Tweet

How to take Strategy and Turn It into Results

Written by: Jonathan Goldhill

Article Overview: Nothing great has ever been achieved without strategy. Strategy is what builds skyscrapers, wins super bowls, launches space shuttles and puts companies on the Fortune 500 list. Yet if you were to ask many business owners to define strategy, they would fall short of being able to tell you what it means. The word probably exists as one of the most misunderstood words in business language.

How to take Strategy and Turn It into Results

Nothing great has ever been achieved without strategy. Yet if you were to ask many business owners to define strategy, they would fall short of being able to tell you what it means. The word probably exists as one of the most misunderstood words in business language.

Wikipedia defines strategy as a long term plan of action used to achieve a particular goal, most often “winning.” Strategic planning (Wikipedia defines) is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people.

Strategic planning should be involved in every aspect of your company’s growth if growth is to take place in a way that’s quick and painless. Planning is important, but having a clear and simple plan is even more important!

Some companies operate with multiple plans in place while some others may have no plan in place at all. But, how many of those plans are well thought out? When you run your business in a more abstract manner, expecting the “unsaid” to be understood, you don’t move in a linear, targeted direction toward your goal. As a result, you land into what I call the pitfalls of strategic planning.

Having a well-defined process for conducting your strategic planning is important. Do you have one? Clarifying and communicating the vision for the company is important. Also, setting the goals for next year and defining the strategies and tactics to support the achievement of those goals is important. When you’ve successfully accomplished this, your strategic plan is complete. But, then it’s time to execute them. Our research says organizations achieve only 60% of their strategies and that fully 50% of all projects fail to achieve their objectives.

So, what are the pitfalls that can occur in strategic planning? Here are 5 “traps” among 15‐20 we’ve identified that can occur and how to avoid each.

1) People don’t exactly understand the plan so they begin to make it up and add their own pieces of input.

How to avoid: Leave no stone unturned in the communication process. Test your team to make sure that your message is received well and understood from management to staff. Meet regularly to review the plan and discuss what’s holding us back from successful execution of it.

2) People start to fight over power of who’s in charge of what in an almost “survival of the fittest” fashion or mentality.

How to avoid: Spell out exactly who’s in charge of each initiative and for how long. Clearly indicate that they are the initiative champion and get others enrolled on their team to work on that project. Define the power structure in such a way that power within your strategy is never simply “up for grabs,” shared or has no single person who is accountable for the outcome. Give a timeline for which the task is to be finished by the person in charge.

3) People try to resolve conflict on their own and in unconstructive ways. This leaves the strategy hung up in ill‐emotion and unresolved conflict.

How to avoid: Create a conflict resolution board: when people are in conflict have them go before or submit an email to explain the nature of the problem. The board should be able to create a solution to the problem that is done within a window of three to four hours. If the original board members are occupied, have board alternates that are on call for conflict resolution. If you are the owner and the sole board member extra care is required to judge fairly and reasonably.

4) People become discouraged because they lose focus as they see the goal as something separate from their position or responsibilities. They lose momentum and enthusiasm dealing with the tyranny of everyday priorities. And, lose sight of what’s important in favor of what’s more urgent.

How to avoid: Create weekly pep rallies to reignite old enthusiasm midweek. Draw pictures of the overall goal. Let people see it and understand what you’re working for again and again. The goal has to become part of them and something they will benefit from. Reward people for reaching the goal. Hold people accountable for failing to follow though.

5) Communication breaks down between departments.

How to avoid: Communications workshops within your company can give insight into ourselves and the other people we work closely with. Practice better communications skills that foster understanding between people.

Strategic planning is something that should be celebrated as a way of bringing people together to share in a common vision or goal. You are simply creating a common language in which the whole team can understand. You are looking for your whole team to be on the same page.

Related Articles
  Is Cold Calling Dead?
  Content Strategy: Your Online Site
  4 Must Know Strategies To Thrive In Any Economy
  Make Money at Home With Little Or No Investment! ~EXPOSED CASH MAGNET
  How to Guarantee Success With the Right Internet Marketing Strategy! ~SUCCESS SECRET EXPOSED

Article Tags: abstract manner, business language, business owners, making decisions, pitfalls, simple plan, strategic plan, strategic planning, traps, wikipedia



Related Forum Posts
Book: Secrets of Six Figure Women - Secrets of Six Figure Women: Surprising Strategies to up your earning and change your life Barbara Stanny, 2002 Jacket: Maybe you've noticed - a subtle trend is gathering steam. Quietly and steadily, the number of women making six figures or more is increasing, and it continues to rise at a rate faster than for men. From entrepreneurs to corporate executives, from white collar executives to free lancers and part timers, women are forging careers with considerable financial success. Through extensive research and hundreds of interviews, including dialogs with more than 150 high earners whose annual incomes range from $100,000 to 7 million, Stanny discovered that ...they all had certain traits in common: 1) a profit motive 2) Audacity 3) REslience 4) Encouragement 5) Self-awareness 6) Non-attachment 7) Financial knowhow She amplifies on these in the book itself. Table of Contents Intro: Welcome to the era of the six-figure woman 1. The Queen in the Countinghouse 2. The Lowdown on low earners 3. Raising the bar 4. Strategy 1: The Declaration of Intention 5. Strategy 2: Letting go of the ledge 6. Strategy 3: Get in the Game 7. Strategy 4: Speak Up 8. Strategy 5: The Stretch 9. Strategy 6: Seek Support 10. Strategy 7: Obey the rules of money 11. Claiming our power Appendces: Resources and websites Tips for getting out of dent Investing Basics: Wealthbuilding 101
Re: What can you do if your franchise is hit by a scandal? - GT - Brilliant Strategy... What can I add? I'm at a loss for words...so I'll shut up now...
Re: Ways to Boost Productivity - 1. Give Employees More Than a Paycheck 2. Provide Better eSupport Channels to Promote Self-Service 3. Complete your most dreaded tasks first thing in the morning. 4. Outsource as much as possible 5. . Turn off the TV.
Introducing a Learner - Hi everybody, It is really my pleasure being around so many Entrepreneurs and strategic minds. Strategy is something I always loved and eager over every new move. Being a newbie I would need your support and I hope I would get that. Thanks Stephen
On Escalade - I've seen the ad for "Turn you on" on TV here in Toronto but not the others. Yeah my girlfriend liked that ad too and started telling me wouldn't it be great to have one, I had to quickly remind her that one of the reasons we moved downtown was so that we could get rid of the car and plus we don't have a parking space for it. Honestly, I was seriously considering it.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

SEO Gurus, Software and Ebooks

Your Local Small Business Online Marketing Funnel

Why We MUST Reinvent The Wheel

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.