BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY: 7 Ways You Can Improve Strategy Execution

By  //  August 4, 2018

Set a deadline with a clear sense of urgency

There are usually license requirements whenever you start any kind of business, it doesn’t matter whether you decide to have a brick and mortar storefront or do business online. Licenses, permits, and tax collection may all be required depending on your jurisdiction and business structure. Here are some things to keep in mind for online businesses:

New strategies can revolutionize your organization and take it to the next level. But it isn’t enough to formulate new strategies. You need to execute these strategies effectively. Without proper strategy execution, you won’t get the organizational change that you desire.

1. Set a deadline with a clear sense of urgency:

Without deadlines, you may not execute your strategy at the most effective time. Set urgent deadlines and ensure that every member of your team understands the urgency of the deadline. Create a strong sense of urgency and ensure that everyone understands how important it is for your ideas to be executed. It’s easy to stay relaxed when things are going on fine. Everyone has that initial resistance to change. Set a clear deadline and ensure everyone has that sense of urgency in seeing the strategy executed.

2. Use technology to drive strategy execution:

Your business must be open to the use of technologies to drive strategy execution. Tools like Adobe Analytics provide functionalities like contribution analysis and advanced segmentation for better strategy execution. Train team members to leverage technology for faster execution of business strategies.

3. Create a strategy execution plan with clear milestones:

Strategies may seem opaque or unachievable if they are not broken down into clear milestones and plans. Create a strategy execution plan with clear objectives. Each milestone should be self-explanatory and easy to understand by everyone on your team.

4. Measure, track and report milestones:

You should have elements in place that can help you measure, track and report your strategy execution. When you keep tabs of your progress, you can determine how far you have gone and what remains to be done to attain each milestone. You need to see that you are on course to execute the strategy without any derailment. A lot of organizations start off with full steam only to derail later and end up with zero or partial implementation later. Have reports generated for departmental heads and managerial staff so that progress can be measured accurately. This will also help them to evaluate the need to take relevant steps to steer the organization back on course in case of any derailment.  

5. Ask relevant questions and encourage questions:

New strategies often involve new questions, new tasks. Ask new questions. Challenge motives. Encourage pertinent questions that challenge the status quo. Anticipate problems and ask for how the problems are expected to be solved.

6. Celebrate every milestone and success:

The most discouraging thing about new strategies is putting in a lot of effort and not seeing anything change. Learn to congratulate your team for their successes and thank them for the efforts they are putting in to make the strategy a success. This takes away the difficulty of steep learning curves and tells them that they are doing something right.   Celebrate achievements publicly. This way, your team will remain motivated, and they will be willing to forge ahead and make the strategy execution a success.

7. Imbibe the change in your culture:

Ensure every facet of the strategy that you want to execute is absorbed in your company culture. Strategies take time to be executed but if they are imbibed in your culture, they become habitual, and the strategy will be executed faster. When strategies are imbibed in your culture, it is easier for people to adapt and people will find it difficult to turn back to their old ways.

It is one thing to come up with strategies. It is another thing to implement them. With the tips mentioned in this article, you’ll be able to improve your strategy execution and take your organization to the next level.

CLICK HERE FOR BREVARD COUNTY NEWS