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The word “unprecedented” is frequently used by leaders today, particularly when considering the range and scale of challenges confronting them. In some cases, things may well be unprecedented. But in others, there are in fact deep precedents. What’s new is often what’s old. As historian Niall Ferguson wrote in The Times in January, “wherever you look, the issues of our time are issues our great-grandfathers debated 120 years ago.”
History has value, in other words. And unlocking that value can be a powerful stimulant to corporate strategy in volatile times.
From our own experiences and research, we know that looking backwards to move forwards does not always come naturally to the C-suite. So, it is an understandable instinct for some members of senior management to be skeptical about the ROI of history. Meanwhile, people sitting around the boardroom table don’t often feel informed and comfortable enough to discuss lessons from an organization’s past.
But our experience also says exploring history offers a return on investment that is all too often ignored or ineffectively tapped. With this in mind, we suggest Canada’s leaders reach more purposefully into their organization’s history. By exploring how predecessors steered through the choppy waters of yesteryear, organizational leaders will likely gain some deep insights that can inform strategy-making today.
Depending on the firm’s age and sector, it may have successfully navigated regional and global wars, pandemics, multiple recessions, and periods of profound demographic and technological change. The firm may also have pivoted back and forth to different export markets. Whether it thrived in previous eras of challenge is secondary to the fact that the organization survived them because of decisions taken at the time.
By exploring how predecessors steered through the choppy waters of yesteryear, organizational leaders will likely gain some deep insights that can inform strategy-making today.
Leaders can also try to assess the outcomes of decisions taken during periods of instability by assessing the firm’s performance before, during, and after the period being analyzed. Firms may find it useful to reflect on the rationale and assumptions that underpinned their previous choices of “where to play (and when)?” as they expanded. If these assumptions are no longer valid, how do they pivot in their strategy?
Mining the value of history is not an exercise limited to organizations founded many decades ago. Leaders of new defence-industry firms, for instance, can tap into Canada’s long experience in this sector to find valuable information and inspiration about rapidly scaling innovation in light of growing conflicts. This history might be particularly important for firms seeking to engage with the new Defence Investment Agency or the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank.
Scaling strategy with history
There is no question in our minds that today’s leaders should seek strategic insights from history. But how they should do it is a question that can be harder to answer.
Most organizations keep some primary sources from the past in their archives, especially documents on their strategy provided to, and discussed with, their boards. Reflecting on the firm’s own track record of successful and unsuccessful choices in the evolution of their customer value proposition, as well as reflecting on the choices made by competitors, can be a treasure trove for understanding the drivers of both successes and failures.
Learning how an organization made its first investment in automation, for instance, may illuminate the benefits and/or pitfalls of deploying new technology today, at speed and scale.
As well, many organizations maintain both internal communications materials and external announcements, such as media releases, of significant actions taken by them. Another great source of historical information can be publications for milestone celebrations, many of which were created for internal stakeholders. These materials can enhance employee engagement, help to differentiate the organization’s brand, and share the knowledge and expertise of past leadership. If possible, current leaders could consider inviting former leaders to share their knowledge about the organization’s past, with a view towards surfacing insights relevant to the present and future.
Management may want to consider whether this purposeful and reflective analysis is useful as support and background for regular discussions with board members in the context of ongoing adjustments to its strategy. It may also be helpful to expedite decision-making in times of crisis.
While not all firms are blessed with rich and credible historical records, local, provincial, and national archives are full of relevant secondary and primary sources, some of which have been digitized. The advent of AI to search internal and third-party digitized sources for historical perspectives is of course also a gold mine for organizations seeking to use insights from their past to inform the navigation of their future.
The imagination impulse
The complexity and networked nature of the digital age compel leaders to be
imaginative in applying and adapting their skills to create and execute strategies. In so doing, more leaders should take a strategic interest in their respective organization’s history as they bolster foresight skills to manage risks, navigate uncertainties, and model plausible potential futures.
Being imaginative in this sense does not mean fabricating or perpetuating organizational myths created from, or about, some bygone era. It’s quite the opposite. It means having the courage and capacity to delve into the firm’s past to look for insights that might be adaptable to the challenges of today and tomorrow.
About Author
Barbara Stymiest is a corporate director and volunteer in the non-profit sector, where she brings her experience and track record from a long career in financial services. She is a graduate of the HBA program at Ivey and also received a degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from Western University.
Steven Bright is a seasoned corporate consultant currently pursuing his PhD in history at the University of Edinburgh, drawing on more than 30 years in the private sector. He has degrees from McGill, Western, and the Royal Military College of Canada.