In a 2008 Harvard Business Review article, entitled "The Secrets to Successful Strategy Execution" by Neilsen, Martin and Powers, "Information Flow" is identified as the most important factor in determining whether a business is effective in executing its strategy, followed closely by "clarifying decision rights." Also important were "aligning motivators" and "organizational structure." All four factors are, of course, highly inter-related and when businesses make improvements in any one factor, it often leads to improvements in the other factors.
Effective information flow throughout the organization allows for quicker and better strategic decisions...period...whether it is information flow from the front office to the back office, from corporate headquarters to the locations, from the plant floor to the office, from one business unit or department to another etc. As an organization grows, effective information flow becomes more complex and naturally gravitates to become increasingly ineffective. So how do you resolve this challenge? We believe there are three primary tools or methods that can improve information flow and hence dramatically improve a business’s ability to effectively act on its strategic plan. 1) Strategy Communication. The businesses strategy must be clearly communicated throughout the organization on a regular basis in order to be understood and thereby acted upon. Everyone in the business must also understand how their role contributes to the strategic plan. Management must commit to effective information flow on how the business is progressing towards its strategic goals in order to maintain momentum and employee engagement levels. 2) Strategy Review Meetings. Many people think they already participate in too many meetings. In order to effectively implement your strategy, strategy review meetings need to be separated from operational meetings. They also need to be scheduled on a regular basis. The optimal interval between meetings depends on the business growth rate. For very fast growing companies the interval needs to be very short, however in all cases, they should never be less frequent than once per quarter. Each strategy review meeting has three primary purposes: 1) to repeat, reiterate, and reinforce your business strategy to gain deeper team insight and clarity, 2) to review progress towards your strategic goals and identify the key barriers/challenges that need to be resolved and 3) to set your top strategic priorities and the action plans that need to be implemented before the next strategy review meeting. Regular strategy review meetings build and maintain momentum by keeping the team focused on what's important. They also facilitate effective information flow which is essential to bring the strategy to life. 3) Information Technology. Information flow up, down and across the organization has never been easier with today’s communication technology. However, at the same time, it has become more difficult to separate the important and critical data/information that is needed to drive the organization’s strategy, from the everyday noise about operations, the market, your competitors etc. Strategy focused organizations have systems in place to collect, analyze and share critical data, such as key performance indicators, in real time. Each strategic goal needs to have an “owner” i.e. the person that is responsible for the collection, analysis and updating of the data used to assess progress or when key milestones are completed. If it is a high priority, highly important, stretch goal, it normally will only be accomplished if the team can stay intensely focused on implementing the action plan. It must then remain “top of mind” through effective information flow. It is amazing what a team can accomplish when focused and given clear insight and real time feedback on the team’s progress towards a shared goal. Bosveld and Associates helps our business clients address real problems with practical solutions in a cost-effective manner. Our mission is to assist our clients in building and incorporating business management systems and practices that drive profit, accelerate growth, reduce risk and increase enterprise value. To achieve our mission, we combine our real world operating experience with a unique blend of innovative technology and alliance partnerships with deep subject matter expertise.
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April 2019
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