The Power of Strategy

Ask 150 people to explain “strategy,” and you’ll get 150 different definitions. Even experts’ definitions vary widely. Today, people often mislabel something as “strategic” to indicate that it is important. In fact, the word “strategy” comes from the Greek term strategos, meaning “general.” A general leads his army in battle. Thus, a strategy is “an integrated handful of decisions” made in advance of uncertain circumstances to reach specific goals. These decisions are difficult to undo. For instance, it is hard to unsell a company once you’ve sold it. Essentially, business strategies are tools to aid decision making. These tools are based...