| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Leadership and Senior Management |
| Level | Leadership |
| Reports to | Chief Executive Officer |
| Direct reports | Strategy Managers, Corporate Development Lead, Business Analysts |
| Experience | 12+ years in strategy, consulting or corporate development, with senior leadership exposure |
Chief Strategy Officer job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Chief Strategy Officer
Department: Leadership and Senior Management
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Chief Strategy Officer helps the company decide where to play and how to win. They lead corporate strategy, planning, competitive analysis and often mergers and acquisitions, and turn the CEO's direction into concrete plans and projects. The role sits close to the CEO and works across every function. A good CSO brings sharp analysis to big decisions, spots threats and opportunities early, runs strategic projects to completion, and makes sure the annual plan actually connects to the long-term strategy.
Key responsibilities
- Lead the corporate strategy process, and turn the CEO's direction into a clear plan.
- Analyse markets, competitors and trends, and bring the findings into leadership decisions.
- Run the annual and long-range planning cycle, and connect it to the strategy.
- Evaluate new businesses, markets and partnerships, and build the case to enter or avoid them.
- Lead mergers, acquisitions and investments, from screening to due diligence to integration.
- Drive priority strategic projects across functions, and keep them on track to results.
- Build the fact base and models that leadership uses to make big decisions.
- Track the strategy's progress, and flag where the company is drifting from it.
- Prepare board material on strategy, competition and major decisions.
- Coach function heads to align their plans with the company's strategy.
Requirements
- MBA from a strong institute
- Graduate degree in engineering, economics or commerce
- Consulting or corporate development experience is an advantage
- 12+ years in strategy, consulting or corporate development, with senior leadership exposure
KRAs and KPIs for a Chief Strategy Officer
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Strategy delivery | Agreed strategic initiatives completed on time and to their targets |
| Planning quality | Annual plan approved on schedule and tied to the long-range strategy |
| Deal execution | Priority M and A or partnership deals closed within the agreed timeline |
| Market insight | Key market and competitor reviews delivered on the agreed cadence |
| Decision support | Major decision cases delivered on time with sound analysis |
| Integration | Acquired businesses integrated to the agreed milestones and synergies |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: Financial models, MS Excel, PowerPoint, Market research databases, BI dashboards.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Chief Operating Officer, Chief Executive Officer
Interview questions for a Chief Strategy Officer
- How would you build the three-year strategy for a company facing a new low-cost competitor?
- Walk me through an acquisition you evaluated and how you judged whether to proceed.
- How do you make sure a strategy actually gets executed and not just presented?
- How do you decide which new market the company should enter first?
- A function head disagrees with the strategy. How do you bring them along?
- How do you separate a real market trend from noise when advising the CEO?
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What does a Chief Strategy Officer do?
A Chief Strategy Officer leads corporate strategy, planning, competitive analysis and often mergers and acquisitions. They turn the CEO's direction into concrete plans, analyse markets and competitors, evaluate new businesses and deals, and drive priority strategic projects to completion. Their job is to help the company decide where to play and to make sure the strategy is executed.
What is the difference between a CSO and a COO?
A Chief Strategy Officer decides where the company should go and builds the plan to get there. A Chief Operating Officer runs the day-to-day operations that deliver it. Strategy looks years ahead, operations delivers this quarter. Some strategic projects start with the CSO and move to the COO once they become part of normal operations.
Who does a Chief Strategy Officer report to?
A Chief Strategy Officer usually reports to the Chief Executive Officer and works closely with the leadership team and board. Strategy managers, business analysts and corporate development leads report to the CSO. The role sits near the top so it can work across every function and influence the biggest decisions.