So, you want to be a business strategist?
Do you often find yourself sizing up competitors’
position? Do you enjoy crafting strategies to help your company move forward?
Do you thrive on planning and implementation?
If you have an eye for assessing the present and
predicting the future, strategizing can be your cup of tea. Guess what, it pays
well!
Tactics
without strategy is noise before defeat. -Sun Tzu
Strategizing is at the core of all management roles –
whether it is in marketing, finance, HR, or technology. If you are a team lead,
manager, senior executive, or a student seeking to graduate to management
positions, sooner or later in your career research and business analytics will
become your staple diet.
What do strategists do?
Business strategists are integral part of the company for the simple
reason that they create and improve plans. These plans are based on the foresight
that helps to hedge against uncertainties and encourage what is working for the
business.
Strategy takes into account the behavior of customers
and competitors to improve routine operations and adopt best practices. Essentially,
they introduce the innovations to new products, new methods or venturing into
new markets.
Their
objective is to maximize the strengths and minimize weaknesses.
Business strategists define the roadmap for the
organization through strategy. It defines overall mission and vision of the
organization. Additionally, outlines the objectives to achieve to move toward
organization’s goals, and corresponding actions to be taken.
·
They keep track
of trends and competitors’ activities.
·
Build
forecasting models with different scenarios.
·
Inspect
performance.
·
Spot threats to
development.
·
Pinpoint
opportunities.
·
Devise novel
solutions for business growth.
In short, strategists build the gap between “where we
are” and “where you want to go.”
Starting career as a business strategist
Strategic management can be divided into two
categories – being responsible for setting direction for the organization as a
whole, and being responsible for the planning and results of discrete
departments or divisions.
In both types, strategists are instrumental.
Those aiming for a career in strategy management canbecome
an analyst as a starting point at a consulting firm. That will be a great
opportunity to land.
A few top of the line businesses also hire in-house
business strategists to constantly monitor their performance and do better
planning. Other job roles strategists can explore:
·
Financial
Analyst
·
Research
Investigator
·
Project Manager
·
Project Analyst
·
Business Analyst
·
Marketing
Consultant
·
Process
Coordinator
Only planning as a long-term career is unlikely.
Taking up strategic initiatives or high-yield projects are natural transitions
for professionals working in planning.Shifting to different roles within the organization
in different verticals is also popular.
Credentials you will need
Working professionals opting to shift to strategist
roles will need advance knowledge of business to make the shift. Along with
knowledge, proof of expertise augments one’s chances.
Executive MBA programs can give you the opportunity to
build network and gain expertise in strategy management. The programs however
are expensive and time-taking.
Other than degree programs, getting certified through
industry valued strategic management
certifications can be
highly beneficial.
Certified Business Strategy Planners
It often becomes difficult for organizations to
differentiate between genuine business strategists and strategists in the name
only. Being a member of an industry-valued recognition body can establish
yourself as a committed strategy management professional.
Up your game with associate and senior level Business
Strategy Professional qualifications for executives. They are offered by The
Strategy Institute, an international body for recognizing strategic planning
professionals. A qualification will engage you with the professional community
and authenticate your knowledge.
Maintaining or improving status quo needs work. The
shoes of a strategist can empower youto capitalize on the opportunities you
didn’t know exist and evade threats you didn’t see coming.
