Business failure to execute strategy - looking for data

I'm doing research into the failure of companies to execute on their strategy. There's a fair amount written on the topic, including work by David Norton and Robert Kaplan, but most of it points back to a 1982 Fortune article by Walter Kiechel that cited a study conducted among a bunch of management consultants that said 9 of every 10 companies with a well-developed strategy failed to execute on that strategy.

I don't find it hard to believe that companies are better at developing strategy than executing on it, but I'm looking for more recent evidence -- this stat that everyone keeps citing seems pretty moldy to be the basis for a whole body of study. Anyone know of anything more current?

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Tue, Jun 26, 2007 16:11 EDT

Posted by: Chris Moore
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Jim Collins seems to have some very rich data in his books Good To Great and Built to Last , although there may not be much "Strategy" referenced. At least he identified the non performers, you may also look in on some of his Harvard resources.

I think it will be difficult finding the information, everyone wants to slow down to look at the accident, but no one wants to be one. People do not easily share thier failures, maybe that is why we keep repeating them as corporations.

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Thu, Jun 28, 2007 9:49 EDT

Posted by: TSull
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Repeating them as corporations?!?!? How about repeating failures as humankind...? Humans, as a whole, are almost incapable of learning from past mistakes and failures. We have continually made the same mistakes over and over throughout history and I highly doubt that will ever change.

Is there a strategy for not doing this? Well our leaders constantly get voted in, government and corporate, with new strategies and maybe they work for a period of time, but inevitably we revert back to bad history repeating itself. How come "good" history doesn't repeat itself like bad history? Or am I just focusing on the negative?

I agree with the previous response that nobody wants to report on failure. Imagine a leader actually having the courage to admit being wrong in today's environment, I don't think so...

I apologize if I'm off topic, maybe someone pee'ed in my coffee this morning...:)

Thu, Jun 28, 2007 17:06 EDT

No need to apologize, and you are not off topic,

We all encounter this on a daily basis, yet we all have the ability, and opportunity to turn things around, yet we take little to no action because we say, what imapct can one person have,

Well The fact that you have replied and continue to want the best and not the worst to be repeated tells me you can make a change in the world.

Where is everyone else in the discussion, all the other bloggers on CIO.COM, have you all GIVEN UP?

Sad, and too bad.

For the rest of us, on we go to CHANGE THE WORLD

Thu, Jun 28, 2007 10:43 EDT

Posted by: Anonymous
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Look into the work done by Daryl Conner, principal of Conner Partners. He has an extensive amount of work on strategy execution and change management.

Sat, Jun 30, 2007 21:11 EDT

Posted by: englundr
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The Stanford Advanced Project Management Program covers this topic in its course on "Converting Strategy Into Action." A couple of reference books are Bossidy on "Execution" and Gerstner on "Why Elephants Can't Dance."

While the course can't quote data, it outlines the strategy, structure, culture, and projects that need to be in alignment. One objective is to get attendees to start the conversation with colleagues--and even their managers--about what it takes to improve performance in executing strategy. Follow-on courses provide more detailed steps and practices.

Randy Englund, www.englundpmc.com

Business failure to execute strategy - looking for data

Topic: Enterprise Management

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