Organizations need strong and capable strategic leaders who can motivate, coach, and inspire people to do strategic work that will help ensure the organization’s success over the long term. Contributors at all levels in the organization look to their leaders for direction and clues about how the future will unfold and how they can add distinctive value to the organization and ensure its success.
What is Strategy Development and Implementation?
Strategy development and implementation illustrate two key steps in executing high-value business strategies.
Strategy development is a process where leaders analyze how to leverage their organization’s resources to remain competitive in the industry. The intention of this process is to make appropriate adjustments in response to changing market conditions and/or to better align initiatives with the company’s overarching objectives.
The strategy development phase maps out a measurable and specific action plan. This may include setting clear goals, determining roles, and delegating responsibilities.
Strategy implementation is the next step. This is the process where the roadmap created in the strategy development phase is executed. Leaders in this phase are focused on turning plans into action, thereby helping the organization accomplish desired outcomes.
The specific processes within implementation are described in greater detail below, and are essential to real execution in most cases.
Strategic Leadership Course Outline
CMOE’s Strategic Leadership Workshop provides managers and leaders within an organization with the skills and tools they need to successfully capitalize on the forces and events that shape their world, allowing them to become architects of the future within their area of responsibility. Leaders learn how to strategically position their Business-within-the-Business™ (function, department, or team) by creating their own unique, standalone strategy that aligns with and supports the organization’s overarching strategy. The strategy development and implementation process helps leaders see the big picture and find new ways for their team to contribute maximum value over the long run by operating from a more strategic point of reference while still delivering on today’s expectations.
Strategy Development and Implementation for Functional Areas, Departments, or Lines of Business
CMOE believes that leaders who manage critical pieces of the firm’s value chain of activities play an important part in strategy development and implementation. They fulfill this role by creating strategy for their team that is aligned with broader organizational strategies. Our Strategic Leadership™ Workshop is designed to help leaders develop their strategic leadership capabilities and capacity through an engaging and fast-paced learning experience. The basis of this workshop is application—application of strategic thinking principles, application of a strategic thinking culture, and application of a strategic plan of action for their part of the business.
Strategy Development and Implementation for Individuals and Teams
Every leader and member of an organization has a part to play in the strategy development and implementation process, and must work to ensure that it is implemented effectively across the enterprise. In order to get the most mileage out of strategy planning, every team and individual contributor must begin to think of themselves as a business within the enterprise, complete with deliverables, internal customers, etc.—just on a smaller scale. How is this done? Our Applied Strategic Thinking® Workshop equips leaders and individual contributors with these essential skills so they can identify their own strategic contribution concept and discover how they can participate in strategic implementation and make a difference. Not only does this interactive workshop address large-scale strategic planning initiatives, it also drills deeper and addresses strategic planning all the way to the individual level.
The Strategy Implementation Process
The strategy implementation process will look different across organizations depending on their needs and objectives. But there are four common stages the implementation process follows:
Execute Responsibilities: The responsibilities discussed during the strategy development phase must be executed. The individuals assigned to each responsibility will take full ownership of the roles, ensuring the tasks are completed to quality standards.
Monitor Metrics: Leaders will set up and monitor the progress of their responsibilities via metrics selected during the strategy development phase.
Provide Reports: Performance development will be included in regular reports and should be presented during meeting check-ins. This allows all stakeholders to stay updated on progress and to gain a small- and big-picture view of the strategy.
Adjust/Revise as Necessary: Even the best strategies often do not go as planned the first time. This stage encourages leaders to take on a growth mindset. As time progresses and performance develops, leaders should alter their plans accordingly to stay aligned with objectives and life circumstances.
Solutions for Strategy Development and Implementation
CMOE’s Strategic Leadership Workshop and the Applied Strategic Thinking Workshop are designed to be highly engaging, skill-building programs that improve strategic competencies at all levels of the organization. Here is some of what participants can expect when they attend CMOE’s workshops:
- A very experienced facilitator with practical and professional experience and qualifications
- A pre-workshop reading or case study about strategy
- A comprehensive participant workbook and supporting resource materials
- A hardbound copy of Ahead of the Curve: A Guide to Applied Strategic Thinking or Strategy Is Everyone’s Job by Steven J. Stowell, Ph.D. and Stephanie S. Mead, MBA
- Introduction to the Strategic Leadership or the Applied Strategic Thinking® Model and the Applied Strategic Thinking Assessment™, as well as the skills and behaviors necessary to effectively apply it
- Application of The Strategic Leadership or Applied Strategic Thinking Road Map™ with the help of a customized case study
- As if that wasn’t enough, about half of the time will be used to walk the group through an exciting strategy simulation designed to teach each participant how to develop strategic goals and how to implement them across the organization
Along the way, the facilitator will interact extensively with the group and pull-out key strategy insights in order to expedite the learning process. At CMOE, we have become extremely adept at helping adults think and work more strategically.
Learn more about our Strategic Leadership™ Workshop and our Applied Strategic Thinking® Workshop.
