Issue link: https://resources.esri.ca/i/1313392
20 | GEOSPATIAL STRATEGY ESSENTIALS FOR MANAGERS MATTHEW LEWIN The vision statement is meant to be aspirational. It should reach for something inspiring. That said, the statement itself is not overly critical— how you define it is what counts. Ideally, you will define your vision statement in collaboration with a select group of stakeholders. The importance is that people get a say in the direction of the geospatial strategy right from the start. It might take some effort and a few attempts, but collaboratively developing a vision statement helps to establish common ground and minimizes dissenting views. Guiding principles are your fundamental beliefs or behaviours. They are useful because they provide a short, sharp articulation of your geospatial program's philosophy. They also tend to be long-lived irrespective of changes in your strategy. In this way, they are ideal for showing traceability between your strategy and your vision (discussed in step 4). An example of a guiding principle from the City of Toronto's geospatial strategy is: "We treat geospatial data as a corporate asset. Location- based data is vital to city operations and must remain current, accurate and high quality." The desired business outcomes are statements of achievement. They're what you aim to accomplish, in business terms, through execution of the strategy. You should define the desired business outcomes in strategic terms and avoid the minutiae of tactical objectives. That said, they shouldn't be fluff. A good test is if metrics could be developed to measure the performance of each outcome. Outcomes like improved customer service or fewer safety incidents are examples of strategic business outcomes. For strategies covering many departments, try to cascade the outcomes. That means outcomes identified at a department level should align with and reinforce organization-level outcomes. You will probably identify many business outcomes, but try to keep it to a manageable set—enough to provide focus to your strategy. Step 3: Configure the Building Blocks At this point, you have a clear understanding of the business needs and a crisp definition of success. You're ready to build your strategy. In my experience, the best geospatial strategies focus on seven core building blocks (see below). The building blocks represent areas where you need to make strategic choices. These choices, when combined, represent your theory of success. The best geospatial strategies focus on seven core building blocks: business applications, data and data management, technology infrastructure, delivery processes, governance, workforce and culture. Business Applications Data & Data Management Technology Infrastructure Delivery Processes Governance Culture Workforce