Worksheet · Strategy Health Check
Commission one piece of insight competitors cannot download
It prints on A4 with room to write.
Industry reports tell every competitor the same thing. This sheet plans one piece of primary work this quarter, aimed at a choice it could change. It builds the Competent step of the check:
Primary research and analysis work (e.g. customer conversations, front-line data, proprietary own analysis) contributes real input.
Step 1. Start from the choice
Write the strategic question first. Then name the choice that would change with the answer. If no choice would change, pick another question.
Step 2. Pick a source you own or can create
| Source | What it can tell you |
|---|---|
| Customer interviews | What buyers rank highest when they choose, and how they rate you against the next choice |
| Win-loss review | Why you won or lost your last 20 or 30 bids |
| Supplier and former-employee interviews | How a competitor's costs and capacity compare with yours |
| Your own transaction data | Which customers, products and prices really make money |
| A live test | What happens when you change a price, an offer or a channel in one area |
Step 3. Plan it
| Strategic question | Choice it could change | Source | Method and sample | Owner | Cost | Report by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| e.g. Why do we lose bids over $1m? | Whether to build a project-services team | Lost customers | Twenty interviews, last two years of bids | Sales director | Staff time | End of quarter |
Step 4. Use it
| Finding | Where it now appears (strategy page, decision paper, plan) | Date |
|---|---|---|
Done when: one piece of primary work is finished and its finding is cited in the strategy or in a decision it changed.
Adapted from our own strategy reference (PSP, 2010).
From the Strategy Health Check. Your report links the sheet for each of its moves.