The one outstanding characteristic of the modern world is the fact that things changes quickly, unexpectedly and that such changes can easily bring about vast changes in the way business is conducted. It is therefore in the interest of all organizations to be aware of changes that are likely to occur. Strategic insight allows companies to react in time and to take advantage of changes within their operating environments.

Most large businesses employ specialists that focus upon the study of environmental change. These environments include political, social, technological and financial trends, amongst others. Changes in those environments affect the way that business is conducted, the products and services demanded by consumers and the way in which business is regulated. It is therefore very important to develop operating strategies that will make provision for such changes.

One of the biggest challenges when devising long term strategies is to deal with the incredible pace of change. Not only do things change quickly, but the nature of change is also very difficult. Many innovative companies keep their new technological developments under wraps, for example and it is tricky to foresee them and their possible uses in gaining or maintaining a competitive advantage.

It would be of no value to an organization to study change without making plans to take advantage of those changes. That is why it is so important to analyze anticipated changes in terms of the impact it will have on the business. The environments that are crucial include the financial, political, technological and social environments. Plans need to be devised to take advantage of changes in those arenas.

The one area in which larger businesses fail is to honestly identify their own strengths and weaknesses. It is often deemed unseemly to admit to weaknesses but unless they are listed and acknowledged it is impossible to do something about the matter. Naturally, such deliberations need to be confidential in order to prevent competitors to take advantage of weaknesses admitted and documented.

Long term projections are all good and well, but they are useless unless they are translated into detailed action plans. In most cases a top down approach is followed. This means that broad aims are communicated to business units and that those business units then translate them into specific plans. The plans are then translated into very specific objectives by small teams.

Without a strategy to make provision for environmental changes no business can hope to survive in the long term. It requires specialist knowledge to correctly interpret trends but money spent in this way inevitably allows organizations to thrive. This is because they are made ready to embrace change and to use it to their own advantage. However, strategies need to be as realistic as possible and they need to be based upon as many facts as possible.

Strategic insight is extraordinary difficult to obtain. It requires the skills of many professionals that are experts in the various fields that have an impact upon the way business is done. It is an expensive exercise, but vital. Without operating strategies businesses simply will not survive.