Don’t Walk Before You Run: Building Strategy with a Logical Framework
Crafting a winning strategy is no small feat. Whether you are navigating business transformation, launching a new product, or aligning organisational goals, one thing remains constant: you cannot run before you walk. In strategic terms, this means you need to understand where you are now before you can chart a path forward.
This blog introduces a simple yet powerful framework to help you move from fragmented thinking to strategic clarity. By combining SWOT analysis, PESTLE analysis, and an iterative approach to refining insights, this framework ensures your strategy is grounded in reality and shaped by opportunity.
Why a Structured Approach is Essential
Without a clear framework, strategy development often becomes chaotic:
- Teams rush to solutions without fully understanding the problem.
- External factors are overlooked, leading to blind spots.
- Goals are set without aligning with the organisation’s capabilities or environment.
This framework avoids those pitfalls by breaking the process into three logical steps:
1. Start with SWOT analysis to identify your internal reality.
2. Expand with PESTLE analysis to map external influences.
3. Refine your SWOT with PESTLE insights to create a cohesive strategy.
Step 1: SWOT Analysis – The Foundation
A SWOT analysis is the starting point for any strategy. It helps you identify:
- Strengths: What sets you apart?
- Weaknesses: What internal factors are holding you back?
- Opportunities: What untapped potential exists within your reach?
- Threats: What risks could derail your plans?
This step focuses on internal dynamics, providing a clear baseline before looking outward.
Step 2: PESTLE Analysis – Expanding the Lens
Once you understand your internal state, it is time to look outward. A PESTLE analysis examines the external environment through six lenses:
- Political: Policies, regulations, and government stability.
- Economic: Market trends, inflation, and currency fluctuations.
- Social: Demographics, cultural trends, and customer behaviour.
- Technological: Innovations, industry disruptions, and emerging tools.
- Legal: Compliance requirements, intellectual property laws, and more.
- Environmental: Sustainability, climate change, and resource availability.
PESTLE ensures your strategy accounts for the forces shaping your landscape.
Step 3: Refining Your SWOT – Bringing It All Together
With insights from PESTLE, you return to your SWOT analysis to refine and strengthen it.
- Strengths and Weaknesses: Are there internal factors you missed earlier?
- Opportunities and Threats: Have external forces uncovered new risks or priorities?
This iterative process aligns internal capabilities with external realities, creating a holistic and actionable strategy.
The Power of an Iterative Approach
This framework is not a one-and-done exercise. Strategy evolves as new information emerges, and the iterative nature of this process allows you to:
- Continuously refine your approach.
- Adapt to changing circumstances.
- Build alignment between internal and external realities.
Next Steps
In the upcoming blogs, we will dive deeper into each step:
- How to run an effective SWOT analysis.
- How to use PESTLE analysis to identify external factors.
- How to refine your SWOT with actionable insights.
Ready to take your strategy to the next level? Start by exploring the first step: Strategy Series - Part 2: Mastering SWOT Analysis: Laying the Groundwork for Strategy.
