The new year is an opportune time to pause and refocus. As we begin 2015, we like to ask ourselves a few questions to align our efforts with our organization's goals. Here are four questions every CEO should ask him or herself about strategy this year.
1. Key leadership. Identify your top leaders. Do you have a clear line of communication with those leaders? Are you in regular communication with them? Are they developing and managing their teams? Do you and they actively develop the next set of leaders?
2. Clear goals. Does your organization have clear objectives and goals? How well have you communicated these objectives and priorities for the next three months and the next year?
3. Building around strengths. Reexamine the market and your organization's position in the market. Do you look at what is working well in terms of profits and revenues, as well as other efforts? Should you redouble efforts around those things that are working well? Are there additional opportunities that are adjacent to these efforts?
4. Key threats. Pinpoint the top three or four threats to your organization. How significant are they? What can you do to reduce exposure to these threats?
Asking these four questions can help sharpen your vision and lay the groundwork for more efficient, productive leadership.