All development-oriented organizations are typically concerned with how the organization can perform a little better tomorrow than it does today. In this context, goals are formulated at different levels of abstraction, such as visions, strategic goals and concrete performance goals. These goals say something about what the organization wants to achieve.
But these goals remain illusory dreams if they are not accompanied by a strategy. The strategy tells the organization how to realize the goals. Strategy can be metaphorically described as the bridge that connects a current situation with a desired future situation. The strategy thus says something about which initiatives to initiate, what to allocate resources to and what to give management attention to in order to realize the desired goals.
Strategy implementation describes the process where the leader, together with others, takes the organization's strategy "from paper to practice". In other words, strategy implementation is the concretization phase that strategies go through when they need to be put into practice in the real world.
Strategy implementation is important as it is the lever for positive change to happen in an organization. If strategies are only formulated on paper but never put into action, they won't make a tangible difference in practice. In other words, strategy implementation must ensure that the strategy does not just end up as airy intentions, but is put into practice so that concrete changes occur in the organization at the attitude, competence, behaviour and effect level that support the goals that the organization wants to realize. The systematic and follow-up work of implementing strategy is therefore essential when an organization wants to increase the likelihood of achieving its strategies.
LEAD is a professional consultancy, and we base our work with strategy implementation on the latest research in the field - including textbooks written by ourselves. As researchers, specialists and practitioners with many years of experience, we have both the cutting-edge knowledge and the tools to use it to create tangible change.
We know what works well - and what doesn't. Research suggests that one of the biggest and most central pitfalls in strategy implementation is the lack of systematics. In other words, the implementation of strategies in organizations is often haphazard and unstructured, and when this is the case, the goals that the strategies are supposed to support are rarely realized.
Research suggests that the solution to this challenge is for organizations to use implementation models when implementing strategies. An implementation model is a framework that presents an overview of the activities involved in an implementation process and is designed to support practitioners in implementing their strategies by bringing a systematic approach to the implementation process.
With this in mind, we have developed an approach to strategy implementation that focuses on structure and systematics. We have our own strategy implementation models that are based on some of the leading implementation models from the research community. The models contain a number of phases with associated activities that can be used to tailor an implementation process to the organization in question. At LEAD, we work both linearly and circularly with strategy implementation - as we know that the approach to successful strategy implementation depends on what exactly needs to be implemented. In all cases, however, we make sure that strategy implementation is always based on initial planning and structure - while continuously adapting and adjusting in light of ongoing learning and feedback from the organization.
Inspiring research-based presentations on strategy implementation for all levels of your organization.
Sparring in connection with an implementation project.
Facilitation of active workshops focusing on competence development at management and employee level.
Area Director & Partner | Implementation | University Sector | Read more here
Director Implementation & University Sector | Read more here
Senior Consultant | Read more here
Senior Consultant | Read more here
Are you facing an organizational change? Do you need strategic advice or a leadership development program?
Contact us and together we will tailor a process that develops the exact competencies and structures that strengthen and future-proof your organization.
Torsten Conrad
Partner | Area Director for Implementation & University Sector
Mobile: +45 27 50 29 18
E-mail: tc@lead.eu
Administration or accounting questions?
Call us on +45 5337 6000
or write to kontakt@lead.eu
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