Marc Maloy’s Post

"Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works" by Roger Martin and A.G Lafley, outlines a framework anyone can use to tighten their strategic thinking regardless of role. It's applicable to CEO's, functional leaders, and individual contributors. When applied effectively it helps improve clarity, focus, and prioritization throughout a company. The framework includes 5 key elements: 1) Winning Aspiration: the winning aspiration is specific, motivating, and aligned with an organization's purpose. 2) Where to Play: What markets, segments, ICP do you/are you going to compete in, also, identify areas that you're choosing to not compete in. 3) How to Win: What unique capabilities does your company (or you personally) have that will enable your company or you to be successful in your chosen markets. This is where you understand your customers (where you have chosen to play) very intimately. You could call this differentiation, but I think it's slightly broader than that. 4) What are your core capabilities: These are the unique strengths that support the "How to win" choice. Usually includes a mix of people, process, and technology. Don't boil the ocean here - you really need to understand your unique core capabilities/strengths. This is what makes you and/or your company special - it's your genius. 5) Systems: What systems need to be in place to ensure you're executing against the 4 choices above. Usually includes KPI's, incentives, technology, etc.. I find tremendous value in this framework because it forces you to prioritize, improves speed to decision making, and it's a simple to understand set of interconnected choices that support each other. Here's what we're going to do and, by definition, we are not doing anything else until we change our mind :). An AE or AM that thinks through this framework in their territory/assigned accounts and ensures that it is in lockstep with their company's version of this framework will absolutely create the correct conditions to earn their unfair share of their territory.