56 Strategy Implementation

56.1 What is Strategy Implementation?

Strategy implementation is the process of converting a chosen strategy into action through structure, systems, processes, people and culture. The often-quoted Bossidy and Charan line: “execution is the discipline of getting things done” (bossidycharan2002?). Thompson, Strickland and Gamble’s textbook position: “a brilliant strategy + lousy execution = mediocre performance” (thompson2020?).

Implementation is what most strategy projects under-deliver on. Empirical research consistently finds that 70 per cent of strategies fail in execution, not in formulation. Strategy is therefore as much about doing as about deciding.

Three Working Definitions

Author	Definition	What it foregrounds
Thompson, Strickland & Gamble	“Converting strategic plans into actions and results — building the right organisation, deploying resources, leading change.”	Action
Bossidy & Charan	“Execution is the discipline of getting things done — a systematic process of rigorously discussing the hows and whats, questioning, following through, and ensuring accountability.”	Discipline
Hrebiniak	“Strategy implementation is what happens after the strategy has been formulated — managing change, structure, culture, incentives.”	Change

56.1.1 Formulation vs Implementation

Formulation vs Implementation

Feature	Formulation	Implementation
Question	What should we do?	How do we make it happen?
Position	Before action	During and after action
Skill	Analytical	Managerial — leadership, change, motivation
Owners	Senior leaders	All managers, all levels
Time	Short bursts	Continuous
Risks	Wrong choice	Slow, partial, abandoned

56.2 Frameworks for Implementation

Three classical frameworks frame the implementation challenge.

56.2.1 McKinsey 7-S Framework

Already met in topic 30 (Change Management). The McKinsey 7-S framework — Pascale, Athos, Peters and Waterman — argues that all seven elements must align for strategy to work (petersWaterman1982?):

McKinsey 7-S — Hard and Soft Elements

Element	Type	What it captures
Strategy	Hard	The chosen plan
Structure	Hard	Organisation chart and reporting
Systems	Hard	Processes, IT, controls
Shared values	Soft	Core values, culture
Style	Soft	Leadership style
Staff	Soft	Workforce capabilities
Skills	Soft	Distinctive competencies

The soft 4-S — shared values, style, staff, skills — are typically the harder, slower-to-change elements that derail implementation.

flowchart LR
  S1[Strategy] --- ST[Structure]
  ST --- SY[Systems]
  S1 --- SV[Shared Values]
  SV --- ST
  SV --- SY
  SV --- SK[Skills]
  SK --- STY[Style]
  STY --- SF[Staff]
  SF --- SK
  style SV fill:#FCE4EC,stroke:#AD1457
  style S1 fill:#E3F2FD,stroke:#1565C0

56.2.2 Galbraith’s Star Model

Jay Galbraith’s Star Model identifies five elements that must be aligned with strategy (galbraith2002?): Strategy, Structure, Processes, Reward, People.

56.2.3 Strategy-Implementation Sequence (Hrebiniak)

Lawrence Hrebiniak’s framework for implementation (hrebiniak2013?):

Hrebiniak’s Implementation Drivers

Driver	What it ensures
Sound strategy	Implementation cannot rescue a flawed strategy
Clear objectives	Strategic objectives translated to operating goals
Aligned structure	Structure follows strategy (Chandler)
Coordination	Across functions and levels
Culture & change management	The “soft” enablers
Incentives	Motivate the right behaviour
Leadership and execution rigour	Bossidy & Charan’s discipline

56.3 The Five Pillars of Strategy Execution

A practical Indian-textbook synthesis lists five pillars of execution, each of which can derail a strategy if neglected:

Five Pillars of Strategy Execution

Pillar	What it covers
Structure	Match structure to strategy
Systems and processes	Information, decision rights, planning, reward
Resources	Capital, people, technology
Leadership and culture	Tone at the top; behaviours that match the strategy
Communication and change	Make the strategy visible and understood

56.3.1 Structure follows strategy

Alfred Chandler’s classic proposition (1962) — when firms diversify, structure shifts from functional to divisional / SBU form to handle the new complexity (chandler1962?). The corollary: a wrong structure can quietly defeat the right strategy.

56.3.2 Culture follows — and shapes — strategy

Schein’s three-level culture model (Topic 19) becomes critical here. Culture eats strategy for breakfast — Peter Drucker’s well-known line — captures the point that beliefs and habits shape what gets done.

56.4 Balanced Scorecard for Strategy Execution

Kaplan and Norton’s Balanced Scorecard (Topic 27) is widely used for cascading strategy into execution. The Strategy Map describes cause-and-effect across four perspectives — Learning & Growth → Internal Process → Customer → Financial. Each perspective gets objectives, measures, targets, and initiatives — turning the strategy into a measurable implementation plan.

56.5 OKRs for Execution

Objectives and Key Results (Andy Grove → John Doerr → Google) — Topic 29 — provide a quarterly cadence for execution. Three properties make OKRs effective:

Three Properties of OKRs

Property	What it ensures
Ambitious	Stretch goals (target ~70 per cent achievement)
Measurable	Key results are objective and quantifiable
Transparent	Visible across the organisation

56.6 Change Management for Implementation

Most strategy implementation involves change — and the change-management frameworks from topic 30 directly apply.

Change-Management Tools for Implementation

Tool	What it does	Anchor
Lewin’s three-step	Unfreeze → Change → Refreeze	Lewin (1947)
Kotter’s eight steps	Urgency → Coalition → Vision → Communicate → Empower → Wins → Consolidate → Anchor	Kotter (1996)
Beckhard’s formula	C = D × V × F > R	Beckhard
ADKAR	Awareness → Desire → Knowledge → Ability → Reinforcement	Prosci

A useful synthesis: Kotter’s 8 steps + Lewin’s 3 — steps 1–4 unfreeze, 5–6 change, 7–8 refreeze.

56.7 Common Reasons Strategy Implementation Fails

Why Strategy Implementation Fails — Common Causes

Cause	Description
Vague strategy	Not specific enough to drive action
Lack of leadership commitment	Senior leaders not modelling the change
Poor communication	Front-line employees don’t know the strategy
Misaligned structure	Old structure cannot deliver the new strategy
Wrong incentives	People rewarded for old behaviour
Resource constraints	Budgets and headcount not aligned
Cultural resistance	“We’ve always done it this way”
Insufficient measurement	No tracking, no accountability

56.8 Strategic Control and Evaluation

Strategy implementation must be monitored. The four classical types of strategic control (thompson2020?):

Four Types of Strategic Control

Type	What it monitors	Tool
Premise control	Are the assumptions behind the strategy still true?	Environmental scanning
Implementation control	Is the strategy being executed as planned?	Milestone reviews
Strategic surveillance	What’s happening that we did not expect?	Open-ended scanning
Special-alert control	Sudden, high-impact events	Crisis management

56.9 Practice Questions

Q 01 Definition Easy

Strategy implementation is best described as:

AChoosing the strategy
BConverting the chosen strategy into action through structure, systems, people, and culture
CA function of the marketing department
DAuditing past performance

View solution

Correct Option: B

Implementation is the doing phase — structure, systems, processes, people, culture aligned with the chosen strategy.

Q 02 Bossidy Medium

"Execution is the discipline of getting things done" is associated with:

AMichael Porter
BBossidy and Charan
CMintzberg and Lampel
DKim and Mauborgne

View solution

Correct Option: B

Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan's Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done (2002).

Q 03 7-S Soft Medium

In the McKinsey 7-S framework, which is one of the *soft* 4-S elements?

AStrategy
BStructure
CShared values
DSystems

View solution

Correct Option: C

Soft 4-S = Shared values, Style, Staff, Skills. Hard 3-S = Strategy, Structure, Systems.

Q 04 Chandler Medium

"Structure follows strategy" is the proposition of:

AHenry Mintzberg
BAlfred Chandler
CMichael Porter
DEdgar Schein

View solution

Correct Option: B

Alfred Chandler's Strategy and Structure (1962). Diversifying firms moved from functional to divisional structure because the new strategy demanded it.

Q 05 Drucker Easy

"Culture eats strategy for breakfast" — emphasising that culture is essential to implementation — is famously attributed to:

APeter Drucker
BEdgar Schein
CTom Peters
DHenry Mintzberg

View solution

Correct Option: A

Famously attributed to Peter Drucker. Without an aligned culture, even the right strategy fails to be executed.

Q 06 Strategic Control Medium

Monitoring whether the assumptions on which the strategy was based remain valid is called:

APremise control
BImplementation control
CStrategic surveillance
DSpecial-alert control

View solution

Correct Option: A

Premise control = checking that the assumptions remain valid. Implementation control = on-track execution; surveillance = open-ended scanning; special-alert = crisis.

Q 07 BSC Medium

In the Kaplan-Norton Balanced Scorecard, the *cause-and-effect* in a strategy map runs:

ATop-down: Financial → Customer → Process → Learning & Growth
BBottom-up: Learning & Growth → Internal Process → Customer → Financial
CRandom
DIn a circle

View solution

Correct Option: B

Kaplan-Norton's strategy map: L&G → Internal Process → Customer → Financial. Investments in people / systems improve processes, which improves customer outcomes, which translates into financial performance.

Q 08 Galbraith Medium

Galbraith's "Star Model" of organisation design includes which five elements?

AStrategy, Structure, Processes, Reward, People
BStrategy, Structure, Systems, Style, Skills
CStrategy, Structure, Sales, Service, Stakeholders
DPlan, Organise, Lead, Control, Evaluate

View solution

Correct Option: A

Galbraith's Star Model: Strategy · Structure · Processes · Reward · People. All five must align for the design to work.

Quick recall

Strategy implementation = converting strategy into action. 70%+ of strategies fail in execution, not formulation.
Bossidy-Charan: execution is the discipline of getting things done.
Frameworks: McKinsey 7-S (hard 3 + soft 4), Galbraith Star Model (Strategy-Structure-Processes-Reward-People), Hrebiniak’s drivers.
Five pillars of execution: structure, systems & processes, resources, leadership & culture, communication & change.
Chandler: structure follows strategy. Drucker: culture eats strategy for breakfast.
Balanced Scorecard for cascading strategy. OKRs for quarterly cadence.
Change management for implementation: Lewin’s 3 steps, Kotter’s 8 steps, Beckhard’s formula, ADKAR.
Four types of strategic control: premise · implementation · strategic surveillance · special-alert.