Dr. Blake Faulkner

Robert , Your points are important and very relevant as the pace of change continues to accelerate and has made both strategic planning and strategic thinking much more dynamic. Procuring information that is both relevant and reliable is important and the "intuition" you refer to is also important. I believe that it is increasingly important to step back from day to day activities on a frequent basis to assess strategically where the organization is going and where energies are being focused. We are seeing transformative change in higher education and taking time to step back and assess how our thinking… >>>

James, Good points. I have recently spent several days in strategic planning sessions in different regions of the U.S. and Canada. One additional point that I would add to your comments is that strategic thinking requires you to step back from the narrow operational focus that is required and an essential part of our daily work and success. Strategic thinking requires you to look more broadly at trends, relationships, connections between ideas, etc... . As technology increases both the productivity and pace of our daily lives I believe it is increasingly important that we step away periodically, quiet the mind,… >>>

Christiana, Agreed. Although I recently had an opportunity to spend some time with Dr. Gary Latham at the University of Toronto. Dr.Latham is one of the leading researchers in organizational psychology and he reiterated that what people truly strive for is to have a "voice" in the organization. That said his research showed that folks could live with the decision made as long as they know their voice was heard and their inputs were considered. Although people don't always agree with a decision, and may be disappointed, as long as you truly listen to their ideas and suggestions they will… >>>