You can improve your chances of steering the conversation and securing others’ understanding - and agreement - if you make a visual model of what you want to say, the point you want to make, the situation as you see it.
Research by Paroutis, Franco and Papadopoulos, written up in the British Journal of Management, found that visual models boost the shared perspective and progress the debate.
So, here is the real value of the BCG Growth Share Model, the GE Matrix and a thousand other strategy tools taught in Business Schools. Yes, they remind us of what we need to think about, what we need to analyse. But the true value is that they create a common view of the issue in hand. Literally, a common view.
And that is essential. Because the development of strategy and plans is a social process. We want people to share a common view of the situation and the plan.
When do they reach that shared view? The offsite workshop, the Board presentation, the team talk at the white board …they are all the moments of truth for the development of what we plan to do. This is where the matrix comes in, the five forces, the 7S. Each one may be based on rigorous academic development BUT for practising managers models are to be used to structure work, show the structure of the work, and frame the presentation and the discussion that comes.
So, make a chart. Fill it in together. It’s a skill that may be declining as we go digital. The research says you should design the process of your meeting not only around the issues you want to discuss but also around the ways visual interactions will be used during the workshop.