Steve Jobs shows us the importance of well-timed strategy in your business

An effective business strategy does not simply define the goals of your business.

Real strategic change happens when you identify the biggest challenges in your business and choose to do something about them.

This may mean ignoring some things that you would like to do. It can be difficult, especially if members of your team are involved in some of the tasks you are now choosing not to do.

But for your business to survive in turbulent times, difficult decisions have to be made.

Good strategy is about focusing your resources on the most critical issues facing your business. If you are not doing that, you don’t have a strategy.

Take Steve Jobs, for example…

In 1997, Apple were just weeks away from bankruptcy. Then Steve Jobs returned. Initially his most significant challenge was just to keep the business alive!

His approach was to cut 15 desktop models back to 1 model, cut all laptop models back to 1 model, cut all printers, cut development engineers and cut software development.

Jobs cut many more things, reflecting the reality of having less than 4% of the personal computer market.

There was a clear challenge. Jobs implemented a coherent strategy which was right for Apple’s situation at that time.

With Apple’s survival secure, Jobs then clarified his long-term strategy:

“I am going to wait for the next big thing.”

He knew enough about the market to understand that technology comes in waves. Like a lion stalking its prey, he was prepared to lie in wait and pounce at just the right time.

The rise of MP3 players, the iPod, iTunes, and the iPhone transformed the world and Apple went from a $3billion business to a $1trillion business.

As a business leader, your key responsibility is to identify the biggest challenges facing your business and devise a coherent approach to overcome them, just as Steve Jobs did.