Banner Consulting & Coaching International helps firms develop clear, focused strategies that will enable them to differentiate themselves from their competition, identify key markets, develop capabilities and processes to implement their plans, and achieve their own specific goals.

In implementing their strategies, we help align firms' management and employees with their business strategy - so that everyone in the firm understands what they need to do to make the business successful - creating competitive advantage through the people in the organization.

A successful, fast-moving, flexible, and empowered workforce requires that everyone understands the direction of the company and how it will achieve its goals. Only by understanding the "yardsticks" upon which decisions should be made can employees make those decisions and perform those actions that will help the company achieve its goals.

However, often a well-articulated strategy is not in place. A formal plan may have been developed and people may have declared their support and buy-in, but often there is not a shared understanding of exactly what this means and its implications for all concerned. Managers may be acting on their own, yet believing that they are doing exactly what they agreed to do. The result: Executives feel frustrated, employees become confused, there is lack of direction, customers become dissatisfied, and long-term success and stability is threatened.

The strategy development process creates a shared understanding and direction for the firm by answering these questions:

Strategy

• What business are we in?
• What do we want our business to be?
• Who are we serving, and why?
• How do we plan on achieving our goals?

Capabilities

• What is our competition?
• What is our competitive advantage?
• What must we do well?

Systems/Processes

• How do we work?
• How do we make decisions?
• How do we share information and learning?

Structure

• How do we organize?
• What is each person's role in making our business successful?

Competence

• What knowledge, skills, and behaviors do we need?

These questions are answered through a proven process that engages the best thinking of the management team, as well as other internal and external stake-holders. Careful attention is paid to all elements of the firm's value chain and the processes, competencies, and behaviors that will make each element successful.