"The 143-slide strategy deck looked perfect. Months of work by a top-tier consulting firm had mapped out a three-year transformation plan. The market analysis, competitive positioning, operational roadmap and financial projections were all there. Six months later, the CEO calls me. Not one single slide has been implemented and is still sitting in a shared drive. The management team has gone back to doing things as always. And the company has spent $2 million on consulting fees for nothing."
"'I know we had a good strategy,' he tells me. 'But we could never get enough people to implement it.' According to Harvard Business Review, 67% of well-formulated strategies fail because of poor execution. The problem isn't execution. It's authority. While the failure of strategy implementation can often be referred to as an " execution problem," the real problem is authority. Consulting firms assume that providing smart advice and capable management will lead to successful outcomes. But, in reality, it does not create solutions."
Strategic plans often fail not because of poor execution but because those recommending the plans lack authority to enforce them. Consultants produce detailed roadmaps and analyses but lack institutional power to approve budgets, hire executives, or allocate resources. Without budgetary control, board influence, or compensation leverage, advisory recommendations remain optional. Embedded operators who control capital expenditures, staffing, and resource allocation can convert strategy into action. Companies frequently spend millions on consulting without implementation because advice lacks directive force. Authority, rather than execution skills alone, determines whether a strategy is implemented and sustained.
Read at Entrepreneur
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