“I’d rather have a good team than a good plan,” an experienced chairman confided in me recently over a “corona-proof” bock beer at a nearby café. “The team comes up with that plan on its own. In fact, we do that every quarter—not because Corporate Control requires it, but because we want to, to build our capacity for change.”

He continues: “We all know it’s an illusion to try to imagine exactly where the organization will be in two years. Strategy in the traditional sense is nonsense. The market, the products, the underlying technology, the competitors, …, will have changed significantly by then. Not to mention ‘black swans’ like COVID-19.”

So what is strategy, then?

“Strategy is about change, about the ability to change. It’s about being able to respond to all those Multidisciplinary challenges in a timely manner. And not just working together—both internally and externally. Working on collaboration and the ability to change—that’s what strategy is all about today!”

“A dot on the horizon—that which is good for us and our customers—is certainly useful. But the most important thing is that it’s a shared vision, so that key figures from all divisions can better align with one another as we work toward it. Moving toward that dot on the horizon involves 1,000 small choices, day in and day out. It requires constant adaptation—the ability to change. How we do that determines whether we reach our goal.”

So, the way you go about achieving your objectives says everything about what you achieve?

“Yes, and that’s why ‘what’s good for us and our customers’ is both the guiding principle for making the right choices and the approach we take to arrive at those choices. Everyone who values continuity takes on a shared responsibility. This sets in motion an attractive movement that talented people want to be part of because it fosters learning rather than just yielding results. Through open communication, respect for others’ interests, inclusivity, and meaningful contributions to society—we work together to make the pie bigger rather than just dividing it up differently. The real competitive factors in the knowledge economy lie in how you approach things—in what we often call “soft elements” such as sharing, generosity, connection, and trust. These “values” foster a single responsibility, a single vision, a single goal, and unity!”

To put it bluntly, is focusing on a single responsibility the real strategy?

“Yes, a unit with shared responsibility adapts more easily. That’s why it’s better to invest in the cohesion of the teams than in the sharpness of the strategy. The way we develop and implement the plan is just as important as the plan itself. Responsible leaders thus build the capacity to respond to changing circumstances and challenges. It’s no coincidence that the word “response” is part ofthe word “responsibility.” In English, it’s even more elegant: “response-ability”—the ability to respond. The ability to react to. “Ability” in the three meanings of the word: capacity, skill, and authority.”

As I finished my last bock beer, I asked the driver how long he’d been doing this. His interesting, honest answer: “I’ve had to develop that ability.”