7S Checklist Questions

7S Checklist Questions

Here are some of the questions that you'll need to explore to help you understand your situation in terms of the 7S framework. Use them to analyze your current situation first, and then repeat the exercise for your proposed situation.

Strategy:

• What is our strategy?
  
• How do we intend to achieve our objectives?
  
• How do we deal with competitive pressure?
  
• How are changes in customer demands dealt with?
  
• How is strategy adjusted for environmental issues?

Structure:

• How is the company/team divided?
  
• What is the hierarchy?
  
• How do the various departments coordinate activities?
  
• How do the team members organize and align themselves?
  
• Is decision making and controlling centralized or decentralized? Is this as it should be, given what we're doing?
  
• Where are the lines of communication? Explicit and implicit?

Systems:

• What are the main systems that run the organization? Consider financial and HR systems as well as communications and document storage.
  
• Where are the controls and how are they monitored and evaluated?
  
• What internal rules and processes does the team use to keep on track?

Shared Values:

• What are the core values?
  
• What is the corporate/team culture?
  
• How strong are the values?
  
• What are the fundamental values that the company/team was built on?

 

Style:

• How participative is the management/leadership style?
  
• How effective is that leadership?
  
• Do employees/team members tend to be competitive or cooperative?
  
• Are there real teams functioning within the organization or are they just nominal groups?

 

Staff:

• What positions or specializations are represented within the team?
  
• What positions need to be filled?
  
• Are there gaps in required competencies?

Skills:

• What are the strongest skills represented within the company/team?
  
• Are there any skills gaps?
  
• What is the company/team known for doing well?
  
• Do the current employees/team members have the ability to do the job?
  
• How are skills monitored and assessed?