In this article I will show how knowing multi-ple business paradigms and strategic patterns can open up a world of opportunity for many companies.

Many organizations starve in the midst of plenty because their paradigms in use make it difficult to recognize and take advantage of opportunities.

Business can be viewed as a complex strategic game. Being good at strategy games hinges on the ability to see, recognize, and respond to patterns, much like chess players do.

Many knowledge work-ers routinely use patterns: Building architects and soft-ware developers study design patterns, and know when to use, or not to use, a particular pattern. Doctors use very sophisti-cated patterns to match the symptoms of a pa-tient to a medical condition. Service technicians rely on patterns and procedures to identify and correct problems. Military strategists also know and use patterns.

Among business managers and leaders, thinking in terms of patterns is much less common. The idea of systematically collecting and learning use-ful paradigms and patterns, is even more rare.

This is slowly changing. There is an emerging ideal of the business-scholar, the next generation business leaders, who will not just use new para-digms, but who will be paradigm transcendent, able to choose among multiple paradigms, select-ing the one most useful to solve a particular problem.

The Business Strategy NewsletterIssue 3-2009

The Tempo! newsletter contains supporting material for Tempo!, a business strategy book written by Henrik Mårtensson

The Tempo! newsletter is published by HM MediaTech.

Email: self@henrikmartensson.orgPhone: +46 708 56 23 65Twitter: @KallokainSkype: rubyist

© 2009 by Henrik Mårtensson

Tempo!

Tempo!SupplementCan be read stand-alone

Finding Strategic Opportunities

– Why many companies starve in the midst of plenty, and how you can avoid their mistakes

By Henrik Mårtensson

Let’s begin with a common scenario: A com-pany has done well for itself over a long period of time, but the past few years competition has increased and profit margins have dropped. On top of that, demand for the company’s prod-ucts has waned.

What can the top level management do?

Most companies use the paradigms established by Frederick Taylor’s Scientific Manage-ment. That means they strive to use econom-ics of scale, and have the hierarchical struc-tures and narrow spans of control associated with Theory X management.

Since the problem is economic, management quite naturally look for an economic solution. Like almost everyone else, the company uses Cost Accounting. The Cost Accounting solu-tion is clear: It is all about costs. Revenue is down, so costs must be cut.

Management reluctantly does what it has to do: People are let go.

The Scientific Management paradigm was devel-oped during a time when markets were expand-ing. If it could be manufactured, it could be sold.

Of course there could be tough competition at times, but the main problem was to satisfy ever growing markets.

Factory workers were often poorly educated, and came from diverse ethnic and cultural back-grounds. This was dealt with by specialization. Managers were taught to command and control. Taylor was the quintessential Theory X manager. He equated lack of education with lack of intelli-gence, and believed workers were to dumb and lazy to organize their own work. He believed workers must be tightly controlled and that high standards must be enforced.

Today, we see Taylor’s ideas reflected in strictly hierarchical organizations, extrinsic reward sys-tems, and very tight command and control sys-tems.

From this point of view, there is indeed little that can be done when profits go down other than cutting operating expenses.

2

Profits shrink!

Scientific Management

Cost Accounting

Reduce Operating Expenses

Fire People

Primary

Lean Manufacturing offers a big step for-ward. Lean is a system that can beat mass pro-duction systems. It does this by minimizing waste.

Most organizations that “go Lean” try to do so by implementing Lean practices on the factory floor only. That is good and well, but these companies miss three important points:

• Lean relies on everyone in the organization contributing ideas for improvements, and taking responsibility for implementing. This is possible only if management makes a delib-erate shift from Theory X to Theory Y.

• Lean is not a mass production system. Cost Accounting is not a valid accounting system when using Lean. Companies that go Lean must replace Cost Accounting with an ac-counting model better adapted to Lean prin-ciples. For example, overhead allocation and counting inventory as assets are not accept-able in Lean organizations, because it under-mines the ability to make correct decisions.

• Strategy concerns everyone with manage-ment responsibilities in a Lean company. De-cisions are made at the top, but the entire

organization is involved in providing top man-agement with information before decisions are made. After a strategy has been set, a formal deployment method, Hoshin Kanri, is used to deploy the strategy throughout the company and ensure that everyone knows what role they play in implementing the strategy.

Lean provides managers with a range of options for reducing investment (including inventory). This frees up capital, and can improve an organiza-tions financial health without cost cutting. Part of the Lean philosophy is to ensure that a company never has excessive costs in the first place.

Lean emphasizes Management By Means (MBM), that is, focusing on process and process im-provement, rather than Management By Results (MBR) which is the most common method to-day. MBM is a great step forward because it en-ables managers and employees to be proactive, and actually do something to improve their own situation, and that of their company.

Lean uses a hierarchical organization, and the focus is on internal improvement. Lean is power-ful, but still leaves many possibilities untapped.

! 3

Lean offers many problem solving tools and meth-ods. The most common mistake when implementing

Lean is the belief that you get Lean just by starting to use the tools and practices.

The key is to understand how to behave to be Lean. Tools and practices are im-

portant, but all Lean tools can be replaced. It is the behaviors, how the tools are used, that determine if a company is Lean. Behavior changes have an order of importance:

1. Top level executives

2. Middle managers

3. Project and team leaders

4. Other employees

When new strategies are implemented in Lean com-panies, all executives and managers are required to write down how the new strategy affects them and their work. This is part of the strategy deployment process. I recommend you use this technique when first going Lean.

Profits shrink!

Lean

Respect for people

Autonomation

Lean Accounting

Kaizen

Seven Wastes

Five Why

Poka Yoke

Kaikaku

Hoshin Kanri (Strategy

Deployment)

Reduce Inventory

Primary

The Theory Of Constraints (TOC) is a management philosophy based on the insight that business organizations are systems, and a system has only one, or a few, constraints that limit its performance at any one moment in time.

Like Lean, TOC has several tools for dealing with internal constraints. These tools include Drum-Buffer-Rope, a production scheduling system, Replenishment, a distribution system, Critical Chain, a project scheduling system, and a powerful five step improvement process.

From a business strategy point of view, the greatest value of TOC is that it shows how to find and eliminate constraints even if they are external to the company itself! That is, TOC can be used very aggressively, to capture market share. There are two tools for this: Strategy & Tactics Trees (S&T), and The Logical Thinking Process (TLTP).

There are libraries of pre-made S&T Trees covering how to deal with commonly occur-ring problems.

TLTP is a set of tools for solving complex problems, like doing gap analysis, developing a business strategy, and developing project plans. A major strength is that TLTP is an integrated tool set, which eliminates the (very common) gap between creating a strategy and imple-menting it.

A (beginner) TOC company might look at in-creasing Throughput using the currently available resources. This will enable the company to drop prices in selected market segments, making up for lower margins by increasing market share.

A more advanced TOC company would identify constraints in their customer’s business models, and use this knowledge to create mafia offers, offers that are so good customers just can’t re-fuse them. Such offers may involve involve using TOC tools to improve accuracy of delivery, ena-bling customers to have smaller inventories. Many other solutions are possible, depending on what problems the customers have that the TOC company can help solve.

Some companies have had great success using TOC and Lean in combination with statistical methods, like Six Sigma.

The Logical Thinking Process (TLTP) is the most powerful tool in the TOC arsenal. Unfortunately, it is also the one least used. Most companies fo-cus on using the tools that focus inwards, on im-proving internal processes.

While improving internal processes is certainly a good thing, using TOC for this purpose only, leaves a gap in a company’s business strategy that can be exploited. Fortunately, this gap can be closed.

4

Profits shrink!

Theory Of Constraints

Throughput Accounting

Process Of Ongoing

ImprovementDrum-Buffer-Rope

(Production planning)

Critical Chain (Project Scheduling)

Replenishment (Distribution)

Strategy & Tactics Trees The Logical

Thinking Process

ROI Equation

Increase Throughput

Primary

Strategic Navigation, or Constraints Management, has all the power of TOC, but adds a powerful strategic system, Maneuver Conflict.

The U.S. Marine Corps use strategic and or-ganizational ideas derived from Maneuver Conflict. Imagine what it would be like to compete against the U.S. Marine Corps in the business arena. That is what it is like to com-pete against a Strategic Navigation company.

To give you a basis for comparison: Most com-panies have strategic cycles a year long. A stra-tegic Navigation company can reduce the stra-tegic cycle time to a week regardless of its size.

Maneuver Conflict adds a profound under-standing of strategic principles, a highly effec-tive leadership model, a powerful model for decision loops, tools for information gathering, brainstorming, and strategic analysis.

Companies that implement Maneuver Conflict fully are built around a central idea, a Noble Vision, which provides direction for the com-pany, and attracts customers.

Maneuver Conflict also offers an organizational model that outperforms the traditional hierar-

chical model used in most companies. Maneuver Conflict advocates network organization. This en-ables strategic and tactical response times on par with military organizations, rescue organizations, etc.

A Strategic Navigation company would have pre-made plans for not getting into trouble in the first place, contingency plans for wooing cus-tomers, old and new, and plans for growing mar-ket share by disabling or even eliminating1 com-petitors.

There would also be plans for how to quickly retreat and regroup if necessary, perhaps closing a network node down, and using the freed up resources to start new nodes for competing in new markets.

The core of the company is its values, so there is no need to stick with a core business.

At the highest level, Strategic Navigation is para-digm transcendent. It functions as an overarching meta-paradigm, encompassing TOC, Lean, Six Sigma, and any other paradigm. Strategic Naviga-tors can shift paradigm at will, selecting a para-digm, or combination of paradigms, most suitable for a particular purpose.

! 5

1 In a business sense, not a U.S. Marine Corps sense.

Profits shrink!

Theory Of Constraints

Strategic Navigation (Constraints

Management)

Crawford Slip

Strategic Principles

Interaction/Isolation principle

OODA Decision

LoopGame Plans

Cheng/Ch'i

Focus on pivot points

Compress own time, extend opponent's

time

Reduce own friction, increase

opponent'sDivide the opposition

Physical Mental

Moral

METT-TC(Strategic Analysis)

Commander's Intent

IOHAI Leadership

Noble Vision

Mission Orientation

Throughput Accounting

Process Of Ongoing

Improvement

Drum-Buffer-Rope (Production planning)

Critical Chain (Project Scheduling)

Replenishment (Distribution)

Strategy & Tactics Trees

The Logical Thinking Process

ROI Equation

Increase Throughput

Primary

The 36 Stratagems is a collection of stratagems originally developed for war, but just as useful in business. Don’t be fooled by the names, which are translated from Chinese. The 36 Stratagems are serious business.

A company can use the stratagems as powerful idea generators. When working with the stratagems, one quickly realizes that cutting cost, the primary option in a Scientific Man-agement company, is only one implementation of one of the 36 Stratagems, The stratagem of injuring yourself. You have 35 other stratagems to choose from, plus investment reduction

techniques of Lean, and the productivity en-hancement techniques of TOC.

Using Strategic Navigation as the basic frame-work, and the 36 Stratagems as an idea genera-tor, scenarios where cutting cost by firing people become a last resort, not the only escape route.

You can’t shrink your way to greatness, and at this point, there is no longer a reason to try. An important point is that if you use Strategic Navi-gation, you will have the brainpower of your entire organization available to help you develop strate-gies and solve problems.

6

Profits shrink!

36 Stratagems

Yin-Yang Polarity

To Catch something, first

let it go

Exchange a brick for a jade

Invite your enemy onto the

roof, then remove the

ladder

Lure the tiger down from the

mountain

Befriend the distant enemy to attack one

nearby

Kill with a borrowed knife

Besiege wei to rescue Zhao

The stratagem of sowing discord

Trouble the water to catch

the fish

Remove the firewood from under the pot

Shut the door to capture the thief

Replace the beams with

rotten timbers

The stratagem of the beautiful

woman

Beat the grass to startle the snake

Loot a burning house

Sometimes running away is the best strategy

Seize the opportunity to lead the sheep

away

Feign madness, but keep your

balance

Go With the Flow

Continuous Change

Watch the fire on the other shore

Let the plum tree wither in place of the

peach

The stratagem of the open city

gates Await the exhausted

enemy at your ease

Exchange the role of guest for

that of host

Borrow the road to conquer Gao

Shed your skin like the golden

cikada

The stratagem of injuring yourself

Borrow a corpse for the soul's

return

Indirect Action

Point at the mulberry but

curse the locustClamor in the east, attack to

the west

Openly repair the walkway,

secretly march to Chen Chang

Fool the emperor and cross the sea

Create something out

of nothing

Hide a dagger behind a smile

Deck the tree with bogus blossoms

To catch the bandits, capture

their leader

The stratagem of linking

stratagems

In a modern business organization there may be thousands of people actively supporting their management in developing new strategies and making tactical plans.

The strengths and weaknesses of a paradigm can only be seen when viewed through a dif-ferent paradigm. Therefore, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of Scientific Man-agement requires learning a different way of thinking. This is difficult. It literally requires you to grow new neural structures in your brain.

On the up side, if you have done it once, it be-comes easier to do it a second time, even eas-ier to do it a third...

Using strategic Navigation as a meta-paradigm, you can continue to add new paradigms, new solution spaces, or orientations to the ones you already have. Each new paradigm will not only provide you with new sets of possible solu-tions, it will also improve your understanding of the paradigms you already do know.

In the picture above I have added in all the paradigms and thought frameworks discussed in this article. I have also added others, like Systems Thinking, a couple of user interaction

design methods, Statistical Process Control, and neuroscience.

All of these systems of thought offer possible solutions to the problem originally posed: What shall we do when profits drop?

Some of the thought models have solutions that are directly applicable, most are pathways leading to solutions. There are so many pathways to a solution in the picture that we can no longer discern individual paths. We have replaced the problem of inventing a solution with the far more pleasant problem of selecting a solution pathway.

Most of the solutions are quite invisible to a per-son proficient in only a single paradigm. That is the reason why single-paradigm companies don’t cut it anymore: Globalization inexorably moves us toward hyper-competition. In a hyper-competitive world, the winners will be the or-ganizations able to find solutions where others only see problems. Finding the solutions will, more and more often require being able to de-velop cross-disciplinary, paradigm transcendent solutions.

! 7

Profits shrink!

Scientific Management

Lean

Theory Of Constraints

Strategic Navigation (Constraints

Management)

36 Stratagems

User Interaction

Design

Systems Thinking

Change Pattern

Total Quality Management

Statistical Process Control

Neuroscience

Prime Process (Sales Process)

Stickiness

Sway

Brain Rules

Process Control Charts

Histogram or stem-and-leaf

plot

Check sheet

Pareto chart

Cause-and-effect

diagram

Defect concentration diagram

Scatter diagram

14 Points for Management

Create constancy of purpose towards

improvement

Adopt the new philosophy

Cease dependence on inspection to achieve quality

End the practice of awarding business

on the basis of price tag. Instead,

minimize total cost.

Constantly improve the systems of

production and service

Institute training on the job

Institute leadership

Drive out fear

Break down barriers between

departments

Eliminate slogans, exhortations and

targetsEliminate work

standards (quotas)

Remove barriers to pride in

workmanship for workers

Institute a vigorous program of

education and self-improvement

Put everybody in the company to

work with accomplishing the

transformation

Remove barriers to pride in

workmanship for managers

Eliminate management by

(numerical)objective

Deadly Diseases (Anti-Patterns)

Lack of constancy of purpose

Emphasis on short-term profits

Evaluation of performance, merit

rating or annual review

Mobility of management; job

hopping

Management by use only of visible (quantifiable)

figures

Excessive medical costs

Excessive costs of liability

System of Profound Knowledge

Appreciation for

systems

Knowledge of variation

Theory of knowledge

Psychology

PDCA

Kotter MethodArgyris

method

Fear Less, et al

System Dynamics

System Archetypes

Accidental Adversaries

Balancing Loop

Drifting Goals

EscalationFixes That

Fail

Growth and Underinves

tment

Limits to Success

Reinforcing Loop

Shifting the Burden

Shifting the Burden to

the Intervenor

Success to the

Successful

Tragedy of the

Commons

Causal Loop

Diagrams

Stocks & Flow

Diagrams

Yin-Yang Polarity

To Catch something, first

let it go

Exchange a brick for a jade Invite your

enemy onto the roof, then

remove the ladder

Lure the tiger down from the

mountain

Befriend the distant enemy to attack one

nearby

Kill with a borrowed knife

Besiege wei to rescue Zhao

The stratagem of sowing discord

Trouble the water to catch

the fish

Remove the firewood from under the pot

Shut the door to capture the thief

Replace the beams with

rotten timbers

The stratagem of the beautiful

woman

Beat the grass to startle the snakeLoot a burning

house

Sometimes running away is the best strategy

Seize the opportunity to lead the sheep

away

Feign madness, but keep your

balance

Go With the Flow

Continuous Change

Watch the fire on the other shore

Let the plum tree wither in place of the

peach

The stratagem of the open city

gates

Await the exhausted

enemy at your ease

Exchange the role of guest for

that of host

Borrow the road to conquer Gao

Shed your skin like the golden

cikada

The stratagem of injuring yourself

Borrow a corpse for the soul's

return

Indirect Action

Point at the mulberry but

curse the locustClamor in the east, attack to

the west

Openly repair the walkway,

secretly march to Chen Chang

Fool the emperor and cross the sea

Create something out

of nothing

Hide a dagger behind a smile

Deck the tree with bogus blossoms

To catch the bandits, capture

their leader

The stratagem of linking

stratagems

Goal-Driven Design

Quality Function Deployment

(QFD)

Crawford Slip

Strategic Principles

Interaction/Isolation principle

OODA Decision

Loop

Game Plans

Cheng/Ch'iFocus on

pivot points

Compress own time, extend opponent's

time

Reduce own friction, increase

opponent's

Divide the opposition

Physical

Mental

Moral

METT-TC(Strategic Analysis)Commander's

IntentIOHAI

Leadership

Mission Orientation

Respect for people

Autonomation

Lean Accounting

Kaizen

Seven Wastes

Five Why

Poka Yoke

Kaikaku Hoshin Kanri (Strategy

Deployment)

Throughput Accounting

Process Of Ongoing

Improvement

Drum-Buffer-Rope (Production planning)

Critical Chain (Project Scheduling)

Replenishment (Distribution)

Strategy & Tactics Trees

The Logical Thinking Process

ROI Equation

Increase Throughput

Reduce Inventory

Cost Accounting

Reduce Operating Expenses

Fire People

Primary

PrimaryPrimary

Solution Path ExamplesHere are examples of paths that might lead to solutions to the problem posed on page 2.

Lean Manufacturing• Use Kaizen meetings to collect improvement

ideas using the Seven Wastes as guidelines. Use Five Why or Ishikawa diagrams to find the root causes of problems. Use this infor-mation to drive down investment and im-prove quality.

Theory Of Constraints• Use Drum-Buffer-Rope to improve the pro-

duction process: Improve throughput, reduce inventory, improve due date performance.

• Use Replenishment to reduce inventory in the distribution chain and to improve due date performance.

• Use the Process Of Ongoing Improvement (POOGI) to identify the system constraint and improve its performance.

• Use S&T templates to find solutions to the problems that reduce sales.

• Use The Logical Thinking Process to create a model of the customer’s problems and work out solutions to them. Create mafia offers and market the solutions.

Constraints Management• Use Crawford Slip brainstorming to engage

the entire company in pinpointing problems and finding solutions. Make a complete stra-tegic and tactical analysis/synthesis using The Logical Thinking Process.

• Use strategic principles and The Logical Thinking Process to drive a wedge between competitors and customers, then step in and fill the gap.

• Build a series of interlocking strategies and products that help each other. (For example: Apple uses their computers, iPhone/iPod, and iTunes/AppStore to create a unified whole stronger than the parts.)

• Improve the decision process by instituting group decision making: The Analytic Hierar-chy Process (AHP), Six Thinking Hats, the Schulze Method, or similar.

36 Stratagems• Use the 36 stratagems to generate ideas. De-

velop the most promising ideas into strategies and tactical plans using The Logical Thinking process.

User Interaction Design• Use Quality Function Deployment (QFD) to

develop a new product or improve an existing product in order to take market share.

• Use Goal-Driven Design to produce software focused on delivering value to the customer.

Statistical Process Control / Six Sigma• Use statistical analysis to find problems in the

production process. Then use root cause analy-sis to find the causes, and remove them.

Systems Thinking• Check if there is a system archetype explaining

why profits are dropping. If there is, follow the prescription for solving the problem. Use TLTP to work out the details of the solution.

• Build a systems model from scratch using sys-tem dynamics. Use the model to develop a solu-tion.

Neuroscience• Use John Medina’s Brain Rules to design a more

creative and innovative workplace. Brainstorm a solution.

This is of course only a small sample of solution paths. A generic path can be tailored into a more specific solution once more details are known about the problem and its context.

A major obstacle to implementing these ideas is that a ready made solution, i.e. cut head count, is appealing because of its simplicity, even if it has severe long term consequences. (See Business Dynamics by John Sterman for information about long term consequences for the company reduc-ing head count.)

TOC’s TLTP and System Thinking’s Causal Loop diagrams make it possible to model the complex cause-effect chains set in motion by many man-agement decisions. Systems modeling is becom-ing indispensable to modern business organiza-tions.

8

References and Acknow-ledgementsBooks:• Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming• The Logical Thinking Process by William Dett-

mer• Strategic Navigation by William Dettmer• Punished by Rewards by Alfie Kohn• The Toyota Way by Jeffrey Liker• Brain Rules by John Medina• Introduction to Statistical Quality Control by

Douglas C. Montgomery• Tempo! by Henrik Mårtensson• Managing the Design Factory by Donald

Reinertsen• The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge• Business Dynamics by John Sterman

The following photos are from stock.xchng:

• Business, Image 1198416 98477822

Tempo! SupplementsThese publications are all available on Scribd.

From Character to Vision is a practical guide to developing personal and corporate vision statements. I show step-by-step how I articu-late the principles describing my character, and the behaviors I want the principles to support. From there I move on to creating a vision statement.

I also show how an Intermediate Objective Map can be used to link the vision to a mis-

In Vision, Mission, Principles And the Human Brain I discussed the basics of creating vision and mission statements. This time I will show how I developed my own vision statement.

When I went into business as a management consultant, I was careful to develop a vision statement for myself. This was some time ago, and I have changed. Therefore it was appropri-ate to take the time to reevaluate myself, my principles, vision and mission.

Developing effective vision and mission statements must begin with expressing basic character. I had to think hard about what kind of person I am, and then answer the question: “What kind of a person do I want to be?”

Anyone can put together a list of nice principles and values. Unfor-tunately, by itself, such a list is worthless.

To begin with, for reasons discussed in Vision, Mission, Principles And the Human Brain, I want a core based on principles. What principles?

The principles I chose to define the me I want to become are:

Integrity

Curiosity

The Business Strategy NewsletterIssue 2-2009

The Tempo! newsletter contains supporting material for Tempo!, a business strategy book written by Henrik Mårtensson

The Tempo! newsletter is published by HM MediaTech.

Email:! self@henrikmartensson.orgPhone: ! +46 708 56 23 65Twitter:!@KallokainSkype:! rubyist

© 2009 by Henrik Mårtensson

Tempo!From Character to Vision– A PracticalGuide

By Henrik Mårtensson

Tempo!SupplementCan be read stand-alone

sion. Finally, I derive three simple rules to guide everyday behavior in line with principles, vision and mission.

This article is a follow up to Vision, Mission, Prin-ciples, And the Human Brain. Vision, Mission... delved into theory. From Character to Vision shows how to apply the ideas in practice.

Vision, Mission, Principles, And the Human Brain shows how to create vision and mission state-ments that inspire, excite, and provide direction for future diversification and growth.

There are several sample vision and mission statements from successful, purposeful compa-nies.

There is also an account of a battle between a purposeful organization with a vision I helped develop, and a corporation with little vision be-yond greed.

How to use Business Battle Maps with Strategic Navigation describes how to create simple, yet

When John F. Kennedy said that the United States would put a man on the Moon, and bring him safely back before the end of the 1960’s, he presented a strong, unifying vision.

I was only six years old at the time of the first Moon landing, but I still remember the awe I felt when I saw Neil Armstrong standing on the Moon. It was the greatest adventure man-kind has embarked upon to date, and it began with a vision statement.

The vision of a man on the Moon energized the floundering U.S. space program, but that is

only a small part of what it accomplished.

The vision united a nation, and it drove the development of technologies neces-sary to accomplish the goal, including developing lightweight electronics.

NASA did not invent the Integrated Circuit (IC), but the organization was an early adopter, and it funded research work at MIT, and spurred the imagination of scientists and engineers.

NASA has also been a driving force in the devel-opment of satellites, which are necessary for our modern communications systems. Would they have been able to do this without the prestige, power and energy generated by the Apollo space program? Maybe, but I believe not.

More importantly, our paradigms, the ideas we have about how our world works would be quite different.

The Business Strategy NewsletterIssue 1-2009

The Tempo! newsletter contains supporting material for Tempo!, a business strategy book written by Henrik Mårtensson

The Tempo! newsletter is published by HM MediaTech.

Email:! self@henrikmartensson.orgPhone: ! +46 708 56 23 65Twitter:!@KallokainSkype:! rubyist

© 2009 by Henrik Mårtensson

Tempo!

Tempo!SupplementCan be read stand-alone

Vision,

Mission,

Principles,

And the

Human BrainBy Henrik Mårtensson

How to use Business Battle Maps with Strategic Navigation

Henrik Mårtensson

8 July, 2009

Abstract

This paper proposes that having a battlefield map is as important to business strategistsand change agents as it is to military strategists and commanders.

A network battle map is easy tomake, and can help determine system boundaries,and serve as input for gap analysis. It is also a valuable presentation aid, and usefulwhen looking for solutions to complex problems.

This paper outlines how to use network battle maps with Strategic Navigation, afast paced business strategy method combining Maneuver Conflict and The LogicalThinking Process from The Theory of constraints.

! 9

useful, network battle maps, and integrate them in the Strategic Navigation planning process.

There are also notes on how to use battle maps with 36 Stratagems, an idea generator that has proven useful for business strategy creation.

The Kallokain Blog

At the Kallokain blog you will find hundreds of articles about management, strategy, Theory Of Constraints, Lean, and related topics.

The Kallokain Youtube Channel

The Kallokain Youtube channel is dedicated to business excellence through Systems Thinking.

About Henrik Mårtensson

Henrik Mårtensson is a management consultant and business advisor.

Henrik has worked for Ericsson Hewlett-Packard, Volvo 3P, Volvo IT, Wirelesscar, FMV, Sca-nia, Astra-Zeneca and many other companies.

Henrik is a prolific writer, with more than 250 published magazine articles, and several technical manuals to his credit. His blog, Kallokain, was nominated for NOOP’s list of most influential bloggers in 2008. Henrik is also a member of Ag-ileZone’s Most Valued Blogger program.

Henrik’s videocasts about management on the Kallokain channel at YouTube have been viewed more than 30,000 times.

You can contact Henrik by

phone: +46 708 56 23 65email: self@henrikmartensson.orgSkype: rubyistTwitter: @Kallokain

or, visit Henrik’s web sites:

www.henrikmartensson.org

kallokain.blogspot.com

www.youtube.com/user/kallokain

10