Complex challenges are all around us they impact our companies, our communities, and our planet. This complexity and the emergence of networks is changing the practice of strategic management. Today's leaders need to understand how to design and guide effective collaborations to accelerate innovation and change collaborations that cross boundaries both inside and outside organizations.
Strategic Doing offers an important guide to navigating this new world. Designed to be practical, the book introduces ten skills that anyone can learn. The skills have been successfully adopted by executives, managers, university administrators, government officials, students, community leaders, and others from a variety of disciplines.
The book's authors are both practitioners and teachers of Strategic Doing, helping others to master the skills. Solidly based in research, Strategic Doing explains each of the skills in detail and clearly illustrates how individual skills are used as part of an effective collaboration.
Filled with compelling case studies, the book provides guidance about how to get started using the ten skills and illustrates how a particular skill was critical in a targeted situation. The authors also reveal how the skills can be combined to amplify their effectiveness, and more generally, how to use the skills in a wide range of situations.
Strategic Doing outlines a new discipline of leadership strategy specifically designed for open, loosely-connected networks.
From the Back Cover
Praise for Strategic Doing
"Shared leadership--not the all-powerful individual--will be the key to thriving in these new times. This book. . . explains what it really looks like on the ground. . . .A valuable resource for anyone looking to get to the 'next level, ' as well as those trying to help them."
--Marshall Goldsmith, Thinkers 50 #1 Executive Coach; only two-time #1 Leadership Thinker
"Today's competitive marketplace demands more than just executing a plan. We need to form active partnerships incorporating people with diverse expertise to solve complex problems. The authors present a practical guide to doing just that."
--Greg Satell, author of Mapping Innovation: A Playbook for Navigating a Disruptive Age
"I've been investigating how organizations' working environments influence a group's ability to achieve their goals for two decades. . . .This book provides insight into the practices and behaviors that help build high-performing groups. Readable and practical guidance for every organization and team."
--Amy C. Edmondson, Harvard Business School, author of The Fearless Organization
"Provides a roadmap, along with specific examples, for every community to thrive in the new economy."
--Victor Hwang, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, author of The Rainforest: The Secret to Building the Next Silicon Valley
"Most of us like the idea of collaborating with others, but we don't do it. . . .So, are there rules for collaborating? The answer is yes, and this valuable book sets them out clearly and succinctly. An important contribution."
--Robert Reich, University of California at Berkeley, former US Secretary of Labor
"The missing element in most strategic initiatives is a successful collaborative approach. Strategic Doing adds to the agile strategy toolset available to managers who drive for results."
--Mark DeLuzio, President and CEO, Lean Horizons Consulting, Shingo Prize Academy inductee, author of Turn Waste into Wealth
"It's no longer about individual talent development, it's about our ability as leaders to coach a team to be agile, recognize opportunities, and adjust the course appropriately. . . .If you're talking about collaboration, this book provides a foundation."
--Ben Amaba, Chief Innovation Officer, IBM/Industrial Sector, Watson and Cloud Platform
About the Author
EDWARD MORRISON is the original developer of Strategic Doing and founder of the Purdue Agile Strategy Lab. The Lab emphasizes the strategic value of collaboration, open innovation, and network-based models in today's global economy.
SCOTT HUTCHESON is Associate Director of the Purdue Agile Strategy Lab. Scott has been engaged by nearly 400 industry, public sector, higher education, and nonprofit clients in thirty U.S. states and internationally.
ELIZABETH NILSEN is Senior Program Director of the Purdue Agile Strategy Lab. With a background in nonprofit management and higher education, she guides the expansion of the Lab's programming and partnerships.
JANYCE FADDEN is Director of Strategic Engagement for the College of Business at the University of North Alabama. She has held leadership positions at Honeywell, General Signal, and Danaher Corporation.
NANCY FRANKLIN is Principal of Franklin Solutions, working with leaders to facilitate strategic initiatives. Nancy has led partnerships at Penn State, Virginia Tech, Indiana State, and IBM/ROLM.