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5.0 out of 5 stars
How to Prevent It...How to Get Out of It, October 20, 2003
This review is from: Preventing Strategic Gridlock: Leading Over, Under & Around Organizational Jams to Achieve High Performance Results (Paperback)
Obviously, it is highly advisable to identify and then eliminate potential problems before they occur. That is as true in business as it is in healthcare, athletic competition, and international travel. What we have here is a solid, well-organized, and well-written guide to preventing strategic gridlock. First, Harper carefully examines seven of the usual suspects which can cause it. Next, she introduces what she calls U.N.L.O.C.K., a system based on six principles by which to avoid or eliminate them. Finally, she shifts her reader's attention to countless real-world examples. Obviously, an inappropriate strategy almost invariably results in conflict, confusion, acrimony, perhaps operational gridlock, and worse yet, chaos. Moreover, Harper fully understands that even a fundamentally sound strategy can fail because of internal resistance by those whom Jim O'Toole describes as being captive to "the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom." Or that strategy can become less effective or even ineffective because of market forces over which the organization has little (if any) conrol. Harper has absolutely no illusions about the complexity of these and other issues. She could easily have identified 14 or even 21 "roadblocks." Her U.N.L.O.C.K. system could have been based on 10 or even 15 principles. That's not the point. Rather, when crafting a strategy, decision-makers in any organization (regardless of size or nature) should identify and then prepare for what they perceive to be the potentially most formidable roadblocks to that strategy's success. (FYI, my personal preference is to view strategies as "hammers" and tactics as "nails.") Everyone must understand and support the strategy. What amounts to an "early warning system" is needed and everyone at least directly involved with the strategy and its tactics must be especially alert during the strategy's initial implementation. Although I encountered no "cutting edge thinking" in Harper's book, I hold it in high regard because it fully serves the needs of decision-makers who need (perhaps urgently) a cohesive, comprehensive, and cost-effective system by which to avoid or extricate their organizations from strategic gridlock. Another major benefit of having an "early warning system" is that if the strategy is a dud, that will soon be obvious and Harper's book can assist with whatever adjustments may be necessary. Those who share my interest in how and why even major corporations such as Ford, Coca-Cola, and McDonald's make bad strategic decisions, I urge them to check out Matt Haig's recently published Bad Brands.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Do You Want High Performance Success?, October 27, 2011
This review is from: Preventing Strategic Gridlock: Leading Over, Under & Around Organizational Jams to Achieve High Performance Results (Paperback)
Preventing Strategic Gridlock Have you ever found a gem of a book that you know you'll hold unto and use again and again? I found that book, Preventing Strategic Gridlock by Pamela S. Harper. The value of the book is twofold; the ideas and concepts about how to identify the root causes of seemingly mysterious organizational problems she calls "strategic gridlock," as well as a process to follow to break through the gridlock and accelerate progress toward high performance results - regardless of the economy.
The premise of Preventing Strategic Gridlock is just as relevant today as it was when the book was first published in 2002. We live in a changing world of work in which there are changes (external) that we do not have control over such as; economic fluctuations that impact business conditions, global technology evolutions, international globalization to name a few. Ms. Harper uses highly publicized cases to illustrate how in a turbulent business environment, even the most sophisticated organizations can inadvertently work against themselves despite everyone's best intentions. She states that the ability to align strategy with the organization's "reality," including its many overlooked and underestimated stakeholders inside and outside of the company, is critical to preventing excessive conflict, mysterious morale problems, persistent firefighting,, and other organizational dysfunctions that get in the way of companies achieving high performance results.
Ms. Harper uses her extensive experience consulting internally and externally to companies of all sizes in a variety of industries to guide readers on how to prevent problems from occurring in their own organizations. She outlines a process to identify what "type" of strategic gridlock may be occurring, whether it is an internally or externally driven gridlock, and a process plan to systematically validate the type of gridlock and a methodology for addressing the different types of gridlock.
In a business climate that is fraught with uncertainty and guarantees change, there is confidence in the predictable process for identifying categories of gridlock and methodologies for addressing the different types of challenges that leaders and their organizations face. This also gives the book universal appeal. - it is a process that can be applied and adapted to many cultures and industries.
Ms. Harper suggests we read through the book and then refer to section(s) that apply to our business challenge(s) followed by applying the process (es) prescribed for high performance success. Sounds like prudent advice to me!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
"Must-have advice for strategy developers", August 12, 2009
This review is from: Preventing Strategic Gridlock: Leading Over, Under & Around Organizational Jams to Achieve High Performance Results (Paperback)
I learned strategic planning from the usual textbooks and strategy consultants with established brand names. That was the easy part. Pamela S. Harper's book is not about any of that. It's about what it takes to develop strategies that have the best chance of succeeding during implementation. These are insights distilled from years of experience.
The book leads off with a description of the symptoms of stalled strategies that should be familiar to almost everyone who has spent a significant amount of time in large corporations. When I read this book, I was compelled to stop and think about why some of the strategic initiatives I've supported succeeded while others failed despite rigorous planning. This book brought the reasons into sharp relief.
Ms. Harper emphasizes that it's essential to gain active support from all of the key players that are impacted. This includes external influences such as alliance partners, wholesalers, regulatory agencies and the public. She explains how to do this in everyday language. She concludes by spelling out a sequence of practical steps that any change leader can follow with the confidence that he/she is doing everything possible to ensure success.
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