Strategic Leadership Is Key to Influence and Advancement
“What got you here won’t get you there.” This often quoted statement relates to the importance of strategic leadership. In our years of executive coaching women leaders at SHAMBAUGH, we’ve pinpointed strategic leadership as a key area for improvement. By becoming more strategic, leaders can better influence others and advance in their organization. As you move up, being strategic becomes even more important — it shows that you can lead with vision and inspire the organization.
Yet when working with SHAMBAUGH Leadership’s clients, I’ve seen many talented women — on the cusp of advancing to senior leadership — get held back by failing to effectively leverage strategic skills. When I speak with organizations’ leaders about why more of their women aren’t advancing, I often hear: “They aren’t strategic enough — they miss the big picture.”
I believe, though, that women have more than just potential for being highly strategic—they also have natural strategic advantages from tackling multiple issues in their work and personal lives that require them to use critical-thinking skills. That said, in order to realize that inherent potential, building technical mastery is key: not only having operational competence, but building strategic skills.
When it comes to showing up strategic, here are a few areas to target for improvement:
Starts with Mindset
You’ve proven you can get your job done — but being more strategic requires letting go of your “to do” list mentality and the need to be perfect in every aspect of your work. As a first step toward becoming a more strategic leader, start to widen your focus away from only caring about small details to incorporate a larger, more comprehensive view of the broader goals of your department and organization. Developing the mindset of a strategic leader involves preparing to speak the language of business, having clarity in your communications, and becoming a more intentional and inclusive leader.
Demonstrate Your Ability to Connect the Dots
Strategic leaders are able to understand and link their own contributions, and those of their team, to tangible business issues and impact. To improve in this area, work on building your comprehension of what other business functions do and how they do it. Use facts and data to demonstrate your understanding of the entire enterprise and its interconnectivity. Having a broader understanding of the business will help you intuitively speak more strategically. You can also get better at speaking the language of business by taking on cross-assignments that will expand your business aptitude. These types of stretch assignments will provide hands-on experience to build your insight on broader aspects of the business. Also, remember to identify and engage with key executives across the organization to learn about their part of the business. Ask them questions like: What keeps you up at night? How does your organization align with the larger business objectives?
Speak Up – Be Clear and Concise
Offering clarity in your verbal and written communications is another way to demonstrate being strategic. Ensure that your words are well chosen and always convey a sense of purpose, rather than filling the room with a “stream of consciousness” monologue. Start team conversations by sharing a clear, concise vision of goals. Having clarity also means not wavering on your position just because it might be unpopular.
Be Intentional and Inclusive
Strategic leadership is also supported by being an inclusive leader who creates a sense of belonging across the organization. Being open to diverse thoughts helps leaders make more strategic decisions. It also helps energize people behind a leader’s vision since it helps others feel seen, heard, and psychologically safe. Strategic leadership additionally manifests in the quality of relationships you create and cultivate, and whether you facilitate a sense of inclusion. It’s easy to fall in love with our own ideas and work hard to achieve them — but being strategic also requires figuring out how to bring more people along on the journey.
If you are transitioning into a more strategic role or would like to expand your strategic leadership skills and capabilities, get in touch with us at info@shambaughleadership.com. Our cross-industry WILL coaching and development program is a structured learning program that focuses on developing critical strategic leadership skills for women leaders. Send us a message if you are interested in participating, so you can be the first to know about dates and logistics for our 2025 program.
Rebecca Shambaugh is President of SHAMBAUGH Leadership, Founder of Women in Leadership and Learning, and author of the best-selling books It’s Not a Glass Ceiling, It’s a Sticky Floor and Make Room for Her: Why Companies Need an Integrated Leadership Model to Achieve Extraordinary Results.
Find out more about us at: www.shambaughleadership.com
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