What is StratML?
StratML, or Strategy Markup Language, is the ISO standard for strategy plans and performance reports.
It is an XML-based standard for communicating the type of content typically found in strategic plans and performance reports in machine-readable format.
You can learn more about StratML at:
- divisions within large groups and multi-nationals to communicate their strategic intent and performance to their divisional or global headquarters,
- startups to communicate their strategic intent and performance to funders and venture capitalists.
- any business which needs to communicate with regulators, stock exchanges, investors and/or rating agencies.
Working with StratML in StratNavApp.com
There are four ways of working with StratML in StratNavApp.com:
- You can generate the StratML for your strategy on a one-off basis by selecting "Reports & StratML" at the bottom of the Strategy Board, then selecting your options and clicking "Generate StratML". This will generate a one-time StratML output, which you can copy and save if you want.
To see such an example of StratML in action, here is a description of StratNavApp and its goals in StratML format. - You can publish your plan as 'public' StratML by clicking "Edit this project" at the bottom of the Strategy Board and then ticking the "Make StratML public" box. Your project will not appear on the list of public StratML (see next point) and will be automatically updated every time you update your plan.
By default, the StratML generated by StratNavApp is only available to registered users of the specific projects to which it relates, but there is also an option to make StratML for specific projects available to the general public (if confidentiality is not a concern). - You can see the other plans where people have made the StratML or HTML renditions of their plans public at Public Projects
- Finally, you can create a new project in StratNavApp.com by importing an existing StratML from the web. Click the 'hamburger menu' icon at the top left of the page, then select "Projects" from the drop-down menu. Finally, click the second round button: "Import".
StratML Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3
There are three versions of the StratML Standard: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.
Part 2 is an evolution of Part 1 and contains everything in Part 1 plus more. Part 3 is an evolution of Part 2 and contains everything in Part 2 plus more.
Which version you use depends on what you intend to do with it.
- If you intend to upload the StratML into another system, it depends on which version of the standard the other system can support. That is, it is a question of system compatibility.
- You can use a lower version of the standard if you only want the information that version includes, and to exclude the information included in a higher level of the standard.
StratML Stylesheets
StratML is primarily designed to "machine-readable". That is, it is optimised to make it easier for machines to read it.
This means it is not always easy for people to read it.
Stylesheets provide a thin veneer across the top of StratML that makes it easier for people to read the content. It does not change the underlying machine-readable format.
