The term strategy originates from the military It connotes military operations and movements in a war or battle. In business, strategy can be defined as a plan of action or policy designed to achieve a major or overall aim. Execution is defined as the carrying out or putting into effect of a plan, order, or course of action.

Therefore, strategy execution can be defined as the carrying out of a plan, implementing a plan that is set to achieve a major overall aim in a business or company. Business leaders must be fully acquainted with strategy execution.

Strategy can be as simple as planning a day to as complicated as making a plan for a big organization. The challenge is not whether one has a strategy. The challenge is how one plans to execute it. A strategy, no matter how minor or major needs an execution plan. This is called the strategy within a strategy. This is the most difficult part of strategic planning and management. Execution is not possible unless all the stakeholders are involved and are clear of their roles in the strategy.

There are several mainstream approaches to strategy execution propagated by some notable authors and strategic management consultants. Let us look at some of these approaches.

Strategy execution as a process

According Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan, the heart of execution lies in three core processes. People, Strategy and Operations. This suggests that if people are involved in the strategy then the strategy can be operationalized and executed. It is however important to note that the execution of strategy can sometimes take a long time. Sometimes strategy execution means laying off people and this can be a tedious process. The process of execution must be noted from the initial stage of strategy and all variables put into consideration.

Strategy execution as a system

Every business must have a running system. The system must accommodate the strategic plan of the business and its execution. One of the most effective ways to execute strategy is to accommodate it in the system. Strategy execution cannot be effective if not accommodated in the management system of the business. Robert S. Kaplan, a professor at Harvard Business School, and David P. Norton present their management system, which houses six sequential stages intended to help organizations capture what they call an “execution premium”. measurable increase in value derived from successful strategy execution. They outline six stages in this system. These are develop the strategy, plan the strategy, align the organization, plan operations, monitor and learn and test and adapt

Strategy execution as a step-by-step process

Both of the above approaches to strategy execution are important to all managers and all serious managers must be familiar with them. But the above approaches do not yet pinpoint to a clear direction on how to execute. Ed Barrows, a management researcher and lecturer at Babson College and Boston College as well as a strategy and performance coach, who is also highly rated by AMA course leader in the areas of strategic planning and strategy execution, offers a ten step-by-step strategy execution plan. 

Step 1: Visualize the strategy

One of the most pressing challenges is simply understanding what a strategy is. An effective way to improve this understanding is to visualize the strategy via an illustration that shows both the important elements of the strategy and how each relates to one another. Frameworks such as the Strategy Map by Kaplan and Norton, the Activity Map by Michael Porter, or the Success Map by Andy Neely help in this regard.

Step 2: Measure the strategy

Key elements of the visualized strategy should be assigned and easily understood performance measure. The full set of strategic performance measures can be organized into a dashboard, a balanced scorecard, or some other framework so the leader can determine that progress is being made toward completion of the strategy.

Step 3: Report progress

In the same way that a budget is reviewed monthly to ensure financial commitments are being kept, the strategy should be reviewed regularly, but with more of an eye towards determining if the strategy is producing results versus controlling performance.

Step 4: Make decisions

Strategy execution is much like sailing a boat towards a planned destination. A defined course and a full complement of navigational charts will never eliminate the need to remain vigilant, to assess the environment, and to make corrections as conditions change. As part of the regular reporting process, leaders must make ongoing strategic decisions to keep the strategy current and on course.

Step 5: Identify strategy projects

Organizations may have scores, if not hundreds, of projects ongoing at any point, but they rarely have a firm grasp on the type and range of these projects. The first step in improving project-oriented strategy execution is to capture and organize all projects—strategy projects in particular—that are underway throughout an organization.

Step 6: Align strategy projects

Once projects are captured, they must then be aligned to the strategies or goals for the organization. This step entails comparing each project, either proposed or ongoing, to the strategic goals to determine if alignment exists. Only those projects that directly impact the strategy should be resourced and continued.

Step 7: Manage projects

Organizations must develop a capability in project management if they are to execute strategy effectively. In some settings, projects receive very little management. In others, projects persist well beyond their scheduled completion. The full complement of projects in any organization should be coordinated and controlled by a central project office or officer with the responsibility for monitoring both progress and performance.

Step 8: Communicate strategy

It is difficult to execute strategy when the strategy itself isn’t well understood, or performance relative to it is not communicated. Leaders must communicate their visualized strategy to the workforce in a way that will help them understand not only what needs to be done, but why.

Step 9: Align individual roles

Employees want to know they are making a meaningful contribution to their organization’s success. It’s up to senior leaders to ensure that employees at all levels can articulate and evaluate their personal roles toward achievement of specific strategic goals. This is perhaps one of the most critical aspects of the execution process.

Step 10: Reward performance

In strategy execution, as in any other area of management, what gets measured gets done. Taking this one step further, what get measured and rewarded gets done faster. After explaining the strategy and aligning the workforce to it, senior managers institute the incentives that drive behaviours consistent with the strategy.

Strategy execution is difficult in practice for many reasons, but a key impediment to success is that many leaders don’t know what is strategy execution or how they should approach it. Home-grown approaches may be incomplete if they fail to incorporate many of the basic activities highlighted above.

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