Systems thinking and a game of telephone

For most projects, we think of strategy sitting between the client with a business objective, and a creative or product team who want to build something, right? That creates a linear process. The strategist hears what the client wants, and then translates it into something the creative team can work with. Like a game of telephone. But like in telephone, things can get a little muffled in this process. Important details and nuance are lost. It’s funny when this happens in the game, when “I love the meatless bulgogi that Trader Joe’s sells” gets whispered along the line and ends up as “Hello Michael Bublé, you traitorous sellout.” It’s not so funny in a creative presentation though.

A better way to think about strategy is part of a system. Its role is not to intermediate between the client and creative, but to collaborate with them and create an environment in service of the idea. A systems thinking strategy must take into account the actions and reactions of the other parties. Its objective is not to be right, but to be harmonious.

Strategy then is not a phase, but a function — continually connecting the client and the creatives.