Bringing hoshin kanri (strategy deployment) to life
Most of the time, managers are judged by their ability to set direction and manage the implementation of strategy. That is not enough. Managers should be judged by their ability not to manage in the traditional way – and thus achieve even better results.
But why, in many cases, do the definition and implementation of strategy have little vigor and effectiveness and fail to engage employees? Why does it often become a bureaucratic process whose outputs (reports, “PowerPoint” slides, etc.) end up in drawers or, at most, serve as wallpaper?
We have seen several companies taking the first steps in search of a new way of deploying strategy.
They manage to breathe new life into it, stimulate debate, and question basic assumptions, thus bringing new quality and effectiveness to this process, previously focused on a cold, impoverished discussion of numbers and spreadsheets around the budget.
These companies undergoing lean transformation manage to turn their leaders into true animators, who bring the process of defining and deploying strategy to life. They go to the gemba, the place where things happen, to help people understand current problems in depth, connect improvement efforts to business needs, and establish action plans that become effective hypotheses.
In doing so, they help solve some of the main problems with traditional strategy deployment, such as: a) the absence of in-depth exploration and real discussion of objectives and needs; b) participation restricted to a few people at the top of the organization; c) catchball, which in theory should define strategies, moving up and down through the different levels, is limited to the cold definition of numbers or action plans, and not how things should be done; d) the vision and objectives are not clear; e) an excess of goals and objectives that confuse and take the focus away from efforts.
Many goals are unrealistic, because they stem from a lack of knowledge of the current situation and of the company's problems. Thus, action plans become mere wish lists, without a clear context and a real understanding of the situation.
We should, then, look for new concepts and techniques to try to develop people who take the initiative and assume responsibility in the various dimensions of their activities, including those linked to strategy.
We can use some new tools, such as the A3 process, a method for leading, mentoring, and aligning the company's main actions. Companies that are changing the way they build this process start from some premises and values different from the traditional ones, such as the fact that the role of top management, in addition to defining the hoshin (direction) and the kanri (management), is to get everyone to take on the initiative and responsibility for deploying the strategy, not as a mere reflection of the higher levels of the organization.
It is possible to reinvigorate hoshin kanri. The strategy deployment process can become alive and vibrant, aligning, guiding, and moving the whole company. It would become one of the organization's most effective engines in its quest for survival and growth.
Source: Revista Época NEGÓCIOS
