Four Cornerstones of an Adaptive Strategy for E&C Companies
In a world and industry where the pace of change is growing exponentially, this article is a timeless reminder of how the management teams of best-in-class companies should be creating and implementing their strategies.
The article was written in 2016 in response to rapid changes in an industry that was finally recovering from the Great Recession.
Back then, industry leaders were in the process of shifting from recovery to how to make the best decisions with limited resources and where to place bets on the most profitable growth opportunities. Fast-forward to today, and the industry has changed substantially and experienced continued strong growth with a limited supply of talent. This has led to significant changes in technology, innovation, project selection and collaborative building models.
Every contractor is dealing with its own particular context, and the “4C Framework” is a practical tool for defining your company’s specific strategy. It starts with clearly defining the four C’s of climate, customers, competitors and company. This is achieved through a fact-based, data-driven approach of research and analysis (and not through opinion). Defining context in this way allows management teams to align perspectives around a common and shared understanding of the current business environment, which ultimately leads to more effective decision-making.
Real strategic change only occurs when everyone on the management team is aligned around the context, the ensuing vision and the strategy itself. With the pace of change moving faster and faster, continuously updating your context—and adapting your strategy to the changing context—will differentiate good strategy from great strategy.
This article was originally published September, 2016
