I wrote separately about how strategy consulting firm McKinsey & Company warn us about the “social side of strategy”. This is where both conscious self-interest and sub-conscious natural human biases play too large a part in choosing a firm’s strategy. And stakeholders, intentionally or otherwise, cherry-pick evidence (e.g. sales data, market projections etc.) that supports their case.

The impact of the social side of strategy can be reduced by using a question given to us by Prof. Roger Martin, once named #1 management thinker in the world. His guidance is to avoid using pre-gathered evidence when starting a strategy discussion. That just allows the cherry-picking discussed above. Instead, Martin advises the use of a simple, yet powerful question: “What would have to be true?” for a strategy choice to be successful.

Obviously, there is no historical data or lived experience about the future. So, Martin’s question encourages stakeholders to think creatively about the future and its different possibilities; instead of arguing over the present and past.

The things that would have to be true, for a strategy choice to be successful, should be collaboratively discussed, agreed, and documented. Each one should be specific, and the ‘true status’ should be defined in a measurable, non-ambiguous way. Some simple examples might be that the firm can produce a particular product at $1,000 per unit, and that target buyers would pay $1,500 per unit.

A plan should then be built to test each of the things that would have to be true (or could be made to be true) for the strategy choice to be successful. Some immediate tests should be done to explore if the strategy should even be initially pursued. And, ongoing tests should be done so that the strategy’s continuation can be regularly reviewed. The strategy should only be continued, in its current form, if all critical things continue to be true.

What things should be considered when building that list of things that would have to be true? Like all strategy discussions, there should be a blend of external and internal analysis: the macro environment, competitive forces, the customer problem, the firm’s own resources and capabilities, and the profitability of providing a solution to the target customer’s problem.

So, don’t be a victim of the social side of strategy. Please use this simple question to ensure that strategy choices are made in a collaborative, logical, and thoroughly tested way.