The Five Pillars Of Execution

Thanks to Ben Liebald, Lily Zhang, and Maher Saba for ideas and feedback.

“Our customers love our product and are hungry for more. We have a solid strategy. But we seem to be moving very slowly. Our team is great, but we can’t seem to execute.”

If this struck a chord, I have good news. First, you’re not alone. Most leaders I talk to ask for “execution” help. Second, execution can be improved through hard work and persistent, directed effort. However, execution is a discipline, and there are no silver bullets, despite what the internet will tell you. Improvement will take time and effort, but if you’re committed, read on.

Building A Race Car

— Photo by Tim Carey on Unsplash

Racing cars is a fascinating sport: it requires skilled drivers, but the world’s best driver cannot win with a poorly designed car. Take Formula One racing as an example. Formula One, also called F1, is a series of races around the world, with the world’s best drivers in custom-built cars. F1 cars are built for extremely high cornering speeds: hitting peak forces of 6.5g, while maxing out speeds of 350km/h (215 mph). F1 is highly regulated — accidents can be hazardous, sometimes claiming lives, such as the tragic death of Ayrton Senna at the Imola Grand Prix in Italy in 1994. The regulatory authority, F1A…