In my daily reading I found a study that analyses the role of the Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) in large companies. It is an old study (2014), but it is perfect for establishing the debate on the role and place of the strategy manager within the organisational chart.
But before we go into the study, let's start at the beginning.
Who is responsible for strategy in a company?
As with many of the main functions uk telegram number within a company, its place in the organizational chart and its importance vary depending on the size of the company and its area orientation.
From the beginning, most of the company's vital functions fall to the founding team and then these are distributed and many end up being diluted as the company grows.
But let's think about a medium-sized company. Which department/position is responsible for defining the company's strategy? Who is responsible for guiding the company to make it grow and meet its objectives? Essentially the top manager (CEO, general manager, etc.).
And how much time does a CEO spend on strategy? It will vary depending on the time, but it is between little and none. The CEO of an average company is focused on making the numbers work. He has certain approaches to strategy, but his main focus is purely executive. Only when there is a major obstacle does he try to define a strategy to help him overcome it.
As a result, strategy becomes the company's uninvited guest. It is present when annual plans are made, and the rest of the year it becomes the projects that are postponed due to lack of time and/or resources.
Strategy plays a secondary role in most companies, when it should be the map that guides them.
If we analyse this situation in larger companies, we see how the role of strategy is gaining weight and there is even a defined person in charge (who in principle has a team and budget to implement the defined strategies).
This is where I return to the McKinsey research that I mentioned at the beginning of the article.
What are the main profiles of Chief Strategy Officers ?
I found the profiles defined after the study on the role of the strategist within a company very interesting , since they adapt to the needs of the company.
In the image below, you can see that the profiles are:
Architect : In my opinion, they are the closest (along with the visionary) to the role of pure strategist. They detect movements in the industry and monitor the competition to try to get ahead of them and protect their company from possible risks and even manage possible mergers and acquisitions. Their objective with these movements is to boost the organic growth of the organization and achieve competitive advantages that allow it.
Mobilizer : focuses on developing strategic capabilities and launching projects to make them a reality. It focuses on ensuring that those involved in these projects contribute real value at a strategic level.
Visionary : As I said before, they can be a variant of the strategic profile, but more focused on detecting trends to take advantage of them for the company through projects that integrate them into the organization. Therefore, they are more focused on studies and data analysis (big data).