the Future of
Strategy
Shaping
From Origins to Purpose-Shaped Strategy™
Tracing strategy’s historical roots and exploring how it must now be reshaped by purpose to create lasting excellence.
The Origins of Strategy
Strategy has ancient roots. The word itself comes from the Greek 'strategos' — a term used in Athens around 600 BC to describe a military leader who combined vision, tactical judgment, and coordinated action. Writings such as Sun Tzu’s The Art of War and later Roman treatises on strategema shaped early thinking about how leaders secure advantage amid uncertainty and conflict.
Centuries later, as markets globalised and organisations grew complex, strategy moved from the battlefield to the boardroom. Thinkers like Igor Ansoff and Alfred Chandler brought strategic analysis into modern business in the mid-20th century, defining it as the art of allocating resources to gain competitive advantage. This marked a fundamental shift — yet one still rooted in competition, planning, and positional strength.
Over time, countless models and frameworks emerged. From five forces to blue oceans, strategy became a discipline of structures, choices, and calculated trade-offs. Its foundations, however, remained largely transactional — focused on outperforming rivals and capturing market share.
Today, these origins matter less for their military connotations and more as a reminder: strategy has always been about direction, judgment, and navigating complexity. But as businesses face societal shifts, technological disruption, and demands for meaning beyond profit, strategy must evolve again — from managing advantage to shaping purpose.
“From ancient battlefields to modern boardrooms, strategy has always been about navigating complexity with vision and judgment — yet today, it must evolve again to be shaped by purpose.”
The Overused and Misunderstood Term
Few words in business are as frequently used — and as frequently misunderstood — as strategy. It has become a universal shorthand for importance: initiatives are called “strategic” to signal priority, even when they lack true strategic depth.
As highlighted in the Harvard Business Review article 'All Strategy is local' (Greenwald & Kahn, HBR, 2005), the word has been stretched so far that it often means little more than this matters. Organisations talk about strategy in every context — marketing strategy, digital strategy, talent strategy — yet many remain unclear about what strategy truly is or how it should shape decision-making.
This dilution has consequences. Without a coherent understanding of strategy, businesses risk mistaking operational plans for strategic direction. They may invest heavily in tools, campaigns, or transformation programmes without anchoring them to a unifying purpose. The result is often fragmented effort, short-term wins, and long-term drift.
If strategy is to guide an organisation through uncertainty and change, it cannot merely be a label for important actions. It must have substance — a guiding philosophy that informs judgment, priorities, and choices at every level of leadership. Increasingly, that substance is found not in the pursuit of advantage alone, but in reconnecting strategy with purpose.
"True strategy requires substance - a guiding philosophy that informs decisions with purpose."
The Meaning of Strategy Today
The question of what strategy actually means has long invited debate. As the slideshow above illustrates, definitions vary widely — some emphasising plans, others patterns, positioning, or perspective. From goals and resources to competitive advantage and value creation, each perspective adds depth, yet none is definitive.
Yet definitions alone are not enough. As Joseph L. Bower and Clark Gilbert argued in their HBR article “How Managers’ Everyday Decisions Create—or Destroy—Your Company’s Strategy” (2007), strategy is not just declared from the top — it is forged daily through the choices managers make and the way resources are allocated.
Yet the challenge for leaders is not merely to select a definition or theory but to translate it into a strategy that is lived across the organisation. Todd Zenger, in “What is the Theory of Your Firm” (HBR, 2013), sharpened this point further. He noted that every organisation must have a clear theory of why it should win — a logic that links capabilities, activities, and value creation into a coherent whole. Without this clarity, strategy risks becoming little more than aspiration.
Together, these perspectives underline a simple truth: strategy is both defined and lived. It is not only the words chosen to express direction, but the decisions and commitments that give those words force. To understand why strategy still matters — and how it can avoid dilution — we must first return to its intellectual foundations.
“Strategy is both defined and lived — shaped by the choices organisations make every day.”
Traditional Foundations of Strategy
Modern strategic thinking has been shaped by decades of academic research and corporate practice. One of the most comprehensive definitions, articulated by Richard Whittington and colleagues in Exploring Strategy, describes strategy as:
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The long term direction of an organisation, formed by choices and actions about its resources and scope, in order to create advantageous positions relative to competitors and peers in changing environmental and stakeholder contexts.
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This view captures the essence of traditional strategy: deliberate, resource-conscious, and contextually aware. As Whittington later notes in his “Greatness Takes Practice” paper (INFORMS, 2020), “Great strategies are not simply planned or imposed; they are practiced — refined through action, adaptation, and lived experience.”
Traditional strategy has often been expressed through mission, vision, values, and objectives. These remain useful for clarity, but by themselves they risk reducing purpose to statements of intent rather than a lived, shaping force.
These foundations remain vital. Analytical rigour, market positioning, and operational excellence are indispensable to strategic success. Yet, as societal expectations evolve, these elements alone are no longer enough. Organisations today face pressures that extend beyond competition — sustainability, technological disruption, shifting cultural values, and the growing demand for authenticity and meaning.
“Purpose-Shaped Strategy™ enriches traditional strategy — adding depth and intent, so every decision expresses not only where an organisation is going, but why.”
From Foundations to Purpose-Shaped Strategy™
As research by Malnight, Buche, and Dhanaraj emphasises in “Put Purpose at the Core” (HBR, 2019), “Purpose is not a tagline or marketing message. It is a company’s fundamental reason for being, guiding strategy and decision-making.”
Strategy must therefore deepen, not discard, its roots. It must move beyond frameworks and advantage-seeking to address a more fundamental question: Why does the organisation exist, and how should that purpose shape every strategic decision?
This is where Purpose-Shaped Strategy™ emerges. It does not reject the insights of traditional strategy — rather, it enriches them. Building on the analytical strength of definitions like Whittington’s, it introduces a new dimension: strategy is not only about direction and advantage, but about alignment with deeper organisational purpose.
Through this lens, choices about resources, markets, and operations are no longer just means of outcompeting rivals. They become expressions of identity and conviction, shaping distinctive value and enduring impact.
Purpose-Shaped Strategy™ reframes strategy as a discipline of clarity, cohesion, and meaning — enabling organisations to navigate complexity not only with intelligence but with intent. It builds on the strengths of proven strategy models, ensuring that the resulting direction stands up to the most rigorous traditional approaches — while adding a layer of alignment and resilience that many lack.
“Strategy must move beyond advantage-seeking to answer a deeper question: why does the organisation exist?”
Our Approach: The Three-Stages of Purpose-Shaped Strategy™
This approach is brought to life through a clear three-stage process
We begin by assessing how well your organisation’s purpose aligns with strategy, culture, and operations. The Ten LOX Framework™ evaluates ten levers of excellence, providing a clear alignment map and highlighting where strengths can be built on and gaps addressed.
Building on these insights, we shape a clear strategic direction from your purpose outward. This stage defines the priorities, choices, and initiatives that will drive meaningful, lasting excellence — ensuring every decision aligns with your organisation’s reason for being.
The strategy is then embedded into daily practice using our seven-step ABCDEFG Methodology. This ensures changes are delivered, evaluated, and continuously refined so that excellence becomes part of how your organisation operates.
Through this three-stage process, Purpose-Shaped Strategy™ delivers more than a plan. It creates a cohesive, purpose-driven foundation for decision-making, execution, and sustained value creation.
“Purpose-Shaped Strategy™ enriches traditional strategy — adding depth and intent, so every decision expresses not only where an organisation is going, but why.”
Why This Matters for Modern Organisations
Strategy has always been about direction — a way to navigate uncertainty and create advantage. Yet, in today’s world, where societal expectations are shifting, technology is accelerating, and stakeholder scrutiny is intensifying, advantage alone is not enough.
Organisations must now deliver clarity of purpose, not just clarity of plan. They must inspire alignment across leadership, culture, and operations — forging strategies that do more than compete, but connect meaningfully with people, communities, and the environment.
Purpose-Shaped Strategy™ offers this evolution. It equips leaders to make decisions that are not only analytically sound but authentically grounded, ensuring that strategy delivers performance and meaning, impact and resilience, advantage and enduring value.
“Advantage alone is no longer enough — organisations must deliver clarity of purpose.”
A Deeper Dimension of Strategy
This transformation cannot be captured by conventional tools or one-off plans. It requires a deliberate shift in how strategy is conceived, delivered, and sustained — guided by purpose, measured through diagnostic insight, and embedded by design.
Through The Level Room, we will continue to explore this deeper dimension of strategy:
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How purpose reshapes strategic thinking.
How diagnostic tools like The Ten LOX Framework™ make excellence measurable.
How leaders can navigate complexity with conviction and create value that endures.
Strategy’s origins remind us that leadership is about direction and judgment. Its future demands a deeper dimension — one where purpose actively shapes strategy itself, inspiring excellence that endures.
At A New Level Advisory, this evolution is brought to life through Purpose-Shaped Strategy™, The Ten LOX Framework™, and and the ABCDEFG Methodology® — working together as a complete, three-stage process to help organisations navigate complexity with clarity, conviction, and lasting impact.
“Strategy’s future lies in purpose actively shaping decisions, culture, and lasting value."