The Importance of Shared Community Learning in Strategy Execution

A complete strategy execution program depends upon the power of a shared community learning. First, the power of community is required to change the economics for implementing such a program within small and midsized organizations. Second,learning is required to overcome the natural tendency of individuals and organizations to wander from the very disciplines that can deliver them from the status quo.

It’s a tall order to build a community that agrees to share these attributes. Even though it’s difficult, it’s worth the effort, because well-formed communities accelerate learning.

BOTTOMLINE:

The Execution Revolution will be built around communities with the following characteristics:

• A belief that their ultimate core competence is the ability to execute their strategy.
• A shared repeatable methodology that organizes their efforts to execute better.
• Strategy execution coaches who are experts in the repeatable methodology they share.
• Shared technology (an execution software system) to help integrate planning and
  activity alignment at all levels of the organization.
• Active communities in the Execution Revolution consist of communities with these titles: coaches, leadership teams, initiative teams, team leader and team members and cross-company roles.
• Among adult learners, the biggest barrier to fostering a learning community is pride. For senior leadership, the only way to remove this barrier is to display a passion for learning how to execute strategy effectively.
• Of all the four components of a complete program – a repeatable methodology, strategy execution coaching, an execution software system and a shared learning community – the learning community has the most transforming power.

(Excerpted from Chapter 10, Six Disciplines Execution Revolution, by Gary Harpst)