Last updated on March 13, 2020
Businesses dive into the competitive world with excellent strategies on paper, but fail at the execution level. Then there are some businesses who not only make good strategies but execute them as well successfully.
What could be difference?
Probably the thought process could be different.
The research has proved superior-performing organizations have skilled (read certified) business strategist who help the organization in translating the strategy into a desired business results. They know business strategy and leadership strategy are intimately related and without each other would be defunct.
Another reason why superior-performing organizations executed their strategies so well because of the one core characteristics of the executives was their ability to recognize the relationship between a successful formulation and execution of a coherent business strategy and a robust leadership strategy. This perception helped to escalate the decisions about leadership development to the strategic level.
This is where the major difference between the superior-performing organizations and under-performing organizations lie.
When a business strategist in a top-performing organization build a strategy, she also ensures to take a close and hard look at the firm’s ability pull-off those strategies. By pulling off strategies she is trying to figure out a company’s ability to implement the strategies successfully along with ensuring a parallel process are rolling to develop the required skills and behaviors, an organization would need to live up to the performance goals.
A business strategist understands there is more to a leadership strategy as compared to the common belief of developing leaders and organizational talent. She knows a leadership strategy process in any organization, which needs to earn a title of top-performing, is the core of business strategy. It is the leadership strategy process that makes the business strategy come alive in any firm. In fact, she understands a leadership strategy is the bridge between strategy and performance. Leadership strategy helps a business strategist understand the following –
- Number of leaders an organization may need.
- What type of leaders a firm need?
- What are the areas where leaders are needed?
- Type of skills and behaviors required
The above-mentioned pointers are the basic points that a leadership strategy answers in order to achieve performance goals.
But all said and done, let’s understand how a business strategist would ensure to bridge strategy-execution gap. Here are the following steps she takes to ensure a successful implementation of strategies.
- She would invest a significant amount of time on questions related to strategy along with some powerful questions of leadership. Since she understands that leadership and strategy are important to reach the desired goals, she would spend her time in getting both right.
- She would also ensure that there is a clear difference between the periodic strategic planning process that would lead the organization strategically for an ongoing organizational impact.
- She knows the difference between a good strategic leadership at the organizational level and an effective leadership by individuals scattered about the company.
- A business strategist instantly realizes when a strategy lacks meaning for people, and when it would stop becoming an intimate part of the strategic directives. She would not integrate the failed strategy with the workforce and expect them to perform to their full potential.
- As a business strategist professional it is important to pay attention to leadership strategy along with the business strategy if the organization hopes to attain its full performance potential.
In addition, to all the above-mentioned a business strategist would
- Lead the change
- Shape the culture
- Leverage priorities
- Span organizational boundaries.
