All organizations are the same in the aspect that they will all experience challenges when it comes to executing its strategy. It doesn’t matter how amazing of an idea you have if you can’t successfully implement the strategy, so it is important that organizations are able to identify the challenges and work through them to reach their intended goal. An example of a problem that could arise comes from Lynne Camp’s situation that she faced in 2000. The functional departments didn’t give the new departments the attention that they deserved, thus creating conflict between the business, the field organizations, and the functions themselves. This problem could have been combated by proper training of the departments in preparation for the implementation of the new departments. This would have cut down on confusion as well, which would have been an extra bonus.
Considering Lynne Camp’s problem, it seems that a recurring theme regarding problems in successful implementation of high-level strategies in an organization comes from the breakdown or nonexistence of communications within the organization itself. When a company has subpar internal communication skills, it would benefit the company to set time aside for a conversation regarding the strategy, so everyone will be on the same page. This will cut down on confusion and overall miscommunication. The conversation needs to be held in an open, hospitable environment that encourages honest feedback from employees so they feel that their opinions are valued and that they won’t lose their jobs for sharing their feelings. After this conversation takes place, goals will be clearer because the most pressing issues regarding strategy will have been addressed with the most pertinent parties.
The article How to Have an Honest Conversation About Your Business states that the strategic conversation should be initially held with the leadership team. Because the leadership team of an organization oversees the individual parts of an organization that are required to work together in order to reach the common goal, they will need to have the greatest understanding of the strategy and know how to relay the strategic plan information to their own team members. The following questions should be addressed in the initial conversational meeting to ensure that the most important facets of the strategy will be addressed:
· What are the most critical things the business must do to deliver on the value of the proposition and create or sustain competitive advantage?
· What are the company’s objectives and aspirations?
· What is the value proposition you are delivering?
· Which values should guide the organization?
· Which organizational capabilities are needed to implement the strategy?
(Eisenstat, 2004)
I feel that after this type of conversation occurs with the leadership team, the information can be successfully relayed to the delegates in each department. The most engaging manager could be pegged to deliver the information to the entire group, but I personally would want to hear the findings directly from my own manager. Most often, employees will know their direct supervisor better than another department manager, so it would probably be most effective to have the information relayed to a department from its specific leader. The employees should feel comfortable asking questions of their supervisor, and at this time, it would be appropriate to do so.
At this point, suggestions for change and improvement within the organization could be discussed. Enough information should be gathered by this time to talk about appropriate possibilities for change, and employees should feel comfortable to offer their opinions and ideas about these changes. Since the strategy has been presented in a clearer manner and everyone is now on the same page, I think this would be an exciting time to discuss what could be altered in order to more quickly and efficiently reach the organization’s overall goal towards a successful implementation of their high-level strategy.
Like anything new, there may be kinks in the rollout of the strategy, or it may not work as intended during the first few days or quarters. There may be adjustments that need to be made, and time will be set aside to do that. Ideally, the strategy will eventually morph into a well-oiled machine that only benefits the organization, and it could not have gotten to that positive point without the meetings, conversations, and honest discussion amongst internal members of the company. When the business is able to measure its increased positive performance because of the new strategy in the months to come, while it may not have been easy, they should feel that they as a team have definitely accomplished something great together.
