The Problem with the process most companies use to identify a strategy doesn’t lead to a clear, compelling plan. The problems to be solved aren’t fully defined, and the process isn’t rigorous enough to effectively debate the validity of a strategy. The solution is create an atmosphere that allows your team to identify, evaluate and select compelling strategies and drive accountability and commitment for success.

Choosing the right objective (s) is the first crucial step. A strategy is then created to accomplish that objective. If the objective is growth (it usually is but not always) then what are the options available to us? build the next big thing, growth through acquisition or be acquired. Maybe bundle products and services in an innovative way or leverage your supply chain.

Maybe you’re choosing to grow through customer extension strategies and your strategy is to scale your sales force or to expand your marketing efforts. Once again maybe you’ve decided to buy customers through acquisition or forming partnerships. Microsoft has fewer than 100,000 employees, and reaches billions of individuals and millions of businesses and delivers technical advice, products, contracting, deployment, and services. It achieves this through a large ecosystem of hundreds of thousands of partners that, in turn, employ millions of people committed to delivering Microsoft-based solutions. In fact, Microsoft state’s publicly that 95% of its revenues come through partner relationships.