Successful strategy execution has two basic rules: understand the management cycle that links strategy and operations, and know what tools to apply at each stage of the cycle
Management cycle that links strategy and operations
1. Strategy development
2. Translating strategy into objectives and initiatives
3. Creating an operational plan
4. Putting plans into action
5. Testing the strategy
Strategy development
Springs from a company's mission, vision, and value statements, and from an analysis of its strengths, weaknesses, and competitive environment
Translating strategy into objectives and initiatives
Use strategy maps to organize objectives by themes, and balanced scorecards to link objectives to performance metrics
Creating an operational plan
Includes targeting process improvements and preparing sales, resource, and capacity plans and dynamic budgets
Putting plans into action
Monitor effectiveness, review operational, environmental, and competitive data, assess progress, and identify barriers to execution
Testing the strategy
Analyze cost, profitability, and correlations between strategy and performance, and update the strategy if underlying assumptions appear faulty
The management cycle incorporates leading management experts' frameworks, outlining where they fit into the management cycle
Not long after its successful IPO, the Conner Corporation (not its real name) began to lose its way
The company's senior executives continued their practice of holding monthly one-day management meetings, but their focus drifted
