Building a Strategy-Focused Organization

Strategy and Strategic Planning October 25, 2025
Enquire About This Course

Introduction

Achieving strategic success requires more than a brilliant plan; it demands that the entire organization—every department, process, and employee—is aligned and focused on the strategy. This advanced course provides the blueprint for transforming an organization from a collection of silos into a cohesive, strategy-focused entity, often leveraging the principles of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) and Strategy-Focused Organization (SFO) concepts. Participants will learn how to align core systems—including governance, budgeting, human resources, and information management—to create a unified system for managing and executing strategy and driving long-term value creation across all levels.

Objectives

To provide senior leaders and strategists with the methodology to create a unified system of strategic management, aligning core organizational processes and culture around the strategy:

Target Audience

  • C-Level Executives (CEO, COO, CFO) and Directors.
  • Heads of Strategic Planning and Strategy Management Offices.
  • Senior Managers in Finance, HR, and IT responsible for corporate-wide systems.
  • Change Management and Organizational Development leaders.
  • Internal and External Management Consultants.
  • Leaders seeking to implement a robust, sustainable strategy execution system.

Methodology

  • SFO implementation case studies and best practices.
  • Group workshop on designing a Strategy Management Office (SMO) charter.
  • Template development for aligning HR incentives with a sample BSC.
  • Executive discussions on managing resistance to system-wide change.
  • Simulation of a high-stakes strategic review meeting.

Personal Impact

  • Acquire a comprehensive framework for strategic management (SFO model).
  • Ability to design systems that align human and financial resources with strategy.
  • Master the process of building and running a Strategy Management Office (SMO).
  • Enhanced leadership skills for driving enterprise-wide strategic alignment.
  • Skill in integrating various management systems (HR, Finance, Planning).

Organizational Impact

  • True organizational alignment where all parts work toward the same strategy.
  • Significantly improved resource allocation and return on strategic investment.
  • A systemic, repeatable mechanism for strategy execution and adaptation.
  • Reduced organizational friction and improved cross-functional collaboration.
  • Clearer accountability for strategic results at all levels.

Course Outline

Unit 1: The Strategy-Focused Organization (SFO) Model

Principles of the SFO
  • Understanding the five principles of the Strategy-Focused Organization.
  • The role of the Strategy Management Office (SMO) as the integration hub.
  • Comparing the SFO with traditional decentralized management structures.
  • The SFO as a closed-loop system for continuous strategic learning.
Strategy as a Core Process
  • Integrating strategic planning into the annual and long-term business cycle.
  • Making strategy a continuous process, not a periodic event.
  • Establishing a clear governance framework for strategic decision-making.

Unit 2: Aligning the Organization with Strategy

Translating Strategy: The Strategy Map and BSC
  • Using the Strategy Map as the central organizing framework.
  • Techniques for designing a corporate-level Balanced Scorecard (BSC).
  • The process of cascading the BSC to business units and support functions.
  • Achieving horizontal alignment between different functional departments.
Strategic Resource Alignment
  • Implementing a strategic budgeting process (e.g., activity-based costing, zero-based budgeting).
  • Connecting resource allocation decisions directly to strategic initiatives on the BSC.
  • Managing the portfolio of strategic projects for maximum strategic return.

Unit 3: Aligning People and Culture

HR Systems Alignment
  • Integrating strategic objectives into the employee performance management system.
  • Designing incentive and reward systems that reinforce strategic execution.
  • Aligning training and development with the strategic capabilities required.
  • Communicating and educating employees on the strategic mission.
Building a Strategy-Focused Culture
  • Diagnosing the gap between current culture and the strategy-required culture.
  • Defining strategic behaviors and leadership competencies.
  • The role of leadership modeling in institutionalizing the strategy focus.

Unit 4: Operationalizing the System

Process and Information Alignment
  • Identifying and managing the cross-functional critical strategic processes.
  • Aligning IT strategy and information systems to support performance measurement.
  • Implementing a strategy reporting infrastructure (e.g., dashboards, SFO software).
  • Ensuring data integrity and timely reporting for strategy review.
The Strategy Management Office (SMO)
  • Defining the structure, roles, and responsibilities of the SMO.
  • The SMO's role in facilitating strategic reviews and managing the BSC system.
  • Sustaining the SMO as a strategic asset and not a bureaucratic layer.

Unit 5: Strategic Review and Learning

The Strategy Review Process
  • Designing the agenda and cadence of the strategic review meetings.
  • Focusing reviews on learning and course correction, not just variance reporting.
  • Techniques for ensuring productive, challenging strategy discussions.
Strategic Learning and Adaptation
  • Using the SFO system to test strategic hypotheses and gather feedback.
  • The process for formally updating the Strategy Map and objectives.
  • Embedding a culture of continuous improvement and strategic learning.

Ready to Learn More?

Have questions about this course? Get in touch with our training consultants.

Submit Your Enquiry