In this webinar by MIT Sloan’s Donald Sull, participants learn the fundamentals of strategy development. A good strategy is one that offers concrete guidance for identifying and reaching strategic priorities while retaining flexibility so the company can respond to unexpected opportunities and challenges.

Research shows that most organizations fall far short when it comes to strategic alignment. The authors’ analysis of 124 organizations revealed that only 28% of executives and middle managers responsible for executing strategy could list three of their company’s strategic priorities. How do leaders close this dangerous strategic-alignment gap?

It’s common practice to develop a handful of strategic priorities to focus strategy — but formulated correctly, they’re also useful communication tools for both internal and external stakeholders. Clear, credible priorities linked to explicit metrics offer a framework for assessing progress toward the company’s goals, in a way that abstractions like vision or mission cannot.

Many executives don’t understand how to craft a compelling vision for change that will gain widespread commitment within their organization. Leaders should start by asking themselves: What will people see, hear, and feel once the changes have been achieved?

Effectively communicating the innovation journey and output to executives requires translation. While innovation processes are becoming more widely used across organizations, they are not always fully embraced at the executive level. Innovationists need to become bilingual — able to present in the style that strategy consulting firms use when making formal recommendations and updates. When speaking to executives, innovation leaders should make sure they are not only heard, but understood.

Photos, videos, and even gifs are gaining importance as the primary means by which companies communicate. Brands that emphasize visual content are rewarded with measurable impact on ROI and engagement metrics. As it becomes harder and harder to get customers’ attention in a noisy online marketplace, there are important reasons — both technological and biological — why managers should pay more attention to their visual assets.

Employees who work out of the office employ a variety of tactics to make sure that their contributions are noticed and that their colleagues have a favorable impression of them.

Self-awareness is crucial for evolving and finding coping strategies for weaknesses. An excerpt from “How To Become a Better Leader.” Image: PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi.

Do your opening sentences get people to pay attention? When pitching a start-up idea, you need to get to the core innovation right out of the gate. When making any kind of presentation, a counter-intuitive statement, surprising fact or arresting story can get people to put their phones down.

Author Christopher Johnson’s new book Microstyle: The Art of Writing Little highlights the best ways to get messages noticed, remembered, and passed along. “Brevity is just a minimal requirement,” he says.

Managers who screen suggestions are busy and have short attention spans, so the ability to be succinct can make or break an idea. They want proposals that are neither skimpy nor turgid. And 250 words is often just right.

Charts explain how to execute a plan to brand a project to internal audiences to get it funded, to rally teams and to create visibility and engagement.

Are you dropping the ball when it comes to conveying your ideas – about data, about creativity, about direction, about design – in ways that your audience really understands?

Teams that fight wildfires have much to teach business managers about preventing complex and dynamic problems from spiraling out of control.

We’ve long been able to personalize what information the Internet tells us — but now comes “Web site morphing,” and an Internet that personalizes how we like to be told. For companies, it means that communicating — and selling — will never be the same.

Companies that continue to take a tactical, short-term approach to communicating with key constituencies will find it increasingly difficult to compete. Developing an integrated, strategic approach to communications will be critical to success.