Strategic Architecture for Organizations? Why

¶ … strategic architecture for organizations?

Why or why not?

There is no one specific kind of strategic architecture that will be ideal for every organization. The architecture of the organization's leadership, the techniques used to motivate the organization's personnel, and the long and short-term strategy goals of the organization will vary, depending on the organization's mission and practical needs. All organizations need a sense of purpose and mission, a sense of connection that extends from the lowest levels of the organization to the highest levels of its leadership. However, an organization made up of many diffuse components, like an advertising organization, might require less top-down leadership to realize its mission of maximizing its creative potential, while a more cohesive organization that produces only one good, like an automotive company may thrive on a more authoritarian style of leadership.

The duration of long and short-term strategic goals will vary depending on the nature of the organization, and require a different strategic architecture of organizational planning. Organizations that produce a reliable seasonal product vs. organizations that produce a type of good or service where demand or consistency does not vary very much from month to month or year to year vs. organizations that make products dependant upon fickle consumer tastes will all have different strategic plans for the long and short-term. But even if the business cycle of production may alter, the company itself must still have some kind of strategic plan and architecture to support that plan of leadership, mission, motivation and planning, even if there is no single ideal strategic blueprint that will work for every organization.

Which is more important to the success of an organization, strategy or execution and why?

The instinctive response to this question is, of course, 'the execution' -- obviously, to do what works in the real world is more important than to have an ideal strategy that cannot be put into operation. However, it is also important to remember that merely going with one's gut instincts without a strategic plan for the long and short-term may result in an ineffective course of action and a disappointing result.