Common Scaleup Mistakes #6 Sound Strategy / Flawed Execution
Amit Vaidya
Executive Board Advisor & Consultant. International scaleup. Go-to-market options. Optimising international scaleup through distributors. Improving business development success in complex sales for B2B service providers.
"Strategy is a commodity: Execution is an art". - Peter F Drucker
All roads don't point to where you want to go in your strategy!
I understand entirely that turning strategy into reality can be a challenging task.
Strategy is the blueprint, but execution is the masterpiece.
Like an artist, mastering execution requires discipline, resilience, and creativity. One or more of these are frequently missing in client organisations, leading to a common scaleup mistake: Flawed Execution.
However, even the best execution cannot compensate for a bad strategy. My previous newsletter highlighted how companies can often get it wrong by their gaps in understanding, which create flawed strategies.
Strategy and Execution Defined:
Let us leave aside the viability of a strategy presented to a senior executive team. It may be brilliant. However, it may need to be revised due to gaps in cognitive bandwidth and a lack of understanding of the business success factors and risks. I explained this in Newsletter #5: Flawed understanding leads to flawed models and strategies.
Let us assume that the strategy is well thought through and doable.
Many such well-thought strategies fail because of poor and flawed execution.
I have seen it myself on consulting assignments. Although the senior executive is impressed with my findings and recommendations, he declines my offer to support the implementation and execution of my recommendations to create a better result.
This is probably his biggest failure, leading to his downfall after the results fail to be different.
Why does execution go wrong?
Firstly, execution has to be ingrained in the culture; you do not bring it in and bolt it onto the organisation.
HR, as owners of talent and skills, overlooks execution and fails to deliver an execution culture. Instead, they focus on soft, fluffy, cuddly toys—"We are a nice place to work;" "We rank high on employee satisfaction;" "We are recognised as having the best flexible working package."
These leaders in such organisations need to improve at turning strategies into outcomes. They need to learn more about turning strategy into results.
Be clear:
Execution is the business leader's job, NOT HR or someone else to blame.
In my corporate and consulting experience, I have firmly concluded that HR has no clue about execution and many other things about running a results-driven business that I won't bore you with.
No, not in my corporate life was HR involved in execution. Execution rested solely on me as the business leader of my unit, which covered 18 countries, and I managed the P&L.
In my corporate life, execution was considered integral to strategy, not something separate. The two go hand-in-glove.
A leader incapable of execution is a leader who is not required and will be a big disappointment. Such leaders rarely survive long in an organisation focused on results through effective execution. Results, focus, and delivery are the most sought-after traits in today's leaders. Leaders who can change the direction of travel and the trajectory of the numbers to exceed expectations. These are few in number.
There is a severe gap between strategy and results.
When a senior fails to deliver the results, the executive team concludes that the strategy was sound but that the execution could have been better.
But strategy can be flawed. I have seen numerous examples of flawed strategies. This article assumes the strategy is sound.
A major feature of today's leaders is their?"hands-off style"?and "empowerment of their team."
But their style so often is their very downfall where partnership markets are concerned!
Why?
These leaders do not deal with and confront business issues, initiate and challenge poor performers, or get involved with solving a problem and ensuring it is solved through solution implementation.
They like to soar the skies at 50,000 feet, taking in the rarified air, ignorant of what is happening, and blind to what is happening at 50 feet from the ground!
What Causes Execution to be Flawed?
If I explained thoroughly, there are many reasons that would take me a book to write!
Five of the common reasons might be:
The leader is too hands-off and does not roll up their sleeves to get immersed, ask questions and challenge progress and results.
They probably think this is "micro-managing". It is not. It shows responsibility to take control and be in charge because if the results are not delivered, the leader is culpable, not his or her staff and teams.
Appointing a person to lead the execution with targets reflecting his day job and not the execution role means he/she focuses on what he/she is rewarded for.
This is a major HR failure. If the strategy is that important, the person in charge of execution should be relieved of some duties to focus on execution. Instead, the leader piles on this extra responsibility without additional pay, expecting the same performance on the day job and in the execution programme.
Even worse might be employing a complete buffoon and ignoramus who lacks the core skills and competencies to deliver effective execution.
Examples of deficits might be poor ability or lack of a demonstrable track record of working with and through people. He or she may also need to gain the influencing skills to influence staff over whom he or she has no line authority - often in matrix team structures.
The organisation has too many square pegs in round holes.
Instead of clearing out those ineffective people, the company picks one to head up the execution programme from a bad bunch to manage the execution, with disastrous consequences. I have seen this happen! A 'problem' ineffective person is given a project role to deliver the execution of recommendations from a business review! Believe me, it happens - especially in Big Pharma.
Flawed talent reviews and poor people/HR processes are significant factors.
So often, the senior business leader is surrounded by the wrong people in business-critical roles. I see this during consulting assignments. A 30-minute interview with a senior leader and his key reports tells me a lot! Their ability to think and speak rationally and logically, their numerical dexterity, and how much they know about the business usually stand out a mile by the deficits in understanding!
How did they get to such a level of seniority?
The answer is that they were propelled by some HR or Talent Partner who has never recruited or spotted real talent to promote them to senior line managers.
In my book, I explain how so many HR/Talent Partners send lambs to slaughter in partnership markets and discuss several myths about recruiting seniors.
This summarises the Newsletter - Common Scaleup Mistake #6 - sound strategy, flawed execution.
Unsurprisingly, in my approach to recruiting middle and senior managers, I strongly focus on demonstrable evidence of results and how they achieved them. I also explore their execution ability - this is a critical skill that is in short supply.
I also focus on whether the candidate in front of me has the "coalface experience" of doing what I want the person to do. Was he or she a handbag carrier? Or did she powder the boss's nose in the ladies acting as the chaperone and handbag carrier for a more senior executive sitting elsewhere in the business organisation chart?
If so, I need to talk to "the boss" who was at the coalface, doing the work and delivering the results, not the mule.
It pays to be very thorough. Questioning is key. Dig. And keep digging. You'll reveal the bluffer - she or he will get agitated and start looking away from your questioning.
If you work in Sub-Saharan Africa, be as thorough as I was. There are too many bluffers who can catch you out with stories of what they achieved, none of which they can verify with results on company letterhead papers.
Put execution skills high on your list of priorities. If you want to understand how I recruited international business managers, consider buying my book, which has a dedicated chapter on this topic and outlines the process I used to pick winners.
About Samkoman Consulting Ltd:
I started SCL after a stellar career at AstraZeneca. I am focused on helping my clients succeed in scaling up in their home market and expanding into new markets, unblocking the factors stopping them from delivering scaleup after numerous attempts in existing markets, and advising senior Boardroom executives on international and domestic business commercial challenges.
I'm happy to chat to you at no cost or obligation about how I can help you without talking nonsense and jargon but truthfully telling you how it is, with straight-talking from a senior executive who has been where you are, has faced the issues and challenges that you face, and successfully addressed them.
I won't waste your time. I'm down-to-earth and straight-talking. If I can't add value or if your problem is complicated by someone else having a go and botched it up, I'll tell you and walk away.
You can book a free, no-obligation Teams or Zoom call directly into my diary using the link below.
Book a free consultation with me: https://calendly.com/amitvaidya2021