Brand Management with a holistic approach is something I recommend all my colleagues and direct reports as a way of doing ‘business-as-usual’. The holistic approach allows you to really get involved in every element that impacts your strategy thus helping you plan ahead for ways to Improve the impact of the strategy on the business’ results.

One of the biggest issues business managers face is ‘breaking the silos within the organization‘. This is avoiding the vertical (upwards) authorization and communication of every piece of information before it can go to another department (silo). Instead of helping your organization be synergistic, this behavior delays the decision-making processes. Sometimes this behavior prevents businesses to take advantage of clear opportunities.

With business, just as with people “Every head is its own world”. Hence, every business allows different employees behavior throughout it’s culture. You can help your business break it’s silo power by doing brand management with a holistic approach, just allow yourself to reach over to other silos and ask for information. Remember to be clear with how the information will be handled and  with whom it will be shared.

How to create strategic plans with a holistic approach?

1. Simplicity is mandatory: If your strategy is to be executed, it needs to involve most employees. They need clear knowledge of their part on the plan and not being clear about each role’s impact on the strategy is always terrible for business.
   1. Understood: clear plans need to be understood by all it’s players.
   2. Remembered: helping key players remember the strategy will easy the execution.
   3. Acted Upon: being clear on ‘what-to-do’ and ‘what-not-to-do’ will avoid any wrong doings.
2. Strategy needs to create, capture and sustain economic value.
   1. Create value.
   2. Capture new consumer or increase consumer use.
   3. Focus on sustainability by reducing cost.
3. You don’t need a doctorate thesis:
   1. Clarify Key Drivers. In all business’ departments (not just marketing).
   2. Identify Critical Challenges: I use the critical-path method to ensure execution. This is a 4 or 5 list of obstacles.
   3. Determine which are your ‘must-win’ battles and plan ahead how to win! This plan will need resources (human, economic, etc).