Explore the common pitfalls that cause strategy execution to unravel and discover actionable solutions to ensure success.
Executing a well crafted strategy is critical for organizations to achieve their goals, but research shows that even the best strategies often unravel during execution. In their March 2015 Harvard Business Review article, "Why Strategy Execution Unravels," Donald Sull and his colleagues uncover why many companies struggle to turn their strategies into tangible results. Let’s explore the key challenges they identified and how you can address them to improve execution within your own organization.
1. Misaligned Priorities Across the Organization
One of the most significant barriers to successful strategy execution is misalignment in priorities. When different departments or teams don’t have a unified understanding of the company’s strategy, they may pursue conflicting objectives, undermining overall success.
Solution:
Create clear, companywide objectives that are communicated frequently and consistently. Regular check-ins and reviews can help ensure alignment and focus across departments, ensuring everyone is moving in the same direction.
2. Lack of Accountability
Without clear accountability, initiatives often stall, and progress is limited. When responsibility is spread too thin or undefined, individuals and teams may fail to take ownership of their tasks.
Solution:
Assign clear roles and responsibilities for each strategic objective. Hold individuals accountable by establishing specific, measurable, and timebound targets. Regular performance tracking ensures that everyone knows what they are responsible for and when it must be delivered.
3. Coordination Breakdowns
Large, complex organizations often struggle with coordination, especially when multiple teams or departments need to collaborate. Poor coordination can lead to duplicated efforts, wasted resources, and missed deadlines.
Solution:
Foster cross functional collaboration by establishing clear communication channels and coordination mechanisms. Encourage open dialogue between teams, set up regular interdepartmental meetings, and utilize project management tools to ensure that information flows freely and efficiently.
4. Overwhelming Complexity
Many companies face overwhelming complexity in their strategies, with too many initiatives happening simultaneously. This creates confusion, dilutes focus, and makes it hard for teams to concentrate on what really matters.
Solution:
Simplify your strategy by focusing on a few key priorities that align with your organization’s goals. Ensure that resources are adequately allocated to these initiatives and that teams are not overstretched. By reducing complexity, you’ll increase the chances of successful execution.
5. Communication Failures
Clear and consistent communication is vital to strategy execution. However, many organizations suffer from communication breakdowns, where top-level objectives are not effectively communicated to the front line, resulting in confusion and poor execution.
Solution:
Establish strong internal communication systems that ensure information flows seamlessly from top to bottom. Regularly communicate strategic goals, updates, and progress to all employees through meetings, newsletters, or digital platforms. Encouraging open dialogue at every level of the organization will also help prevent misunderstandings.
How to Succeed in Strategy Execution
While the challenges to strategy execution are many, overcoming them is possible with the right approach. By fostering alignment, ensuring accountability, promoting coordination, simplifying complexity, and strengthening communication, organizations can significantly improve their ability to execute their strategies successfully.
Remember, it’s not just about having a great strategy—it’s about making sure that strategy is executed effectively across all levels of the organization. By addressing these common pitfalls, you can ensure that your strategy turns into real results and sustained success.
Effective strategy execution requires constant attention to detail and a proactive approach to problem solving. As Donald Sull and his co-authors point out, understanding why execution unravels is the first step toward overcoming these obstacles. With the right focus and resources, any organization can master the art of executing its strategy.