The best general definition of strategy is a general plan or set of decisions designed to achieve one or more long-term or overall goals under conditions of uncertainty, especially concerning the optimal use of limited resources to gain an advantage or secure a desired position.
The term comes from the Greek strategia, meaning “generalship” or “the art of the general.”
Key Aspects of Strategy
While the core definition is consistent across fields like business and military, various thought leaders emphasize different key aspects of strategy.
Strategy as a Plan and Action (Common View)
This view focuses on the deliberate, forward-looking nature of strategy.
- Strategy as a Plan: A careful, articulated roadmap for achieving specific, long-term objectives. It defines how the ends (goals) will be achieved by the means (resources).
- Strategy as Action: The subsequent determination of a course of action and the allocation of resources necessary to execute that plan. It is a proactive and adaptive approach.
Strategy in Business (Michael Porter)
In a competitive business context, strategy is defined by how a company seeks to create a sustainable advantage.
- Creating a Unique Position: Strategy is about consciously choosing to be different and creating a unique and valuable position in the market.
- Making Trade-offs: It requires choosing what not to do to maintain focus and distinction from competitors.
- Creating Fit: Ensuring all a company’s activities are consistent and mutually reinforcing to support the chosen unique position.
Henry Mintzberg’s Five P’s of Strategy
Management theorist Henry Mintzberg provided a broader, more comprehensive framework by defining strategy through five interconnected concepts:
- Plan: A consciously intended course of action (a deliberate path).
- Ploy: A specific maneuver intended to outwit a competitor (a stratagem).
- Pattern: A consistency in behavior over time (whether intended or not, it’s the realized strategy).
- Position: Locating the organization’s products in a particular market environment.
- Perspective: The fundamental way an organization views the world and itself (its “theory of the business” or internal values).
Strategy vs. Tactics
A crucial distinction exists between strategy and tactics:
| Feature | Strategy | Tactics |
| Focus | Overall campaign, big-picture goals, and advantage. | Specific actions, maneuvers, or resource deployment. |
| Timeframe | Long-term (years). | Short-to-medium-term (days, weeks, or months). |
| Question | What are we trying to achieve, and why choose this path? | How do we execute the immediate action? |
| Example | Strategy: Capture market leadership through product differentiation. | Tactic: Launch a specific social media campaign to promote a new product feature. |
Strategy dictates the ends and the overall approach, while tactics are the specific, localized means used to execute the strategy. A great strategy requires effective tactics to succeed, but great tactics alone cannot fix a flawed strategy.
