
Strategy is Not a To Do List - taylorwc
http://steveblank.com/2010/10/07/strategy-is-not-a-to-do-list/
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pkaler
The term strategy is misused in this context. Customer development is not a
strategy, it is a process. A process can also be called a tactic.

Strategy is about the _unique position_ that a company will be able to achieve
by executing on their process.

There are two general types of advantage: competitive advantage and
comparative advantage.

Delivering more value at a given cost is a comparative advantage. Equivalent
value at a lower cost is not a comparative advantage.

Strategy is about competitive advantage. A competitive advantage is a _unique
position_ that a competitor can never attain.

In concrete terms, for startups, you will always get the "What if Google did
the same thing" question or the "What if Microsoft did the same thing"
question.

The answers are "Google will never successfully compete in this space because
it will have a negative effect on their advertising revenue" or "Microsoft
will never successfully compete in this space because it will have a negative
effect on their Windows or Office revenue".

So the stack looks like this:

    
    
      Strategy (Competitive Advantage or unique position)
    
      Process/Tactic (Customer Development and Product Development)
    
      Action (TODO list)

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pkaler
Err...I meant "Equivalent value at a lower cost is not a competitive
advantage.". It's a comparative advantage because you are comparing 2 numbers
or features.

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mjfern
I agree with Steve Blank's article. Strategy is not a to do list. But then
what is it?

Strategy at the business/product level addresses the following four questions:

(1) Who is your target customer?

(2) What value (in the form of a product and/or service) are you delivering to
this customer?

(3) What are your costs for delivering this value?

(4) Are you delivering more value at a given cost (value advantage), or
delivering equivalent value but at a lower cost (cost advantage), relative to
your competitors? In limited cases you can compete on both value and cost
simultaneously (dual advantage).

The question is then what broad activities are you performing to deliver value
to your customer (e.g., R&D, marketing), and what are the costs associated
with performing these activities (e.g., time, equipment). Through activities,
you want to maximize the wedge between value and cost for a particular segment
of customers.

The "to do list" then flows from these activities.

~~~
pkaler
Value advantage and cost advantage are a comparative advantage. Strategy is
usually about competitive advantage.

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kdeberk
This is common to so many things. When you treat strategy as a to do list, you
are performing the acts without knowing their meanings and without
understanding why they have to be performed. It is performing rituals without
understanding the dogma. It is building a landing strip out of rocks and
stones and then waiting for the gods to bring cargo.

When you finally get it, it feels like a light that was suddenly switched on.
You cannot even imagine how it was to work with the lights off.

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regularfry
If you're using the word "strategy," then you might as well go a little bit
deeper into the military metaphor than just having "strategy" and "tactics" as
concepts.

Modern military doctrine says that there are three levels of thought, not two.
Strategy represents the idea that lets you achieve your objectives. Tactics
represent the day-to-day actions that you take. The third level, Operations,
sits between the two, and ensures that the tactics you are using actually
implement the strategy you've chosen.

Customer Development isn't a strategy. Nor is it tactical. It's an operational
tool to _generate_ to-do lists comprising tactical actions.

The problem with using the word "strategy" is that too many people lack
awareness of the depth of thought that the analogy encompasses, and fail to
see past the common strategy/tactics binary misconception.

~~~
regularfry
Thinking further, I'm now wondering if customer development isn't actually a
doctrine. Hm. More thought is required here.

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mcyger
In order to execute a strategy, you need tactics. In order to execute tactics,
you need a to-do list.

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generalk
Sure, you can boil down tactical execution to "do this, then do this, finally
do this." I don't think it's best, but it's certainly a way to go.

But if you boil down your whole strategy to "All we need to do is X and then Y
and then Z" you're doing it wrong.

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barrkel
An analogy: a tactic is like a procedure, a strategy is like a program.

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taylorwc
The reality is that strategy _should be_ the to do list. Everything else is
just stuff that needs to be taken care of afterward.

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doron
A todo list is a tactic, not a strategy.

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danielnicollet
I agree. If people understood the simple difference between strategy and
tactic. this problem would not happen. Another important tool for identifying
conflicts and dependencies between tasks and tactics is project management
methodologies. I know it's not very hip and doesn't get the hackers among us
excited, but: Like Steve Blank I once had a job and a boss I didn't get along
with perfectly. I managed a huge IT project for Renault-Nissan with developers
in 2 continents, 3 time zones, and some very crucial strategic goals to
attain. I am not an entrepreneur and I use the principles of project
management (PRINCE, PMP, and countless other similar methodologies) every day
in every aspect of what I do.

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nodata
_If people understood the simple difference between strategy and tactic._

Hm. Is it okay to write that, then not go on to describe the difference?

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doron
Tactics are concerned with the conduct of an engagement, while strategy is
concerned with how different engagements are linked in a bigger overall plan
of action.

The right strategy makes tactics work better. The right strategy puts less
pressure on executing your tactics perfectly.

~~~
ronin358
You should really put those two lines in quotations. I know the second line is
word for word from Seth Godin's blog
([http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/01/the_differen...](http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/01/the_difference_.html)),
and quick check had your first line pretty close to word for word from
Wikipedia.

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doron
You are of course correct, editing isn't possible now.

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ronin358
It's all good. This _is_ the internet after all. But for me, a simple
acknowledgement goes a long way. Cheers.

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jdp23
very true, and it's shocking how little most founders (or for that matter
executives at large companies) have studied strategy. as well as business
strategy (Porter, the "balanced scorecard", strategy maps) there are also a
lot of insights from political and military strategy.

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tptacek
Porter : Strategy :: Booch : Programming.

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jdp23
i'd say it' more

Porter : Strategy :: Booch : Software Engineering

with both of them, it's problematic if that's the only thing you're reading.
and their best-known works are older; a lot's changed since then. but people
who don't have a basic understanding of what they're covering have a big gap
in their skills.

