Execution — The Discipline of Getting Things Done — Book Summary
THE BOOK THAT SHOWS HOW TO GET THE JOB DONE AND DELIVER RESULTS … WHETHER YOU’RE RUNNING AN ENTIRE COMPANY OR IN YOUR FIRST MANAGEMENT JOB.
Execution breaks the tradition of many business and management books and shows how to get the job done and deliver results…whether you are running an entire company or in your first management job. The authors delve deep into the hands-off approach of leaders who see execution as the tactical side of the business, something they can delegate, while they focus on the bigger picture. The authors identify this as the key reason why strategies fail. They explain that the whole purpose of a leader is to get things done, to achieve the objectives of the organisation and to deliver results.
The authors suggest that execution is “the missing link between aspirations and results” and that is the gap that people running the job have to fill. In their opinion the heart of execution lies in three core processes; the people process, the strategy process and the operations process and understanding how to link all the three together.
The authors believe that leading these processes is the real job of running a business, not formulating a “vision” and leaving the work of carrying it out to others. The authors show the importance of being deeply and passionately engaged in an organization and why robust dialogues about people, strategy, and operations result in a business based on intellectual honesty and realism.
The leader’s most important job — selecting and appraising people — is one that should never be delegated. The right people in the right jobs creates a leadership gene pool that conceives and selects strategies that can be executed. People then work together to create a strategy building block by block, a strategy in sync with the realities of the market place, the economy, and the competition. Once the right people and strategy are in place, they are then linked to an operating process that results in the implementation of specific programs and actions and that assigns accountability. This kind of effective operating process goes way beyond the typical budget exercise that looks into a rear-view mirror to set its goals. It puts reality behind the numbers and is where the rubber meets the road.
This is not to say that the authors advocate that senior management should immerse themselves in detail or become “micro-managers”, but that they should focus on developing an execution culture.
The layout of the book, and its progress is very logical. The first part is dedicated to why execution is needed, the second to the building blocks of execution and the third part is dedicated to the three core processes of execution. The last and perhaps most practical section of the book defines the three core processes as people, strategy and operations. The integration of these processes into a coherent set of business processes is key to the success of an organization. “The discipline of execution based on the three core processes is the new theory of leadership and organization distilled from practice.”
PART ONE: WHY EXECUTION IS NEEDED
The authors explain that when a company appears to be failing or breaking down the blame is often placed on the CEO. It’s assumed that the strategy the CEO had in place was wrong and is to blame. However, they stress that often the strategy itself wasn’t wrong, but it wasn’t executed effectively.
” Without execution, the breakthrough thinking breaks down, learning adds no value, people don’t meet their stretch goals, and the revolution stops dead in its tracks. What you get is a change for the worse, because failure drains the energy from your organisation. Repeated failure destroys it.”
It’s so important that a business leader knows how to execute well. You can be a leader full of ideas and aspirations but without the ability to execute well, these ideas will amount to nothing.
The authors identify three key points to consider when thinking about execution:
1. Execution is a discipline, it’s a critical component of the strategy.
2. The business leader is responsible for encouraging and promoting execution.
3. Execution needs to be at the core of an organisations culture.
” Tactics are central to execution, but execution is not tactics. Execution is fundamental to strategy and has to shape it. No worthwhile strategy can be planned without taking into account the organisation’s ability to execute it.”
Execution requires the ability to link strategy + operations + people who are going to execute the strategy. If these links aren’t clear and synchronized, then the execution won’t be streamlined or effective.
The authors stress the importance of having a great business leader who is totally committed to the company and has a clear understanding of the business and the current business environment. Without this commitment, a leader will not be in a position to execute strategies.
The authors stress the importance of culture within a business. They explain that execution needs to be a core part of this culture, it needs to be the norm and something that all employees understand. A leader who executes is someone who is constantly analyzing the gap between the actual results and the desired results of any strategic plan. By learning from this gap, they can take their knowledge onto the next project and make significant improvements.
PART TWO: THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF EXECUTION
Building block one: seven essential behaviors of a leader
1. The first essential behavior a leader needs it to know the people and the business.
2. Realism is the second behavior that a leader expects.
3. Leaders need to be setting goals and priorities.
4. Being someone that always follows through is important for a leader.
5. The fifth behavior a leader must have is the ability to reward people.
6. Pass on knowledge, always be expanding on other people’s capabilities.
7. Leaders need to be strong characters who know themselves well.
Building block two: cultural change
The authors explain that companies often focus on changing their strategy and structures. But they fail to work on the people, the beliefs, and behaviors of those that they work with. They emphasize that cultural change is just as important (if not more) as strategy and structure.
Building block three: The job no leader should delegate
The authors explain that there is one job that no leader should ever delegate, and that’s ensuring that the right people are in the right job. Further to selecting the right people, they emphasize the importance of developing people within your company.
” When you interview, you have to create a full picture of the person in your mind based on things you can learn by probing them. Then you need to find out about their past and present accomplishments, how they think, and what drives their ambitions.”
PART THREE: THE THREE CORE PROCESSES OF EXECUTION
The author has identified three processes that should be at the core of execution. The people process, the strategy process, and the operation process. All are equally important.
The people process: This is about having the right people in the right place, it is about knowing the strengths, weaknesses, capabilities and capacities of the people in an organisation and it is about development as well as about hiring and firing. This process is all about connecting the people to the strategy and operations. People are at the core of any business, they are the ones that make decisions and create strategies. It’s important to create the links between the people and the strategy and operations. Establishing this link will encourage people to remain focused and motivated and will keep everyone accountable.
The strategy process: In many organisations this is an annual meeting at which people present numerous PowerPoint slides and answer a few questions. The authors argue that these sessions are too short-lived and rarely examine the subjects under discussion with the rigor and robustness that they deserve. Another problem is that strategies are often settled upon that are intellectually appealing but that the organisation is incapable of implementing. They reinforce that it is absolutely essential that strategy not only addresses the what but also the how. Without understanding how the strategy that will be implemented will face almost certain failure.
” To be effective, a strategy has to be constructed and owned by those who will execute it, namely the line people. Staff people can help by collecting data and using analytical tools, but the business leaders must be in charge of developing the substance of the strategic plan.”
The operations process: Once the strategy has been agreed, it is all too common for organisations to then set targets, agree budgets and allocate resources, give the unit manager a slap on the back and then move on to the next topic with absolutely no discussion as to how, or even whether, you can get the desired results. The people process defines who is going to help the business get there. The final piece of the puzzle is the operation process, designed to define the road ahead, the path that people can follow.
” It breaks long-term output into short-term targets. Meeting those here-and-now targets forces decisions to be made and integrated across the organization, both initially and in response to changes in business conditions. It puts reality behind the numbers.”
Execution offers a sensible perspective on the hands-on/hands-off balance and provides a good counterbalance to the books that advocate think up a strategy and empower your people. I would recommend this book to all business leaders who want to get the job done and deliver results.
