Strategic Thinking

I recently attended a "management strategy and communications" course. I was initially drawn to the communications part, of learning how to properly structure the words to senior executives so that they understand the message and know what actions need to be undertaken.

I obviously did not read the course in much detail, or really the title of the course, as there was a whole day (it's a two day course) spent on defining management strategy.

I'm starting to understand how "tactical" my job really is, focusing on deliverables and milestones. As part of the course, defining a strategy is always about understanding the market differentiators, what makes "us" better than the competition. From the market differentiators, this should (hopefully) lead to some insights that will determine the strategy and hence strategic objectives.
What was an even more shocking realisation is how little I understand or appreciate the ways that the company makes money. It was a revelation to see the breakdown of the profits (via our annual reports), and see the trends of where money can be made.

To me, "strategic thinking" is quite an foreign concept, but one that I should grasp and master if I am to do my next job properly. There's even a line "develop a vision for the region" which is causing all sorts of anxieties.

My boss defined "strategic thinking" as "testing a certain theory against as many scenarios as you can, and the one that gives the best outcome is the one you go with". Thinking about that a bit more, is it really the flip side risk analysis, when you think of everything that can go wrong by taking a certain course?

I'm glad I did this course. Perhaps I could become a strategic thinker in the future!