New Year, New Strategies: Why Plans Fail and How to Fix Them

It’s a well understood business truism that most strategic thinking fails to survive the ‘reality test’ – our best laid plans often fall apart when they come into full contact with the challenges of Getting Big Things Done.

This isn't just anecdotal; data supports this. A staggering 60-70% of well-formulated strategies fail due to poor execution (HBR). This failure isn't merely about missed targets; it represents wasted resources, erodes trust, and cultivates a toxic work environment marked by frustration and low engagement.

Fortunately, organizational network analysis tools like Cophi offer a proactive solution. By identifying potential roadblocks before they derail strategies, we can mitigate challenges and improve success rates.

The Three Execution Blockers

Cophi's analysis of 2,500 teams, 22,000 individuals, and over 800,000 network connections revealed three primary execution barriers:

1. Silos: Working in isolation

A significant 80% of teams experienced silo-related issues, highlighting a critical lack of information sharing and collaboration. Silos are divisions where departments or teams operate in isolation. While partly rooted in human nature—our tendency to favor familiar groups—organizational structures often exacerbate this problem by restricting information flow or promoting internal competition.

Identifying Silos in Cophi: Cophi's organizational network view readily identifies potential silos. Red connector lines between teams indicate possible barriers. Missing connectors suggest a complete lack of interaction. Where a connector exists, we can also see the NCS – Net Collaboration Score – for this connection. Minus numbers indicate that a collaboration issue, and potential silo, exists.

Free-text feedback offers a deeper understanding, with comments like "not working towards a common goal" directly pinpointing silo-related concerns.

Tackling the Silo Problem: The solution isn't to simply force collaboration; it's fostering better understanding and a shared sense of purpose. Leadership coaching can empower leaders to encourage cross-functional work. Regular check-ins build rapport, especially across teams that rarely interact. Shared commitments ensure alignment, while open communication, retrospectives, and honest feedback create psychological safety, allowing individuals to contribute freely without fear of repercussions.

2. Lack of Strategic Alignment: The Disconnect

A concerning 69% of teams scored low in strategic alignment, demonstrating a widespread lack of understanding regarding how individual objectives contribute to the overall strategy. This disconnect results in wasted effort, reduced engagement, poor performance, and eroded trust in leadership.

Identifying Misalignments in Cophi: Cophi's "Clarity Network" view quickly reveals strategically misaligned areas. It indicates which teams understand the strategy and their role in achieving it. The free text feedback reveals the precise nature of the issues, for instance, calls for a ‘clearer vision’ or a ‘better understanding of broader objectives’.

Bridging the Alignment Gap: A multi-faceted approach is crucial. Involving middle management in strategy development builds ownership and buy-in. Tailored communication—clearly explaining the "what," "why," and "how"—is essential. Two-way dialogue ensures goals are clear and concerns are addressed. Finally, cascading goals into measurable objectives (OKRs) and consistently reinforcing the strategy across various channels will help to build widespread understanding.

3. The Process Paradox: The Dance

58% of teams struggled with either insufficient or overly burdensome processes. Finding the right balance is key: too little process creates chaos, too much results in bureaucracy and inaction.

Like dancers, we need to agree whether we’re doing a rhumba or salsa, but at some point we need to learn how to move intuitively together.

Spotting Process Paradoxes in Cophi: Cophi's network filters allow examination of "operational networks"—information sharing, project management, and problem-solving. These visualizations reveal areas with inadequate, nonexistent, or overly complex processes. Free-text feedback provides further detail, such as comments about ‘using different systems’ or ‘slow decision-making’.

Navigating the Process Paradox: We have to be careful when process issues occur, as a perceived lack of process doesn’t necessarily mean we need more process. We want to ask ourselves questions like:

How do we keep process light and appropriate?

Who defines the process?

What happens if a process isn’t working?

Is ‘lack of process’ a presenting problem for a different, cultural issue?

Often, the answer isn’t a new system or workflow, but just clearer, better quality conversations between teams.

Conclusion:

Successful strategic execution requires more than just a strong plan; it demands effective collaboration, clear alignment, and optimized processes. By utilizing data-driven insights to address silos, alignment issues, and process paradoxes, organizations can significantly improve strategic execution, fostering better teamwork and achieving superior outcomes.

So… If you take your strategy seriously: Start measuring collaboration!