Strategy Implementation Survey Results 2012

Bridges Business Consultancy Int
Pte Ltd

Strategy Implementation
Survey Findings
2012

Bridges Business Consultancy Int Pte Ltd ©

Introduction

Ten years ago Bridges Business Consultancy Int Pte Ltd published its first research into
the field of strategy implementation. Our most astounding statistic was that nine out of
10 implementations fail to be implemented successfully. This figure which was
extracted by looking at the strategy goals and then measuring who achieved a
minimum of 50% of the goals in the time allocated.

In 2005 our first few years research, along with our client experience, contributed to
our international best seller, Bricks to Bridges – Make Your Strategy Come Alive.

We now bring you our 10th year of research with some startling responses. It has
involved online responses for the first time as well as over 130 interviews. The majority
of organizations have over 10,000 employees and their headquarters are predominantly
in the US and Singapore. 62% of the companies were Multi Nationals (MNCs), 21% were
from the Public Sector and 17% were local companies.

The main industry this year was from IT followed by Financial Institutions, Government
and Pharmaceutical. The main participants in the survey were middle and senior
managers with a handful of supervisors.


Executive Summary

The pressure on companies over the last few years has forced many to revisit their
strategy and vision. This is resoundingly supported in that almost all the companies
interviewed were developing a new strategy or vision, mission and values or both.

80% of leaders feel their company is good at crafting strategy but only 44% at its
implementation and only 2% are confident that they will achieve 80-100% of their
strategy’s objectives. Most leaders allocate more time to implementing strategy than
creating it and an overwhelming number believe that their bonus should be linked to
the successful implementation of the strategy.

70% of leaders spend less than one-day a month reviewing strategy. We asked this
question this year for the first time and the result is disappointing (but not surprising)
as we hoped it would be higher.

Leaders believe that only 5% of employees have a basic understanding of the
company strategy which again is disappointing but consistent with other organization’s
research. It is encouraging that almost two-thirds of the companies link their budget to
the strategy.


Executive Summary (Cont’d)

The top three toughest implementation challenges leaders perceive are:

1. ensuring staff members take different actions or demonstrate different actions
2. aligning implementation to the company’s culture
3. gaining people’s support

Aligning implementation to the company’s culture is a surprise as the second highest
challenge as it was not previously a top concern among leaders in our research.

Middle management continue to be the biggest area or resistance compared to staff
members and leaders.


Strategy Implementation
Survey Findings
2012


1. Please tick the initiatives your organization has been engaged in, in last two years. You can tick more than one
box.

140
120
100
80
60 Others included:
40
• Patient Safety and Quality
20
• Virtualisation of existing
0 services.
• Information Security
System
• Sales and customer
support
• Market Intelligence

The majority of companies who participated in the survey are developing a new
strategy and/or Vision, Mission and Values. The Balanced Scorecard continues to be a
popular management tool but quality initiatives have dramatically reduced since we
started the survey 10 years ago and customer service is less of a focus this year.


2. How do you define strategy?

• An action plan for the future.
• A road map for success, a plan for the future resulting in success.
• A systematic method, approach to achieve the mission and goals set out.
• Choices made now that should lead the organization towards its vision and fulfil its mission.
• Plan to bridge between desired future state and a current non-ideal state.
• As a vehicle to execute on vision, values, mission.
• Having a clear view of outcome being sought with a roadmap to successful
implementation/adaption.
• A clearly particulate and how we are going to get there in key focus areas.
• An action/direction embraced by corporation to position it in a stronger to meet its mission,
vision or values.

As there is no globally agreed definition of strategy and we took the opportunity to ask
leaders their definition. We received almost a different definition for every survey and
the most popular response by far was explaining it as a plan of action for the future of
the organization.


3. How do you define strategy implementation?

• Action to achieve the strategy.
• How an action plan is drawn out.
• Plan to achieve our objective.
• Communicating and getting by on the strategic plans and objectives, measuring
outcomes and
adjusting accordingly.
• Strategy translated into action.
• It is the use of tools and methods (actions) to achieve goals set. Example: balanced
scorecard.
• To make/work out the planned plan.
• Action to drive initiatives.
• To put into right action.
• Action to move towards future state according to plan.
• The defined steps and measurements of the roll out of strategy.

Similar to the previous question we also asked for a definition of strategy
implementation and we received various responses. The majority were around actions
to achieve the strategy.


4. Do you think your company is good at developing 5. Do you believe your company is good at
strategy? implementing strategy?

20%

80% Yes
44% Yes
No

56% No

There is a disparity between leaders believe that there company is good at developing
strategy and its ability to execute the strategy. Only half the leaders who believe their
company can craft a good strategy have confidence in the execution.


6. Do you believe that implementing a strategy requires 7. In your experience, approximately what
more time than crafting strategy? percentages of a strategy's objectives that are set
at the start are successfully met on completion of
the execution?

2%

80-100%
Yes
60-79%
No
98% 40-59%

20-39%

Less than 20%

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Almost all those interviewed believe implementation requires more time than it take to
create a good strategy and shockingly only 2% of leaders are confident that they will
achieve 80-100% of their strategy’s objectives.


8. How much time does your leadership team spend a 9. Do you believe a leaders' bonus should be linked to
month discussing strategy (as against operations) in the successful implementation of the strategy?
leadership meetings?

4%

More than two weeks

Between one to two weeks
Yes
4-6 days a month
No
2-3 days a month 96%
Less than one day a month

Less than one hour a month

0 20 40 60 80

70% of leaders spend less than one-day a month reviewing strategy and an
overwhelming number believe that their bonus should be linked to the successful
implementation of the strategy.


10. What percentage of the work force do you feel 11. To what extent does your CEO stay involved in
have at least a basic understanding of the company implementing strategy after it is crafted?
strategy and can explain it?

80-100%

60-79%
80-100%

40-59% 60-79%

40-59%
20-39%
20-39%

Less than 20% Less than 20%

0 20 40 60 80 0 10 20 30 40 50

Leaders believe that only 5% of employees have a basic understanding of the company
strategy. Most of the time the CEO stays involved in the implementation after it is
crafted.


12. Please rank the list below the top three toughest implementation challenge with 1, 2 and 3.

Aligning the implementation to your
company's culture
Gaining peoples' support across the whole
organization

Measuring implementation
Rank 3
Changing rewards & recognition
Rank 2
Acquiring customer feedback

Support of senior management Rank 1

Implementing process changes

Communicating change
Ensuring staff members take different actions
or desmonstrate different behaviors
0 10 20 30 40 50

The top three toughest implementation challenges leaders perceive are (1) ensuring
staff members take different actions or demonstrate different actions (2) aligning
implementation to the company’s culture and (3) gaining people’s support.


13. From question 12 please explain why you have selected the number 1 item as the toughest challenge for
implementing strategy.

Verbatim comments:

• Putting into action and getting support to support strategy.
• People working in the organization is often the greatest obstacle, and yet the most
important resource necessary, to make the
strategy "happen".
• If the staff thinks the current processes/actions behaviours are good they won't
want to change to different ones.
• As the organization is huge, the communications role needs to be tightened. People
don't want to change.
• Need to reach out to large no. of staff who may be too far remote to understand
these "highbrow" corporate strategies.
• Company has many different types of experts.
• Without management support, nothing move.


14. Where do you feel the greatest resistance 15. Do you craft the strategy and link the annual
come from in an organization to a strategy's budget to it or vice versa?
execution?

Top Management Middle Managers Front-line

12%
36% Craft the strategy and
32%
then link the annual
budget to it
64%
56% Set the budget with
little or no reference to
the strategy

Middle Management is the highest resistor to executing the strategy and almost two-
thirds of companies link the budget to the strategy.


16. How many people are there in your organization? 17. Which category does your organization belong
to?

More than 10,000 Local
5001 to 10,000 17%
1001 to 5000 Multi-National
Public Sector
501 to 1000 21% Corporation
(MNC)
301 to 500 62%
51 to 300
11 to 50
Less than 10

0 10 20 30 40 50 60


18. Where is your organization's headquarters?

Country

52
45

9 7 9
5 5 2 3 2 2
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

19. Which country are you based in?

Country

43

19 16 15 17
10 7 7
2 1 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 1


20. Which industry sector best describes your organization?
Other
*Healthcare - 9
*Agriculture Business - 7
Other
*Insurance - 6
Energy and Utilities *Defence/Security - 2
Life Sciences/ Pharmaceutical *Design Centre
Telecommunications *Professional Business Services
Retail *Manufacturing
*Military
Electrical
*Training
Manufacturing
Legal
Government/ Ministry
FMCG
IT/ Computing
Oil and Gas
Banking/ Finance

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Industry Sector


22. How will you best describe your position in 23. What is the annual revenue of your
the organization? organization? (in US dollars)

Annual Revenue (in USD)
Supervisor
Less than
Middle Management Team 5% US$500,000
11%
US$500,001 to
Top Management Team 10% US$1,000,000
54% US$1,000,001 to
Board Member 20% US$5,000,000
CEO/ President/ Managing US$5,000,001 to
Director US$100,000,000
More than
Others US$100,000,000

0 20 40 60 80 100

Others:
• Director
• General Manager
• Group HR Manager
• Individual Professional
• Consultant

For further information please contact:
bridges@bridgesconsultancy.com
or call +6568860123

Strategy Implementation Survey Results 2012

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