Breaking down the fundamentals of media management
Your company’s vision is the big change you wish to bring about, while your strategy is how you plan to achieve it, says Henrik Keith Hansen at IMS.
Takeaways
Very few startups succeed. Creating a clear startup strategy won’t guarantee success, but it will certainly help your chances.
Before developing your strategy it is important to understand what your company is.
Start with management fundamentals, like core values, mission, and points of difference. From there, formulate your vision.
Implement your strategy and evaluate it constantly. Be flexible and unafraid to adjust.
Ultimately, strategy is about change management and how to keep your organization engaged in a constant atmosphere of agility.
Context
Henrik Keith Hansen has an extensive background in media and journalism. He specializes in media strategy.
Hansen is Media Management Advisor at our partner International Media Support (IMS), a non-profit working to support local media and promote press freedom across the globe.
Hansen made a return appearance to Beta to discuss the foundations of organizational development and strategy in media startups.
The strategy process
Get your management fundamentals in place. These include values, mission, points of difference. This only needs to be done once.
Formulate your vision. Some companies reformulate over time while others strive for their vision eternally.
Develop, implement, communicate, and evaluate your strategy. Repeat often, every 1-3 years.
Management fundamentals
Core Values: Who are you? Core values are at the heart of your company. They shape culture, dictate employee behavior, and guide decision-making.
Develop a clear set of 3-5 company values and continuously communicate them both internally and to the outside world.
Core values should be more than buzzwords. Translate them into concrete actionable items and ensure they are integrated into the daily work of every employee.
Establishing a set of values that are shared with your audience can help you create a (potentially monetizable) sense of community.
Keep your values simple. There is no need to overcomplicate them.
Mission: Why are you here? A mission statement should be set in the present and explain why your startup exists.
A strong mission includes a promise to your audience and inspires support from your staff.
Let your core values guide your mission statement.
Don’t confuse your mission (why you exist in the present) with a vision (dreams for the future).
Differentiation: What is your competitive advantage?
The red ocean strategy vs blue ocean strategy can be used to help understand differentiation.
In a red ocean, businesses compete in existing market spaces by beating the competition and exploiting existing demand.
In a blue ocean, companies create uncontested market spaces where they make the competition irrelevant. This allows them to create and capture new demand.
In order to be truly competitive as a startup, embrace the blue ocean strategy.
Vision
Where are you headed? Your vision defines what you hope to achieve in the future. Think of it as your dream scenario.
Visions can exist either at a broader societal level or at an internal company level. Some companies have both.
The best visions include great inspirational value, a clear measure of success, and (for the brave) a specific time frame. Think of JFK’s 1961 goal “to land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth before the end of the decade.”
Strategy
A well-developed strategy creates a direction for the whole organization with clear goals and a path to follow.
Great strategy emphasizes your company’s points of difference compared to others that exist in the same market.
The strategic goals of a media startup can be broken down into five categories: content production, technology/platforms, business/revenue streams, organization/safety, and audience/outreach.
Your strategy is not your company’s goals but rather the path you will take to reach them.
Your strategy is also not your operational plan.