Jump-Start Your Plan of Strategy

Eric Kurjan, president of Six Disciplines Northwest Ohio, brings us this article called "Jump-Start Your Plan of Strategy," as published in the Toledo Free Press.

An excerpt of the article:

Clearly, it takes more than an annual meeting to lead a company toward its goals. A 2007 survey by the American Management Association found only 3% of executives said their companies are successful at executing strategy. Over 60% admitted only moderate success - or worse - at strategy execution.

For small and mid-sized organizations, executing strategy is hindered by three primary challenges:

1. Economics. While larger businesses can invest significantly in resources like consultants, coaching, systems and software, small and mid-sized businesses cannot afford these investments.

2. Expertise. Larger enterprises have experts in disciplines like strategic planning, performance management, business intelligence, and balanced scorecards. Small and mid-sized businesses don't have access to this wide array of expertise.

3. Human Factors. All businesses have the same fundamental challenge: they're run by people. We know the right things to do, but we don't always do them. Organizational behavior, attitudes, motivation, habits and resistance to change are just some of the factors that contribute to poor execution.

Read the entire article here.