The ARCHITECT! blog series has highlighted the major structural changes: IIoT - Big Data Analytics - Cloud - Mobile that are in motion and turning business models upside-down. One thing is certain. We are not going back to the way things were.

To deal competently with these complexities, we need to understand and know how everything-is-connected-to-everything-else to make informed decisions. We need visibility and traceability TopFloor-to-ShopFloor and through end-to-end business processes. We need to connect strategy and execution. We need to ARCHITECT!

Leadership is essential. Everyone in your organization must be aligned to a common set of strategic objectives and purpose. Your organization’s mission - vision - values will tell you where your leadership team sees the future of your organization. These important guides plus strategic objectives are likely published on your organization’s website.

Your business leaders have a primary responsibility to guide your organization. They must make informed decisions quickly in response to customer demands and changing external factors that threaten your organization’s survival. They must eliminate internal weaknesses and mitigate external threats.

Recall the definition of a management system —

“A management system is 
the framework of 
policies, processes and procedures used to ensure that 
an organization can fulfill all tasks 
required to achieve its objectives.”

Here’s a question for you to consider: Does your organization have the right strategic objectives to bridge the gap between where your organization is today and its vision of the future?

Here’s another factoid followed by questions for you to consider: Often the cause of problems that keep the C-suite up at night are rooted in the asset portfolio. Most often, symptoms are addressed. There’s no focus on finding root causes. That’s why the symptoms recur! What do you think? What has been your experience?