Strategy versus Tactics

Strategy is of paramount importance yet apparently difficult for most managers to clearly explain or understand.

The common view of 'strategy', and its counterpoint 'tactics', is that 'strategy is about the long-term, whilst tactics are about the short-term.

Inline with that view comes Tregos and Zimmerman who defined strategy as:

"A framework within which decisions are made which establish the nature and direction of the business."

The 'nature and direction of the business' is quite a 'top-level' and 'long-term-view' definition of strategy.

But viewing 'strategy' as either 'top-down', 'long-term' or 'regarding the nature and direction of the business' is cumbersome and obsolete.

Here's why:

My most favored view of strategy and tactics comes from the Theory of Constraints (TOC) which defines:

• Strategy – as the answer to the question 'what for' (objective, purpose)
• Tactics – as the answer to the question 'how' (process, actions)

This posits both strategy and tactics as existing together at each and every level of the organization, from top to bottom – not just 'strategy at the top and tactics at the bottom'.

Watch a short video of Eli Goldratt explaining his approach to strategy and tactics:

See my post on the TOC Strategy and Tactics Tree.

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