You can find insights from engaging with the world at times and in ways that you least expect it. A few days ago I was working with an association on a strategy session and we were using an article from the Harvard Business Review “Strategy as a Wicked Problem” (which if you are interested, can be ordered online at http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu). The author’s general premise is that “A wicked problem has innumerable causes, morphs constantly, and has no correct answer. It can be tamed, however, with the right approach.”
One of the approaches he describes is to “Explore and monitor the assumptions behind strategies.” Well, of course! If you think back to your last cross-cultural experience, didn’t you have to challenge any pre-conceived notions you might have had prior to your initial interactions? and then continue to “explore and monitor” those that came from further engagement or relationship building? This approach is really second nature to those that actively engage internationally, with great benefits in other aspects of an association’s strategy development.
If you look at the experiences of associations engaging with China in the article I wrote for the FORUM this month, they certainly found some “wicked” challenges: innumerable causes, morphs constantly, and has no correct answer! Succeeding with these type of “wicked challenges” in the international market can pay dividends to the association back at home if these lessons are then shared in other parts of the association. Try looking for these connections and you're sure to find some!
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