What’s the difference between strategy and tactics?
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In business just as much as in life, to do something meaningful it’s important to know where you’re going.
Really, it comes down to going somewhere or wandering upon something.
To go somewhere you need a strategy and whilst the word is often used interchangeably with tactics, the two are not the same thing.
Strategy defines your long term objectives and how you will achieve them within the context of all the forces that might impact your business (market forces, competitors, products etc). In other words, a strategy charts a course (not that the course can’t be changed as the landscape changes.
Tactics are smaller initiatives and activities that support your strategic course. In fact, they’re like little steps along the way.
For example, a strategy might be to position a brand in a certain light, with many tactical campaigns and activities that ensure the strategy is achieved.
When thinking about strategy and tactics it’s important to reflect on where this all originated — in the military.
“Grand strategy is the art of looking beyond the present battle and calculating ahead. Focus on your ultimate goal and plot to reach it.”
― Robert Greene, The 33 Strategies of War
So, what’s your strategy and what are your tactics? Book a session with a Mavin to talk them through it.
