While the role of the strategic planner in today’s digital landscape has changed, many industry leaders say it’s time to evolve – but not without the fundamentals. Our QLD presenters for the AdSchool Core Strategic Planning course, which kicks off in Brisbane on April 17, share their thoughts.
For businesses to sustain in a fast-paced environment they need to constantly evolve, says Brisbane-based Strategy Director at The Lab Insight & Strategy Amanda Windus.
“To create value, planners will need insight and foresight to effectively help clients navigate the constant change,” she said.
“This calls for matrix like thinking and being able to absorb and synthesize greater volumes of disparate information, to find patterns and connections between p ast and present, across categories and in culture. This will lead to the discovery of unmet needs within the marketwe can position clients to solve.”According to Amanda, the role of the strategic planner has become increasingly more important and challenging in the blurry, tech-driven world.
“We’ve had to extend brand strategy fundamentals to apply in new contexts, learn how to be more present (and relevant) across unfamiliar processes, and deliver customer insights with greater depth and dimension, to serve as leading lights and inspire multi-disciplinary solutions,” she said.
“While AI will play an increasing role in this, there is no substitute for the intuition we bring to find meaning in this whirlwind of data.”
“Ultimately, while the landscape has changed, the fundamentals of strategic planning
remain the same,” she said.
SapientRazorfish’s Justin Cloete says that strategists are now looking for layers of insights instead of the one killer idea.
“Google and Facebook taking the lion’s share of media spend has put the Big Omni-channel Campaign Idea on the back burner, meaning that strategists are no longer looking for the one killer insight to drive the Brand or Campaign.”
“Now, we look for layers of insights that will drive, and hopefully connect, a number of business issues alongside the positioning issue: experience and service principles, operating principles, business model and digital product innovation, even change management, as strategy revolves around the challenge du jour: surviving or riding the wave of digital disruption,” he said.
For Justin, the most successful strategists are also great leaders.
“As tactical choices are increasingly determined by algorithms, strategists will need to elevate their conversations further and further up the corporate food chain. Strategists will need to take on more of a leader and coach role, internally and with clients, and build relationships with technical and data functions rather than getting caught up in those functions,” he said.
Strategy Director at PublicisQ, Mike Redfern, says the biggest change in strategic planning since he first started in the role is a shift from planners being a source of knowledge, to being the most curious of minds.
“Knowledge can be learnt but curiosity feeds creativity, and it makes for an interesting thinker.”
“Strategic planning will continue to shift towards genuine collaboration between disparate groups of individuals, each with their own sphere of knowledge, influence and interests. Brilliant ideas will continue to be the result of pushing conversations outside of the comfort zone,” he said.
Join Justin, Mike and Amanda for the 8-week AdSchool Core Strategic Planning course in Brisbane from April 17.
