210 50 TOPEXECUTIVECOACHES
Operational innovation has two signal virtues. It transforms organiza-
tional performance to an astonishing degree, and it creates an environment
for people working in the organization that is much more fulfilling and en-
riching. These are the reasons why I am passionate about operational innova-
tion and why business leaders should be too.
Joel Barker
Strategic Exploration
T
oo many CEOs and top executives give little thought to an aspect of
strategic thinking that exists between intuition and strategic planning.
Sure of their personal judgment, they leap from intuition to planning without
explor ing the terrain of the new direction. In my work, I coach leaders to add
a layer of thinking before they start their planning. I call it strategic explo-
ration. Done properly, it will give them early information about potential long-
term consequences. Strategic exploration occurs before the planning process
begins and thus alerts the leaders and the organization to those dreaded unin-
tended consequences. I believe this added capability to explore the future will
be a key measure of great leadership in the twenty-first century.
A key part of strategic exploration is the understanding of paradigms
within which an organization must compete. When a paradigm shift occurs,
an organization that is dominating its industry can become a second-tier
player almost overnight. Consider the way Motorola’s strategy not to develop
and release a digital cell phone in 1994 opened the door for Nokia. Motorola’s
Jo el Ba rker is an independent scholar and futurist. He is
known around the world as “the Paradigm Man” because
of his v ideos on paradigms. He a lso was one of the first
corporate educators, starting in 1982, to emphasize the
importance of vision for all organizations. He is presently
studying complex ecological systems for their lessons
about innovation and collaboration. He has just finished a
new book on twenty-first-century technologies. He can
be reached by e-mail at [email protected].