Optimize the strategy implementation

The study "Maturity of strategy implementation in companies" was prepared by the management consultancy KUDERNATSCH Consulting & Solutions, Straßlach near Munich. Among other things, it shows,

• how those responsible currently assess the actual situation in the area of strategy implementation in their companies and
• where they still see potential for optimisation.

For the study, 137 top decision-makers from companies in various industries who were (jointly) responsible for strategy work were surveyed.

Often lacks a generally understandable vision and strategy
The study revealed, among other things: When it comes to managing day-to-day business, most companies have now developed a fairly high level of professionalism in terms of (further) developing and implementing their strategy. The situation is different when it comes to strategic goals, which are associated with a high need for change - be it at the cultural, structural or process level. Here, most respondents complain that a vision is either missing altogether or is not sufficiently operationalized. More than 55 percent are also of the opinion that the vision is not sufficiently communicated, which is why there is often insufficient knowledge of the vision - especially among operational employees. In addition, many employees do not understand the vision.

The situation is similar at the level of strategy and medium-term (development) goals (2 to 5 years). Here, almost 77 percent of respondents stated that their company had a clear strategy - even if it still had "small" (25.6 %) or "partial gaps" (32.1 %). However, well over 70 percent of those surveyed also see deficits in communication here.

A cause for this might be according to estimate of Dr. Daniela Kudernatsch, the owner of the management consultation and Initiatorin of the study: In 48.5 % of the enterprises at most the second guidance level is merged into the strategy development process. And: In nearly 25 per cent of the enterprises the strategy is compiled alone by the Top management.

Weakness: development objectives
Notwithstanding this, the respondents tend to assess the operationalisation of the strategy in their company in relation to the medium-term goals positively. Almost 50 percent state that there is no (greater) need for action here. The picture is different for the goals that have a "breakthrough character" in relation to the longer-term development of the company, i.e. the goals,

• for which significant changes are required at the cultural, structural or process level,
• that require a complete rethink and
• that take the company out of its comfort zone.

With regard to these objectives, less than a quarter of respondents state that their company is already "top fit" (9.8 %) or that there are only minor deficits (13.8 %). The remainder are of the opinion that there is still a greater or lesser need for development.

Weakness: Horizontal alignment of objectives
Another weak point of many companies is the horizontal coordination of goals - e.g. between the divisions and departments. It is gaining in importance - among other things, because the structures and working and communication relationships in companies are becoming increasingly networked and complex, and core services are increasingly being provided in cross-divisional team and project work.
be provided.

Nevertheless, in more than half of the companies (53.3 %), horizontal coordination of objectives only takes place at management level; in 41.6 percent, it also takes place at the first management level. Below this level, there is usually no horizontal coordination.

If there is horizontal coordination of objectives, this is usually not associated with a lively communication process between the persons and organisational units involved, which also includes a discussion of the plans and means for achieving the objectives. Only about 30 percent of the respondents are of the opinion that there is no (7.6 %) or only a slight (24.4 %) need for development in their company in this respect.

Weakness: Systematic learning
Another shortcoming in many companies is that the reviews of the degree of implementation of the objectives are almost never based on a system or control loop such as the PDCA cycle (Plan-Do-Check-Act), which enables systematic learning. This means that in the event of deviations from the plan, there is no defined process for analysing the causes. In this respect, more than half of the survey participants see either "large" (31.7 %) or even "very large gaps" (25 %) in their organisation.

Since a systematic analysis of the causes is usually not carried out, it is, according to Dr. Daniela Kudernatsch, "obvious that the companies often have difficulties in taking the necessary countermeasures and eliminating the causes of the problem in the long term".

Weak point: organisational anchoring
According to the strategy implementation expert, the fact that there is still a great need for development in this area is probably also due to the following reason: although 58 percent of the companies have a department responsible for strategy development, only 33.4 percent of them have a corresponding department for strategy implementation.

The main task of this area is usually to organise and drive forward the strategy implementation process (85.7 %). Only in 59.5 percent of the companies does this area also include coaching the managers in this process and in 52.4 percent the implementation of training courses on strategy implementation.

According to Dr. Daniela Kudernatsch, this articulates "a fundamental underestimation of the importance of managers in realizing the vision of a company and achieving its strategic goals" - among other things, because it is one of their central tasks in everyday business to communicate the vision and the goals of the company to the employees and to win them as comrades-in-arms in their realization or achievement.

Weak point: competence of managers
Due to this intermediary function, managers should, among other things, have a high level of (methodological) competence in translating and cascading, i.e. breaking down objectives. In this respect, however, most of the survey participants still see "partial" (31.1 %), "large" (35.2 %) or even "very large" competence gaps (21.3 %) among the managers in their companies. It is not uncommon for managers to even refuse to address this issue and communicate with their employees about it - especially when it comes to breakthrough goals, i.e. future-oriented goals.

The respondents also see a great need for development in the area of horizontal leadership - for example, in topics that require coordination across departments, divisions or locations. Here, almost 80 percent of the respondents see a more or less great need for development among the managers in their organization.

The situation is similar for managers at all levels with regard to

• their competence to carry out standardised reviews for the achievement of objectives,
• their knowledge of problem-solving methods and
• their ability to apply and communicate them to their staff.

Core task: Promoting and strengthening managers
Accordingly, many managers are often unsure about when they should take on the role of coach (enabler) and when they should take on the role of manager (facilitator) in employee contact. In the opinion of more than 50 percent of respondents, the competence of managers in their organization in this regard still has "large" (33.9 %) or even "very large gaps" (24.0 %).

According to Dr. Daniela Kudernatsch, this uncertainty contributes to the fact that managers generally show little openness to changes during the year and do not react very flexibly to them. In this regard, more than two-thirds of the study participants stated that there is still a more or less great need for development among the managers in their organization. In other words, they see them primarily as learners - i.e. as people who are still on the way to maturing into the leadership personalities that companies need in the VUKA world, which is characterized by permanent change or low predictability.