The first conviction is the belief that internal operational knowledge substitutes for an external strategic perspective. This conflates two different kinds of knowledge, both of which are necessary to establish a strategic perspective in full.

The second conviction is that management consulting is for large corporations. In fact, smaller companies are the most exposed to the absence of an external strategic perspective, given their limited resources and their narrower margin for error.

The third conviction is that engaging an external party amounts to an admission of internal shortcoming. In fact, effective strategic direction rests on the ability to distinguish what can be assessed from within from what requires an independent external perspective.

Companies that delay addressing these convictions carry escalating costs: in time and resources spent on unsuitable paths, in opportunities forgone, and at times in the erosion of gains built over years.

An independent external perspective is not a crisis-resolution tool. It is the choice of leaders who seek to form a complete perspective before making their strategic decisions.