View the team’s strategic intent through a talent lens

ESTIMATED READING TIME – 1:30

Learning goals for this activity

– Know why it is important to view your team’s strategic intent through a talent lens
– Identify how to frame your strategy in people terms

Why it’s important to view the team’s strategic intent through a talent lens

Too often, an organization or team’s strategy can be abstract or highly technical. Yet it’s your people who will execute this strategic intent, so it’s important that they can see themselves and their endeavors as directly supporting it.

To frame your strategy in people terms, you must:

  1. Translate strategic intent and priorities into key activities.
  2. Determine individual characteristics that support each activity.
  3. Determine team characteristics that support each activity.

Let’s see how following these steps can help you look at your strategic intent through a talent lens:

1. Translate strategic intent and priorities into key activities

Review the stated strategy for your team or organization. For each major component, ask yourself which aspect of human activity is required to successfully realize its intent. For example, does the strategic priority require innovation and working successfully in ambiguous situations? Does it require significant teamwork and efforts to increase employee loyalty and participation?

2. Determine individual characteristics that support each activity 

For each strategic activity, identify the characteristics that are required to successfully deliver upon it. For example, if the strategic intent is to reduce the percentage of late orders shipped, a contributing team member would have strengths in the areas of precision, anticipating problems, and creating structure.

3. Determine team characteristics that support each activity

Most strategic priorities will be too large and complex for any individual to achieve on their own. That’s why it’s important to determine which characteristics composite teams must possess to adequately pursue each component. For example, if an organization wants to improve its employee loyalty to boost long-term retention outcomes, it will require a team that is naturally collaborative, empathetic, and development-oriented.