Why is it so hard to get things done?
Whether it’s a strategic plan gathering dust on a shelf or a major initiative that is behind schedule and over budget, subpar execution causes firms to underperform. The inefficiency also robs leaders of the bandwidth and personal balance they need to be strategic contributors.
It all adds up to a significant tax on success and fulfillment. And it doesn’t have to be that way.
A great resource for me is the book, “Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done” by Larry Bossidy, former CEO of AlliedSignal, and Ram Charan, a close advisor to Bossidy. A key point that has stuck with me is that execution is a discipline and a system, not just energetically chasing after a series of tactics. There are two elements I think will give you the most return for the least effort if you can master them.
Robust Dialogue
The first is having robust dialogue, which is how you clarify where you are compared to where you need to be and act upon it. It is how you raise the right questions, debate them, and find realistic solutions.
Dialogue is a core attribute of your culture and will determine how well your organization will function. Effective dialogue is candid and reality-based, not stilted and politicized. It need not be abrasive or intimidating, it should just rigorously explore hows and whats, tenaciously follow through, and ensure accountability. A healthy organization questions, debates, and makes commitments. Harmony can be the enemy of truth. When friends argue, truth happens.
Link Strategy to People and Operations
The second is to link your strategy explicitly with your people and your operating plan.
- Your strategy describes where you are, where you are going and how you will get there.
- Your operating plan provides the path for your people to follow the strategy and informs how you assign goals and objectives for the year.
- But success depends on having the right kind and number of people to execute on your strategy, and particularly to have people who know how to get things done.
If those three elements are not in balance, you need to adjust them to bring them into balance or you simply won’t execute effectively.
With any complex initiative, things will go off track. Success is determined by how narrow your guardrails are and how quickly you get back on the yellow line when things go astray. A bad execution system is like running uphill, into the wind, in deep sand. Make your life easier by creating a culture of robust dialogue and ensuring your strategies are realistically linked to your operating plans and your people’s capabilities, particularly their ability to get things done.