Any business activity is a process of achieving projected outcomes. The more we focus on detail, the more we find the same scalable elements of a simple purpose – to drive work. Assuming that any process is divisible, the most critical advantage for a business environment would be the ability of aligning the largest, most complex of its business drivers with the smallest ones and vice versa. This function can be imagined as zooming in and out of a business process.
What we have to accomplish every day to accomplish once a goal of our lifetime.
Managing projects can be considered, related and applied to 3 general levels according to the amount of complexity required and size of the areas affected:
1. Strategic – major and most important objectives to be achieved for a reason
2. Tactical - information subdivisions which specify the course of how the strategic objectives would be achieved (Tactical Level is usually an outcome of corporate planning)
3. Operational – information units which determine the way of performing basic steps in the most logical and consecutive order
Basic organisational matrix
A division of work into Strategic, Tactical, and Operational levels of focus should also match with an organisational division into the 3 general frames of reference: Me, Project, and Organisation. See further Organisational Design
The structural and systemic divisions of the 3 levels can be demonstrated by the following equations:
• 1 strategic plan = a number of strategic steps
• 1 strategic step = 1 tactical plan
• 1 tactical plan = a number of tactical steps
• 1 tactical step = 1 operational plan
• 1 operational plan = a number of operational steps
An organisation, being itself a structure or system, is usually divided in a similar way however, because this principle is perfectly scalable, strategy, tactics and operation can all be applied on any level within any activity.
An organisation has usually 3 levels of focus: strategic, tactical & operational. A system, which is to provide effective tools for scaling and structuring a business process as a whole, should also contain elements and methods of scoping information which would be specific to each level. Such a categorisation often varies with circumstances, the nature of work and the level of detail required. The following description is therefore indicative only.
Scalable focus
1. Strategic Drivers
One of the applicable ways of planning and controlling strategic areas is so called ‘Logical Framework’. Developed and widely applied as a standard methodology for projects funded by the European Union, Logical Framework uses purpose-driven segmentation of a possible way between a future state of an accomplished project’s goal (for review) and a current state of a project’s intent (for analysis). By means of defining the most logical links between possible causes and consequences, and by pinpointing their exact locations and nexus, this methodology can bring an unusual level of clarity, transparency and consistency to a strategic level of planning. Further, some tools for risk management such as SWOT Analysis and Feasibility Study should be applied.
2. Tactical Drivers
These are usually the most important plans, structures and measures which connect the ‘big’ strategic goals with the multiplicity of ‘little’ operational tasks and steps in the physical reality. The accomplishment of strategic goals often directly depends on how well their tactical plans are conceived and executed.
Tactical planning and work alignment
Example of a tactical plan containing work break down structure and divisions of stages and work areas. Not less important is the applied work alignment based on links connecting hierarchically more complex areas with their smaller divisions.
As the idea is to distribute information (in this case it means information related to tasks in tactical context) together with proportionally and sequentially correct timeframes, it is important to have the means of allocating the information onto a time value chart (e.g. Gantt chart).
3. Operational Drivers
Regarding different conditions for operations in different industries, there are very few commonalities to set valid principles upon. Generally, even operational tasks should contain certain amount of planning such as e.g. machinery & tools usage, order of steps, or selection of serial, parallel or conditional routing. From a planning point of view though, there is one systemic item which has a strictly operational value and that is an Event.
An event is a unit of activity in time which is necessary to make anything happen within a process. Events can be short or long, they can constitute large or small amounts of work, they can be cheap or expensive but all have a common denominator: they are operational implementations of tasks. As we know one task can consist of many events or one event of many tasks, however, an event is always driven by operations. It is an area of feedback management where plans are confronted with reality and often requires modifications. An event is the opportunity for task stakeholders to be learning.
It is however important to realise that a business process, in order to be effective, should always be driven from above - it means from strategic and tactical levels down and not by operations. A business process should be pulled by operations only in exceptional situations, when an adjustment of the original planning and direction is required by a specific set of circumstances.
