Business Ballistics

Culture does not eat strategy for breakfast

distasteful

Maybe someone has quoted Peter Drucker to you:

Culture eats strategy for breakfast.

It's pithy, but I don't like the jungle imagery. I like to think about business savagery in terms of war and ballistics.

Ballistics (from Greek βάλλειν ballein "to throw")

the science of mechanics that deals with the launching, flight, behavior, and effects of projectiles, especially bullets, gravity bombs, rockets, or the like; the science or art of designing and accelerating projectiles so as to achieve a desired performance. wikipedia

In the #BusinessBallistics scheme of things:

• Culture is Weight
• Strategy is Direction
• Tactics is Speed

Culture without Strategy is the same as a weighty projectile without direction; it's a lot of potential going nowhere.

Strategy without Tactics is the same as Direction without Speed. You may be pointed in the right direction, but you'll never reach your goal.

Tactics without Strategy is the same as Speed without Direction. You're as likely to shoot yourself in the foot as hit your target.

Tactics and Strategy without Culture is the same as Direction and Speed without Weight. You may hit your target, but with no impact.

Drucker's aphorism implies that Culture is more important than Strategy. #BusinessBallistics suggests a good response would be:

Strategy is the breakfast of champions.

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If your interests extend to theory and philosophy, please check out my other blog.

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