Why do strategists need quadrant thinking?

The Four Quadrants Principle is a time management theory proposed by the famous management scientist Stephen Covey. Excellent managers need to learn to use quadrant thinking. The author explains in detail what quadrant thinking is, how to use it, and gives examples to prove it. Let's take a look.

Quadrant thinking generally refers to four-quadrant thinking, and its form can also be divided into four major sections in the first quadrant.

At work, we often meet this type of people: when faced with complex problems, they can always unravel the problems, respond quickly, and find solutions.

It seems that they have various algorithms in their minds, and they can always transform huge amounts of data and information into practical knowledge and wisdom to solve problems.

In the process of sorting out past strategy systems, I found a simple and effective method - quadrant analysis method.

As the saying goes, "Tai Chi gives birth to two opposites, and two opposites give birth to four symbols." We can break down complex problems, find qualitative evaluation factors to measure the solution of the problem, and then find quantitative indicators. We can display the thinking path in the intuitive form of coordinate axes and find solutions to the problems.

Article Directory:

1. What is quadrant thinking?

2. How to use quadrant thinking well

3. Examples of quadrant thinking applications

1. What is quadrant thinking?

Before talking about quadrant thinking, let us start from the origin and find the essence of quadrant thinking.

Quadrant generally refers to the rectangular coordinate system, which is what we often call the four quadrants. It was proposed by the French philosopher and mathematician Descartes, mainly based on his thinking: geometric figures are intuitive, algebraic equations are abstract, how to combine the two, that is, to express equations through geometric figures, so that the points of the geometric figures are linked to each set of "numbers" that satisfy the equation?

The quadrant was born, but what lessons can it bring to brand marketers?

When we make a decision, we usually first find the measurement factor, which is the qualitative logic. Then we find the data indicator of this factor, which is equivalent to the quantitative dimension. Finally, we put the two in their proper positions in the quadrant diagram to quickly find the way out of the problem.

Therefore, from the perspective of practical strategic analysis, quadrant thinking can be defined as: when encountering a problem, find the measurement factors for solving the problem (usually two), and then quantify the factors and place them in a quadrant diagram to intuitively express the direction of choice.

2. How to use quadrant thinking well

The core of quadrant thinking is to simplify complex problems and visualize simple problems through graphics.

The first step is to define the problem and then ask questions about it to determine which are superficial problems and which are essential problems.

Then comes analyzing the problem. The strategy is to make choices. Analyzing the problem requires finding the logic of the choices and determining the qualitative factors.

The last step is to solve the problem. After finding the measurement factors, the next step is to implement the measurement standards, which is equivalent to the quantitative part.

At the data level, some questions do not have direct and specific quantitative data. You can break down the various factors as much as possible, and then measure the advantages and disadvantages of each party on this basis . Generally, you can score and judge from 1-5 points or 1-10 points.

3. Examples of the application of quadrant thinking

1. Case: Track selection (share & growth rate)

Analyze track selection from the market perspective

The market needs to select promising tracks, and can look at two factors: market share and industry growth rate. Market share indicates that the current plate is large enough, and past growth rates can determine future space expectations.

When we talk about choosing a track, what are we actually choosing?

From a market perspective, what matters is the ceiling layer. It is like fishing in a pond. First of all, there must be enough fish in the pond so that everyone can get a share of the fish, and more fish can be bred in the future.

We can use market share and growth rate as the horizontal and vertical axes respectively to divide the market into four quadrants.

(1) Large share, high growth: opportunity category;

(2) Small share, high growth: potential category;

(3) Large share, low growth: mature categories;

(4) Small share, low growth: avoid categories.

2. Case: Competition Analysis (SWOT Analysis)

There are two main factors to achieve favorable competition: the competitive environment and the competitive conditions. The former is the perspective of external opportunities and threats, while the latter is the logic of internal strengths and weaknesses.

Both the competitive environment and competitive conditions are relative and cannot be directly expressed in data. They need to be further divided. For example, the competitive environment mainly includes PEST (political, economic, social, technological), legal, and environmental protection layers, while the competitive conditions mainly include brand power, product power, channel power, capital power, etc.

These subdivided factors are scored according to different categories to draw relatively scientific conclusions.

3. Case: Classification of own product structure (Boston Matrix)

When planning a company's product portfolio, it is necessary to consider market gravity and corporate strength in order to take targeted measures.

When it comes to quantifiable data, it can be expressed in terms of market share and growth rate.

• Star products have high market share and high growth, and strategic resources are allocated to support rapid development.
• Products with low market share and high growth are problematic products. The company can learn from their strengths and overcome their weaknesses to develop them into star products.
• Products with high market share and low growth are cash cow products. We will maintain or gradually reduce investment and provide resources to support star products.
• Products with low market share and low growth are dog products, so we should adopt a withdrawal strategy to avoid wasting resources.

Summarize:

The quadrant method is mainly aimed at finding qualitative indicators and quantifiable data, with the aim of scientific analysis.

The reason why this method is reusable is that it is a way of simplifying complex problems . Not only does it have a specific method, but it can also correspond to multiple scenarios, achieving the effect of learning from one example and applying it to other situations.

Author: Zang Feng

WeChat public account: Strategy person Zangfeng (ID: clrcf2020)