money because I knew that, attractive though they were, for me they would have been walking away from the mountain. And if those job offers had come along earlier I might have taken them, because they still would have been closer to the mountain than I was at the time.” Neil Gaiman, commencement speech to University of the Arts, 2012  www.uarts.edu/neil-gaiman-keynote-address-2012 Watch at vimeo.com/42372767

80. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Beware  Problem Deﬁnition Escalation

81. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The client asks you to design a business card   You respond that the problem is really the client’s logo Michael Beirut, ‘You’re So Intelligent’, Design Observer, 9 May 2007   designobserver.com/feature/youre-so-intelligent/5917/ The client asks you to design a logo  You say the problem is the   entire identity system The client asks you to design the identity  You say that the problem is the   client’s business plan

82. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis The problem isn’t making something look pretty, you fool, it’s world hunger! Michael Beirut, ‘You’re So Intelligent’, Design Observer, 9 May 2007   designobserver.com/feature/youre-so-intelligent/5917/ One or two steps later, you can claim whole industries and vast historical forces as your purview

83. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Why?  So more people get their flu jabs Why?  So fewer people end up in hospital with severe, life-threatening flu Why?  To reduce pressure on the health service Why?  ONLY WE CAN SAVE THE NHS! What are you doing?   Making it easier to book an appointment for a flu jab

84. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “the nature of these challenges are emblematic of deeply entrenched ﬂaws in our institutional structures, our underlying theories, deﬁnitions of success, and ultimately how we have constructed our civilization.” Christian Bason The frontiers of design for policy

85. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis People still don’t have their ﬂu jabs

86. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Why?  So more people get their flu jabs Why?  So fewer people end up in hospital with severe, life-threatening flu Why?  To reduce pressure on the health service Why?  ONLY WE CAN SAVE THE NHS! What are you doing?   Making it easier to book an appointment for a flu jab

87. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Pick your mountain

88. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis What is Kennedy’s hierarchy of goals? 1. What is the mountain? 2. What is the nearer peak? 3. What are the interim goals?

89. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Defeat the commies change

90. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Defeat the commies Win the space race goal change

91. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Defeat the commies Win the space race goal change change

92. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Defeat the commies Win the space race Land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth goal change goal change

93. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Defeat the commies Win the space race Land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth Design more   powerful rockets Get Congress to pony   up the cash Launch unmanned explorations Build a space ship change goal goal goal goal goal change change goal

94. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. What is the hierarchy of vision and goals? it may help to start at the bottom with the most immediate task, then ask “why?” 2. What is the highest level goal you can directly contribute to or inﬂuence? this is where you are going 3. What is the level above that?   this is what will be different when you get there Defeat   the commies Win the   space race Land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth Design more   powerful rockets Get Congress to pony up the cash Launch unmanned explorations Build a space ship Pick your mountain  Think about a project you are working on, or a situation you want to change:

95. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Strategy tells us Where are we going? What will be diﬀerent when we get there? Where are we now? How are we going to get from here to there? What might stop us and how will we overcome that?

98. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. problem statement 2. opportunity/objective 3. situation/constraints/context 4. recommendation: Big Idea 5. recommendation: smaller ideas/ releasing early value/validation 6. principles, models Diagnosis Unifying idea Coherent plan of attack I wrote about this a bit more at   medium.com/@sophiedennis/weeknotes-s01e01-what-a-diﬀerence-a-day-makes-from-dwp-to-nhs-digital-d1fe54ﬀ0cb0

99. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Exercise Brainstorm on page one of the strategy worksheet, or using post-its: 1. Problems (for users, for org, for you) 2. Objectives (for users, for org, for you) 3. Opportunities 4. Constraints 5. Wider context/situation

100. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “A good diagnosis simpliﬁes the often overwhelming complexity of reality by identifying certain aspects of the situation as critical.” Richard Rumelt  Good Strategy/Bad Strategy

101. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Problem statement This should be made up of: • the speciﬁc problem, or user need, you want to address • the result of the problem • the situation which makes the problem a priority, or change of situation which makes the problem higher risk • the risk or opportunity that’s a result of the problem and situation Melanie Cannon, Lead Content Designer, DWP, How to write a problem statement  medium.com/leading-service-design/how-to-write-a-problem-statement-50e2c87810fe

102. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Example of a problem statement for Strava, the running and cycling app the specific problem, or user need, you want to address It can be difficult to stay motivated to do regular exercise. A lot of people start an exercise routine like running or cycling regularly, but don’t keep it up. In the UK, obesity is increasing and people are finding it more difficult to cope with mental health problems. We know that taking regular exercise improves our physical health as well as our mental health. There’s an opportunity to help people stay active and improve their performance. Connecting them with other people for support, encouragement and competition, and making it easy for them to analyse their workout, could help more people stay motivated. Melanie Cannon, Lead Content Designer, DWP, How to write a problem statement  medium.com/leading-service-design/how-to-write-a-problem-statement-50e2c87810fe the risk or opportunity that’s a result of the problem and situation the situation which makes the problem a priority, or change of situation which makes the problem higher risk the result of the problem

103. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Exercise Reﬁne your deﬁnition of the problem by drafting a problem statement using Mel’s formula

105. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Working with stakeholders

106. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. Stakeholders know what’s really going on

107. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 2. Stakeholders can derail the whole process

108. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis 1. People support what they help to create 2. No big surprises 3. They don’t have to like it - but they do need to buy-it

111. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “Nemawashi”   lit: going around the roots “In Japan, high-ranking people expect to be let in on new proposals prior to an official meeting. If they find out about something for the first time during the meeting, they will feel that they have been ignored, and they may reject it for that reason alone. Thus, it’s important to approach these people individually before the meeting. This provides an opportunity to introduce the proposal to them and gauge their reaction. This is also a good chance to hear their input. This process is referred to as nemawashi.” Defining Nemawashi, Rochelle Kopp, Japan Intercultural Consulting (2012)  japanintercultural.com/en/news/default.aspx?newsid=234

112. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis • Share early and often • Share your rationale before you start on solutions • Make the map together - it focuses discussions • Open invitation sketching, co-design and ideation workshops • Brief the most inﬂuential people 1:1 • Make your pitch

114. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Who are your stakeholders? 1. Senior decision-makers and executives 2. The people who’ll need to implement any changes 3. People whose work will be affected by any changes

115. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Guerrilla Strategy  Working in a strategy vacuum

116. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Signs you lack a strategy 1. A lot of activity that fails to deliver significant benefits 2. Not knowing which option to pick or pursue 3. Repetitive debate and discussion about focus, priorities and direction - constantly going over the same ground 4. Difficulty choosing between equally valid but incompatible options

117. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis “If our goal is to X, then I recommend we do A. But if our goal is Y, then we should do B instead” “Is X or Y more important to our organisation?” “Is our goal to do A or B?”

119. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Further reading Richard Rumelt, Good Strategy/Bad Strategy Lots more examples and advice on good vs bad strategy Jared Spool, Beyond the UX Tipping Point https://www.uie.com/brainsparks/2016/05/26/jared-spool-beyond-the- ux-tipping-point-live/ Becoming a user-centred organisation Sophie Dennis, The Art of Things Not Done, NUX5  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jh-hvPtqN54 Product strategy with story-mapping and the Kano model Megan Casey, The Content Strategy Toolkit Advice, templates and methods for getting buy-in and working with stakeholders. Useful for any kind of design or UX project. Dan Brown, Documenting Design Discovery medium.com/eightshapes-llc/documenting-design-discovery- db14da1b0627#.24ud09pj0 More on structuring ﬁndings. He’s also written a book about it.

120. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis Download the worksheets  http://bit.ly/2FqWHeK

121. slideshare.net/sophiedennis @sophiedennis You’ve been talking about strategy with…   slides: slideshare.net/sophiedennis Sophie Dennis  service design and product strategy  @sophiedennis