SBP 31: When to Change Your Strategy, With Jennifer Riel

In today's episode, we're joined by Jennifer Riel, Head of Global Strategy at IDEO. We dig deep into the importance of continual learning, the discipline required to make great choices, and the crucial lens for strategic monitoring while underlining the limited value of relying solely on historical data. Jennifer also highlights the issue of investors' short-term obsession, how to diagnose bad strategy and the significance of annual strategic planning. Using the BlackBerry case study, we examine strategic decision-making during crises and the indicators signalling a need for strategic shifts. The episode wraps with an in-depth discussion on talent strategy in today's hybrid work culture and the age-old question: is a poor strategy, if well executed, preferable? Stay tuned for a lively Pod-pod session with V and Marc to reflect on these insights and more. ____________ Our Guest: Follow Jennifer Riel: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferriel/ IDEO Profile: https://www.ideo.com/people/jennifer-riel ____________ Literature Creating Great Choices: https://www.amazon.ca/Creating-Great-Choices-Integrative-Thinking/dp/1633692965/ IDEO Shopping Cart: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M66ZU2PCIcM&t=95s HBR: When to Switch Strategy: https://hbr.org/2021/02/when-to-switch-strategy-in-a-crisis Good Strategy, Bad Strategy Summary: https://jlzych.com/2018/06/27/notes-from-good-strategy-bad-strategy/ How to evaluate corporate strategy: https://hbr.org/1963/07/how-to-evaluate-corporate-strategy  Blue Ocean Strategy v. Playing To Win: https://rogermartin.medium.com/blue-ocean-strategy-playing-to-win-f0efb83cc608 Design Thinking V. Playing to Win: https://rogermartin.medium.com/strategy-design-thinking-faf6b787160b ____________ The Sleeping Barber Podcast: Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch with our hosts: Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/⁠⁠⁠ Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠⁠ ___________ Timestamps: 0:53 - Introduction to Jennifer Riel - Head of Global Strategy at IDEO 2:05 - Who is IDEO, what is design thinking and how does it fit with strategy?   8:42 - The power of testing and learning 10:05 - Three disciplines making great choices: Design, Integrative Thinking, Strategy  13:45 - The 4 “always on” lenses for monitoring your strategy  20:15 - Why historical data isn’t enough to monitor your strategy 23:55 - How to change investor obsession with short term results 26:58 - What is strategy and how it fits with Design Thinking 31:13 - How to diagnose bad strategy 35:19 - Why annual strategic planning is important 39:11 - How to make strategic choices during a crisis a BlackBerry case study 43:55 - When should you change strategic direction 46:30 - Early warning indicators to help signal strategic changes  51:30 - Strategic pivots in response to temporary vs. permanent change 55:26 - Rethinking your talent strategy: choosing hybrid, WFH, reorg and lay offs 59:14 - Is it really better to have a poor strategy, well executed?  1:01:55 - Pod-pod with V and Marc ____________ Where to listen Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sleeping-barber-podcast/id1609811324 Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/4v0kaM350zEY7X2VBuyfrF Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy84MWVjYWJhNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw⁠ Youtube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@sleepingbarberpodcast