Aligning Your Company's Strategy
When Schnuck Markets CFO David Bell was asked to lead strategic planning for the family-owned supermarket chain, he knew that he needed a more competitive strategy to drive innovation and performance. At the suggestion of Schnucks' CEO, he enrolled in Driving Corporate Performance at Harvard Business School. He entered the program with specific goals, and emerged with everything he had hoped for and more.
What were your goals when you enrolled in the program?
My first goal was to understand the key elements of developing a powerful end-to-end strategic planning process because that was one of the objectives I committed to for this year. The second was to understand the right questions to ask in order to align the company resources and organization structure to support the strategic plan. And my third goal was to network with the other participants in order to learn from their perspectives.
What was the most rewarding aspect of the program?
I found the combination of activities — the case studies, discussion groups, and in-class discussions — to be incredibly stimulating. The entire experience made me rethink many aspects of the company and see areas where improvements can be made.
Will you be able to apply the balanced scorecard to your work?
Yes. At Schnucks, we've always been excellent at setting targets and measuring our progress, but the balanced scorecard provides a more organized and transparent process to help teammates understand why the measures are critical and how they can be impacted.
In recommending the program to others, how would you summarize its value?
If you're looking for a powerful framework for developing a strategy and ensuring your company is aligned with that strategy from top to bottom, then this program is for you.