Strategy vs. Execution: Great Execution Wins Every Time

Business leaders should always prepare by developing the execution skills of their team BEFORE venturing on a new strategic path.

Executives gravitate towards strategy; most believe it is the key to victory. However, execution is where the battles are won and lost. This article presents the reasons why you, and your team, need to be masters of execution before you spend much energy on business strategy.

The Fundamentals

The arguments I am about to make are painfully obvious, so why are they so often ignored? Perhaps the reason is that disciplined execution is so fundamental, that it is assumed to happen in most businesses. After all, we are all senior executives, so we must be good at it, right?

The reality is that great execution requires great discipline, and like diet and exercise for most of us, it is easy to get off track. The longer you drift away from the discipline, the harder it is to re-establish good execution for yourself and the organization.

Great Strategy/Poor Execution

Let’s imagine for a moment that you have a business that is generating great profits because of an amazing business strategy. Your results look good, so why should you worry about execution? Why not sit back and relax and let the execution take care of itself? It is easier, after all.

Habit changes in businesses, particularly the erosion of discipline, is a gradual process. It is very much like fitness, where you don’t get out-of-shape overnight. The first thing to erode in a business is your internal communications and accountability. Then, poor accountability for business processes leads to failures in your performance to customers (quality, reliability, etc.). When that happens, customers’ loyalty erodes, and they quietly leave, and then your financial performance starts to decline.

So, what happened to your great strategy? It certainly isn’t where you thought it was. The effect of poor execution was the erosion of not just your performance, but of your strategy. Too many successful businesses wait until the numbers decline before they focus on the execution. The damage is already done at that point.

Poor Strategy/Poor Execution

Now imagine your business is on the opposite end, where everything is in sad shape. The business performance is terrible, the strategy seems lost, and the execution is non-existent. Where do you start? The answer is quite simple, building discipline into your Execution.

Keep in mind that without disciplined execution, you can aim at ANY destination, but you will NEVER get there. Strategy is irrelevant without the tools to implement; execution is the foundation of great strategy.

Great execution, even in the absence of a good strategy (or any strategy at all) will ALWAYS drive improved business performance. The natural rhythm of disciplined execution drives efficiencies and improved organizational performance and the tide rises.

Poor Strategy/Great Execution

Imagine another scenario; you have great execution, but the business strategy is poor, what happens? First, your great discipline in execution enables you to see that strategy is the problem. Second, great execution yields a pile of data that tells you exactly what is working, and what isn’t. The consequence is that great execution will steer you towards great strategy.

Of course, developing great strategy also takes hard work, plus some creativity. However, without a solid foundation of great execution, the effort is unlikely to succeed.

Conclusion

Execution first, strategy second – ALWAYS; there is never an exception to this rule. Great execution will improve your results and steer you towards a better strategy. Poor execution will undermine even the best strategy.

Developing the execution skills and discipline with your team should always be a priority. I can think of many times that I have regretted not pushing harder to advance execution; I have never thought I have pushed too hard.

Starting execution discipline can be relatively easy; a simple spreadsheet can get you started. However, if you really want to make progress quickly, I suggest you hire a “Strategy Execution Manager” who is has the right experience or tap into outside resources that are true experts. There are also numerous tools available (some listed below) that can help you keep your team on track.

Strategy is what you DO, not what you SAY you do. Strive for excellence in your execution and what you do will start looking like great strategy.