Date: 13 July, 2021

Strategy and tactics are often confused with each other. To help you differentiate between the two, I’ll use a simple analogy that you can easily remember and doesn’t rely on technical jargon.

What is a strategy?

A strategy is the long-term path or approach that an organization takes to achieve its goals. Please note the most important that it’s not the goal itself, nor is it a list of features or a roadmap.

What is a tactic?

On the other hand, a tactic is a concrete step that an organization takes to achieve smaller goals within a shorter time frame. A good tactic is purposeful and supports the overall strategy.

The difference?

Let’s use the analogy of climbing a mountain to understand the difference.

                    ***Strategy is akin to defining the side of the mountain one should climb***

Imagine your goal is to climb a mountain, then your strategy would be — What side of the mountain will you climb —let’s call it “The Chosen Side (TCS).”

Tactics are the specific steps you take to climb along TCS, such as

1. What gear to buy?
2. What is the right season to climb?
3. Who do you climb with?

If your strategy changes i.e if you choose a different side of the mountain to climb, your tactics will also need to change accordingly.

Your strategy to climb TCS will inform your tactics. Tactics will change if your strategy changes i.e if you choose a different side than TCS to climb, you might want to get some additional gear like ladders and ice screws if there is a treacherous crevasse (remember the Khumbu Icefall along Mt. Everest if you’ve seen the movie?) to climb along TCS. You might also want to take a Sherpa who is more experienced at climbing along TCS as compared to a lesser experienced Sherpa.

What are the characteristics of a good strategy?