Business Strategy: Craftsmanship

My brother is in management at a large financial firm but is as good at construction as any contractor. Whether it’s a deck, a finished basement or a sauna, he builds it perfectly. Likewise, my friend, John — an engineer — is a great woodworker. He builds grandfather clocks that Angela Merkel would be pleased to have in her foyer. If either of them built violins, Stradivarius would be in trouble. They’re true craftsmen, blending art and science into great finished products.

The term craftsmanship is less used today than in the past, but it’s well-suited for developing business strategy. The process of designing and building a grandfather clock and crafting strategy for a business have four striking similarities:

1. The Right Tools: A craftsman wouldn’t start a project without the right tools, the right people and a process. Crafting strategy has requirements as well. Put 10 brilliant people in a room without a methodology and tell them to come back with a strategy and you’ll rarely get good results.

2. Slow Down: Speed is the enemy of quality in this case. In our ADD world, CEOs sometimes think they can craft strategy in 30-second bursts between phone calls, tweets and e-mails. In crafting strategy, it’s important to disagree, argue, debate the future and search for answers to hard questions. The likelihood of crafting a winning strategy and a plan for execution in a one-day off-site is akin to remodeling your house between dinner and the 10 o’clock news.

3. Measure Twice, Cut Once: Crafting strategy and building a grandfather clock both require planning and execution. My woodworker friend would never just start cutting boards willy-nilly to see what he ended up with, but business leaders do. It’s as if they say, I’ll just keep randomly cutting and gluing wood until something materializes. Likewise, a master craftsman knows that great plans executed with a dull saw won’t produce quality. Planning and execution are of equal importance.

4. Build a Different House: If you use someone else’s plans to build a house, yours will look just like theirs. Same result with strategy. Crafting strategy is about being different from your competitors.

One reason people don’t use the word craftsmanship as frequently today is that automation has allowed for high quality without the need for human hands. Craftsmen were often woodworkers, metalworkers, jewelry makers and artists. Extrusion molding, lasers, plastic and robotic equipment have reduced the need for craftsmen in those areas. However, I have yet to see the machine that will replace an inquisitive CEO and his management team in devising a series of actions to build a sustainable advantage over their competitors. That requires craftsmanship.


Todd Ordal is President of Applied Strategy®. Todd helps CEOs achieve better financial results, become more effective leaders and sleep easier at night. He is a former CEO and has led teams as large as 7,000. Todd is the author of, Never Kick a Cow Chip On A Hot Day: Real Lessons for Real CEOs and Those Who Want To Be(Morgan James Publishing, 2016). Connect with Todd on LinkedIn, Twitter, call 303-527-0417 or email [email protected].

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