In the article “The 7 questions for a strong Portfolio Strategy”, several readers pointed that a Portfolio should serve a vision. This is correct, so here are a few thoughts and tips about what is also called “the top of the strategy pyramid”.

Even if the business world is often fast paced and down to earth, great ideas and enterprises start with a founder’s dream that seems, crazy and unattainable. Think of J.F. Kennedy and his dream to go to the moon by the end of the 60’s. It certainly seemed crazy then. Today Elon Tusk wants to go to Mars… What will we say in a few years?

We also call these “visions” and can be expressed into a single sentence, easy to remember across the organisation. Go to the moon. Easy. The power of these visions can transform society, build value and bring out the best in us. The methods to create visions are many and include paper board collage, writing the headline of a business paper or writing an article which describes the success story… These exercises are very powerful when conducted as a group to create a strong sense of ownership and leadership.

The definition of a vision is not the privilege of a few founders or only valid at a company level ; defining a vision is perfectly possible for a team or a brand. At Brand Reveal, when we help build a brand offer, we feel it is important to build its vision because it will trigger & shape shape growth plans, and put teams in an action mode.

But before working on plans, the ambition and mission, need to be expressed. Once defined, these pave the way for the strategy and this is where a Portfolio Strategy is likely to kick in…