The complementarity of strategy and tactics determines their intertwined existence. In the military realm, tactics teach how to use armed force in engagements, while strategy teaches how to use engagements to achieve war goals. Just as the word “strategy” has its origins with the Greeks, so too does the word “tactics” have its origins with the Greeks.
Strategy and tactics are both ways you can achieve your goals. Strategy is the path or bridge that takes us from where we are today to where we want to be. This is our overall resource allocation plan. It could be having industry thought leaders become advocates for our products. Strategy is how we do this specifically or tangibly. They may include items such as direct marketing letters, face-to-face meetings, key talking point scripts, and iPad apps. If your team still has trouble distinguishing between strategy and tactics, they can use “contact rules.” If you can reach out and touch it, that’s a strategy.
“Long-term and short-term” descriptions of strategy and tactics may or may not apply. A strategy that successfully helps you achieve your goals in two months may be short-term compared to a strategy that you will use for two years to maintain a competitive advantage. It makes no sense at all to use time as a criterion to distinguish between strategy and tactics.
Since we don’t see or actually have access to strategy, we often skip it and go straight to tactics. Many business plans I review list goals, objectives, and then strategies. If you don’t strategize first and then strategize, you won’t be able to intelligently change course when you don’t achieve your goals. At that point, it becomes “tactical roulette,” where you’re constantly hatching new tactics and pulling the trigger, hoping something hits the mark. Sooner or later, you’re going to see a dead business. As my great-great-grandfather Tomiko once said, “Think strategically, act tactically, and wash your hands before eating.” He always practiced good hygiene.
