Strategy and culture – the value of our integrated approach

Adam Campbell, Telos's Managing Partner

‘I love it when a plan comes together. There’s something special when you see a team of people who weren’t clear, who didn’t have consensus or commitment, arrive at the point where it starts to exist.’

So says Adam Campbell, our Managing Partner.

And he’s not the only one at Telos Partners who finds this outcome a rewarding part of our work.

But this clarity doesn’t come together on its own, especially in business. As any good leader knows, it requires focused thought, time, vision and expertise.

Cue Telos Partners’ integrated approach to strategic and cultural change. Here, Adam joins Consultant Joanna Booysen to explain how our team can help.

Clarifying your strategy    

‘They say culture eats strategy for breakfast,’ says Adam. ‘In reality, they work together, hand in glove. Bringing a dual focus creates a multiplier effect.

‘Take strategy, for example – it has a simplicity to it. It’s about being clear on the key one or two things that will drive success for your business. Without this clarity you might have a plan, but you don’t have a strategy.’

Working with clients to ensure this simplicity, focus and clarity is in place is a key part of Telos Partners’ approach.

‘To achieve this, we work on the basis that our clients know their business and their sector far better than we ever will,’ Adam explains.

‘Our role is to bring perspective, insights and experience from outside the business to challenge thinking, highlight opportunities and gaps.’

Building the capability to succeed   

‘When we get this right, we enable our clients to gain clarity, consensus and commitment from those who are critical to their change,’ Adam says.

‘This helps them to collaborate and build the capability they need, guided by the simple strategic framework of the Telos Swirl.

‘It’s this focus on outcomes our clients value – they tell us it works. I still remember the feedback I received from one client after working with them and their leadership team on their growth strategy – ‘You’ve got the whole team on board in a way that I’ve never been able to before,’ they said. 

‘For me, this highlighted the value we bring by allowing the leader to participate in a way they can’t if they’re owning and facilitating the process – and the team responds differently too.’

Recognising culture’s role in change  

Telos Consultant Joanna Booysen

And what of the role of culture?

When organisations look to change, leaders often put strategy or operating model first – ahead of culture.

Yet (as already noted) the two work hand in glove.

As Joanna explains: ‘Culture is a fundamental force for any change agenda: it either supports or gets in the way. If we’re not helping a client evolve their culture for strategy implementation, we’re not creating value.’

Focusing on behaviours

But she understands why a client might be reluctant to give culture ‘too much’ time, despite its potential to be a competitive advantage for their business.

‘People find it easier to invest in the ‘hard’ aspects of business, presuming a cleaner line from input to output,’ she says.

‘The ‘soft’ stuff is harder to influence, but is one of the strongest levers for business performance. That’s why Telos Partners focuses on the behaviours you can see and measure.’

Getting leaders on board

'Leaders who understand culture's role will... encourage their people to see how culture connects to each bit of progress, and to other elements of the business'

Non-negotiable is to ensure there’s sponsorship from the top.

This is about ‘leaders leading by living the desired culture’, Joanna confirms. ‘It’s more tricky to influence the critical mass of management levels, who can compromise the reach of culture interventions if they’re not involved and equipped.’

Telos Partners also highlights the value of working alongside natural influencers and champions across the organisation, so there’s ‘a well- informed and enthusiastic channel of further communication and engagement’.

Getting those influencers involved in both strategy and culture is when the ‘magic' happens.

Yes, there might be some leaders who are sceptical of culture’s role, but those who ‘get’ it recognise culture’s power to unlock the change they want to achieve, Joanna concludes.

This is because at Telos Partners we know that if you have a performance challenge, culture is likely to be playing a role. Similarly if you need to drive organisational change, at the heart of this desire is often a need to change mindset or behaviours.

‘Leaders who understand culture’s role will talk about how the organisation ‘feels’ and encourage their people to see how culture connects to each bit of progress, and to other elements of the business. They’ll nurture a sense of belonging for people that’s not defined by a specific group.’

No wonder she cites ‘what comes out of co-creation’ as one of the most satisfying parts of her work, alongside the joy of seeing the client ‘owning’ the words.

‘It’s not just about defining the change,’ adds Adam. ‘The real joy comes in seeing Telos Partners’ clients taking ownership of not just the words but the actions and seeing this deliver the shift in performance they want.’

After all, this is their strategy and culture, their business and their change. But Telos Partners is there to walk with them – every step of the way.

Find out how Telos Partners can support you. Get in touch with us today.