Executing Strategy with the Balanced Scorecard

The originators of the Balanced Scorecard approach to management are at it again with a new book that urges executives to make strategy a continuing process that is embedded deeply throughout the organization.

The Execution Premium: Linking Strategy to Operations for Competitive Advantage by Harvard Business School professor Robert S. Kaplan and consultant David P. Norton shows managers "how to weave organizational principles into a more effective management system that respects the differences between strategy and operations yet integrates them in a powerful way," according to an interview with Kaplan in HBS Working Knowledge.

Several takeaways:

• Strategy execution often fades in the face of day-to-day operations issues -- fighting fires. The senior management team should meet monthly on strategy-only topics.
• The operational plan and budget should be driven from the revenue targets in the strategic plan.
• Large organizations should consider creating the Office of Strategy Management, which is a team of professionals that coordinate strategy management details orchestrate strategy for the executive team.

The book lays out a six-stage process:

1. Develop the strategy.
2. Plan the strategy.
3. Align the organization.
4. Plan operations.
5. Monitor and learn.
6. Test and adapt.