“Execution” The Discipline of Getting Things Done By Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan
“Execution is the systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, questioning, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability. It includes making assumptions about the business environment, assessing the organization’s capabilities, linking strategy to operations and the people who are going to implement the strategy, synchronizing those people and their various disciplines, and linking rewards to outcomes.”
These thoughts are from a great book read lately…
Introduction:
“We talk to many leaders who fall victim to the gap between promises they’ve made and results their organizations delivered. They frequently tell us they have a problem with accountability—people aren’t doing the things they’re supposed to do to implement a plan.”
“Execution-oriented companies change faster than others because they’re closer to the situation.”
“…the leader’s most important job—selecting and appraising people.”
“…no strategy delivers results unless it’s converted into specific actions.”
Chapter 1:
“Strategies most often fail because they aren’t executed well.”
“The gap nobody knows is the gap between what a company’s leaders want to achieve and the ability of their organization to achieve it.”
“…unless you translate big thoughts into concrete steps for action, they’re pointless.”
“No worthwhile strategy can be planned without taking into account the organization’s ability to execute it.”
“Execution is the systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, questioning, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability. It includes making assumptions about the business environment, assessing the organization’s capabilities, linking strategy to operations and the people who are going to implement the strategy, synchronizing those people and their various disciplines, and linking rewards to outcomes.”
“You need accountability for results…you need follow-through to ensure the plans are on track”
“An organization can execute only if the leader’s heart and soul are immersed in the company.”
“A coach is effective because he’s constantly observing players individual and collectively on the field and in the locker-room. That’s how he gets to know his players and their capabilities, and how they get firsthand the benefits of his experience, wisdom, and expert feedback.”
“…leaders energize everyone by the example they set.”
Chapter 2:
“You show me an organization that’s wringing its hands, listening to rumors, anxious about the future, and I will show you leadership that behaves the same way.”
Chapter 3:
· “Know your people and your business.”
o “…good people like to be quizzed, because they know more about the business than the leader.”
o “Customers help decide whether or not a plant stays open.”
o “You’ve got to bring in some other people once in a while to get fresh thoughts.”
o Meetings are to develop action plans.
o Be consistent.
o “…after I do a business review, I write the leader a formal letter summarizing the things he agreed to do.”
o “All you’ve got to prove is that you care for the people who are working for you.”
· “Insist on realism.”
· “Set clear goals and priorities.”
· “Follow through.”
o “The failure to follow trough is widespread in business, and a major cause of poor execution. How many meetings have you attended where people left without firm conclusions about who would do what and when? Everybody may have agreed the idea was good, but since nobody was named accountable for results, it doesn’t get done.”
· “Reward the doers.”
o “If you want people to produce specific results, you reward them accordingly.”
o “When I see companies that don’t execute, the chances are that they don’t measure, don’t reward, and don’t promote people who know how to get things done.”
· “Expand people’s capabilities through coaching.”
o “Coaching is the difference between giving orders an teaching people how to get things done.”
· “Know yourself.”
o “Without what we call emotional fortitude, you can’t be honest with yourself, deal honestly with business and organizational realities, or give people forthright assessments.”
o “Failure to deal with underperformers is an extremely common problem in corporations, and it’s usually the result of the leader’s emotional blockages.”
o Authenticity: “If you’re cutting corners, the best will lose faith in you. The worst will follow in your footsteps. The rest will do what they must to survive in a muddy ethical environment.”
o Humility: “The more you can contain your ego, the more realistic you are about your problems.”
o “The behavior of a business’s leaders is, ultimately, the behavior of the organization.”
Chapter 4
· “First you tell people clearly what results you’re looking for. The you discuss how to get those results, as a key element of the coaching process. Then you reward people for producing the results. If they come up short, you provide additional coaching, withdraw rewards, give them other jobs, or let them go.”
· “We don’t think ourselves into a new way of acting, we act ourselves into a new way of thinking.”
· “Behavior are beliefs turned into action.”
· “Truth over harmony.”
· “The culture of a company is the behavior of its leaders. Leaders get the behavior they exhibit and tolerate. You change the culture of a company by changing the behavior of its leaders.”
Chapter 5
· “You can easily spot the doers by observing their working habits. They’re the ones who energize people, are decisive on tough issues, get things done through others, and follow through as second nature.”
To be continued….
