Five Reasons to Improve Strategy Execution Now

A couple of years ago we shared a brief article on the benefits of strategic planning. We highlighted only a few examples, particularly as it helps internally with company organization and communication. Still today, one of the first questions we are asked is “why should our company have a strategic plan?” It’s a good question, one worth revisiting in a little more depth. 

In the abstract, most business leaders recognize the value of strategic planning. In reality, however, the how and the why and the what to expect from strategic plans are much harder for them to answer. For many of us, when it comes to managing our business, day-to-day activities take precedence. When the business is humming along nicely or even when it is hitting a rough patch, it can be easy to think that strategic planning is a luxury, best saved for another time. That could not be further from the truth.

Building a strategic plan and then effectively using that plan must be part of your regular business activity. It shouldn’t wait until you have the time you think you need to properly devote to it. The right plan will create a pathway for you to focus equally on all parts of your organization and it yields tangible benefits for both short term and long term success.

Here are five high-value reasons you need to create, organize and execute your strategic plan now.   

Propel company growth

Your strategic plan should clearly define which areas of your organization will grow and in what ways. Growth is not always equal or linear, and that should be by design. For example, you may be in a season where growth needs to be hyper focused on marketing so that you can better meet sales goals down the line. Or perhaps you need growth in IT to support future product and service changes. Without the insights that a strategic plan provides, it can be hard to justify growth in one area when it feels stymied in another.

At StrategyBlocks we help you create a graphical representation of your strategic plan, which can be especially beneficial when charting resource utilization and growth projections.

Cement your competitive advantage

One of the most fascinating things we see from effective strategic organization is a shift in understanding of a company’s unique competitive advantage. Most organizations can quickly spout why they are different from anyone else, but there is something about laying out your strategic thinking in a systematic way that helps illuminate intrinsic value and, sometimes, areas where improvement is critical in order to better compete. 

Effective strategic planning can help uncover niche areas in the market that are underserved, highlight your target customers’ unique needs, and zero in on what your organization has to offer to top talent – all ways to improve your competitive advantage. 

Create a more inclusive work environment

Inclusion is a key driving factor for improving employee relations and retaining diverse, experienced and quality talent. That includes ensuring that your team is diverse in many different ways – diverse in culture and ethnicity, in experience, in age and gender, and in thought. Many studies have proven how much more effective diverse teams are at achieving results. 

Effectively communicating your strategic vision breeds inclusivity within your organization and allows multiple stakeholders to lend their insights and expertise. When the team is aligned from the top down and the bottom up, it is infinitely easier to find and eliminate barriers that could impede your company’s success. 

Understanding what works, and what doesn’t

This is one of the most valuable insights that come from properly mapping out your strategic plan. In the boardroom or on a Zoom call an approach to a problem may sound ideal. In practice, however, that approach isn’t working. When this happens many companies are at a loss as to say why, and sometimes blame falls in the wrong place. 

StrategyBlocks is built on a highly effective method of visualization. Initiatives are represented in a cascading blocks system and color coding offers a quick-glance review of areas of progress or struggle. Within that system, it is easy to discern whether a business activity is having its desired effect and changes can be made. This level of insight is beneficial for all levels of the company, as it is often the team involved in the execution of a strategy that can provide the greatest insights into why it may not be working. 

Develop your long term path to success

Strategic planning and execution offer a long list of benefits in the immediate term, but they also open the doors wide to future success. One of the strengths of a well-executed strategic plan is leveraging wins all along the way. Each accomplishment should build toward a greater goal. While it may seem obvious that long term success is the goal for any company, the reality is that few plan adequately for how that will be achieved. 

One of the benefits of the StrategyBlocks approach to strategic planning and execution is that you gain deep insights into both the overall health of your strategic plan and potential risks to manage. This allows you to measure progress far beyond KPIs, which don’t always tell the full story.

Remember that developing a plan and actually executing that plan are two different things. Many companies we work with have done an excellent job of creating a strategy, but they are at a loss as to how to properly implement it in order to realize its value. 

StrategyBlocks has spent nearly 15 years helping companies to perfect their strategic execution, and we can help you. Schedule a brief demo or try us out free for 30 days. We’re confident we can help you turn your vision into reality.