The Down Under State of Doubt.

Australians have a great approach to conducting a conversation. I would argue that one thing that is truly Australian in a more intellectual sense, is the capacity of this society to hold a dialogue both in private and public space. Ability to listen, present and argue is quite well developed.

On the other hand, it seems that leaders here are not willing to openly hold strong opinions and be publicly passionate or visionary. To clearly stand for something. I am not sure why, but that is not for me to diagnose, and for another blog. Perhaps I am used to a different style of leadership, so I don’t presume that I am unbiased.

No matter the reason, the tendency not to rock the boat too much may not be helpful to the state of innovative thinking in Australian business. Recently, a head of strategy for one of the large local financial institutions said to me that they [the company] are very good in analysing the environment, but not very good at becoming convinced. He didn’t mean it as a compliment.

This state of perpetual doubt may be upheld as a virtue in volatile times, especially for banks. Doubt is also an absolute killer of creativity. Statements such as “financial services do not compete on innovation” condemn businesses to death by gigantic spreadsheet and never-ending powerpoint decks, en lieu of strategy.

However, this post doesn’t come from frustration. Actually, it comes from a deeply held belief in the role of strategy as a discipline that breaks down these barriers.

The atoms that make up good strategy are words, not numbers. Words make up conversations, which shape the future. It’s also words that inspire us to action. This whole process is what strategy is really about: from informed creativity to action and performance.

The ultimate role of strategists is to be the masters of engaging conversations about the future. And that’s why I think Australian companies are so well positioned to be innovative. We already have culturally what is often difficult to come by: the capacity to hold a good conversation.