Is Strategy Dead?

Hi Diego,

I think a business needs a strategy, the questions that arise is however, to what extent? I think an agile business still needs some guidance on what direction the organization wants to position themselves. I think a strategy/mission is an essential part of a company, hence missing out on a clear direction seems not efficient. The strategy sets the path and being agile perhaps influence the way you walk the path, but the direction stays the same.  One could argue that being 'truly agile' is a strategy on its own!

Think about how much more a strategy would be worth if it is empirically validated Sprint by Sprint.

Think about how much more a strategy would be worth if it is empirically validated Sprint by Sprint.

How this can be done and in which way? For example, a Scrum Team can validate a business strategy?

Let's say a strategy is: "grow in B2C market". Then the Scrum team can release some early attempt to the consumer market and check how it resonates, quickly, instead of applying the strategy for 2 years and only then checking it.

Let's say a strategy is: "grow in B2C market". Then the Scrum team can release some early attempt to the consumer market and check how it resonates, quickly, instead of applying the strategy for 2 years and only then checking it.

If the market changes you need a new strategy. So, Why is valuable a strategy that depends on the market?

If you have a general strategy, which doesn´t depend on the market, the type of strategy which can be summarized in "sell more" or "win". Why is valuable a general strategy?

Try thinking about it this way. What use would a strategy be if it didn’t change to reflect actual business conditions?

No matter how general strategic planning is, it should be no less subject to inspection and adaptation as any other level of planning. Inspection cycles may be longer and data sets less granular, but empirical process control still ought to be in place.