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Strategy vs Vision
Leadership / Dualities
Vision is the destination. Strategy is the route.
Vision
- An inspiring picture of the future.
- Doesn't change often.
- Motivates and aligns.
- Example: "Every developer can deploy to production in under 10 minutes."
Strategy
- The plan to get to the vision.
- Adapts as you learn.
- Prioritises and constrains.
- Example: "We'll invest in a shared CI/CD platform and deprecate team-specific pipelines."
Why Both Are Needed
- Vision without strategy is a dream. Inspiring but useless.
- Strategy without vision is a list of tasks. Efficient but directionless.
The Test
- Vision test: Can everyone on the team describe where you're going in their own words?
- Strategy test: Can everyone explain how you're getting there and what you're saying no to?
If either answer is no, you have work to do.
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