This text, entitled execution Plain and Simple, with the subtitle Twelve Steps to Achieving Any Goal on Time and on allocation is written by Robert Neiman, a possessor of a scholar of enterprise administration from Harvard University. Neiman is a partner in Robert H. Schaffer & Associates, a administration consulting firm that has pioneered the ideas and custom of managing turn and construction high-performing organisations for over forty years.
Based in Stamford, Connecticut, the firm helps organisations achieve rapid improvements in results, preserve strengthen and link strategic planning, organisation development and operational innovation to supervene in rapidly-changing environments. This author has helped major corporations achieve great gains in execution and profitability. He has put his palpate on paper for managers who know their organisations have much more potential, can and must do better, and who need to overcome busyness, delays, diversions and other barriers.
Accelerated Reader Tests
According to Neiman, best execution is one of the great untapped opportunities for enhancing organisational performance. This author says it is basic and is what managers do all the time. He stresses that yet, in too many organisations, execution falls inexcusably short.
Neiman adds that despite its importance, execution has been in the background of administration thinking, taken for granted, dismissed as obvious, even considered mundane in disagreement with the sparkle of new strategies, new technologies, new opportunities and new partners. He says execution as a contentious benefit has been incommunicable behind a thick curtain.
Structurally, this text is divided into two parts of 16 chapters. Part one is generically christened Twelve Steps to Achieving Any Goal on Time and on allocation and accordingly contains 12 chapters. Lesson one is based on the branch matter of taking responsibility. Agreeing to Neiman here, "The underlying assumption of execution is that your own sense of accountability and your initiative will be the driving troops of achieving your goals. All the tools and techniques work only in the hands of a responsible initiator. Taking accountability and initiative has several meanings. If you are managing an effort, it means you have the accountability for its success... If you are party to an attempt and see an error being made or an opening to do something better, you raise the issue and do something constructive about it."
This author educates that taking accountability and initiative is not a problem for entrepreneurs or solo operators whose whole work existence depends on their own initiative. "Taking accountability and initiative is not a problem for managers in complex organisations who have a clear assignment, enthusiasm about tackling the assignment, abundance of population and resources ready to help, and who feel clear they can carry it off," adds Neiman.
He says the first step for execution is thinking preparedness. This author stresses that you should think of yourself as man who has an assignment or an opening and it is time to get moving. Agreeing to him, "Think of the role you'll play. If you are a senior manager, you will be conceiving major directions and calling upon others to originate work programmes and exact projects. You will be acting as a sponsor. If you are a middle manager, you might be creating the work programmes and projects.... If you are a front-line manager, or are foremost a exact project yourself, you'll be a project leader. If you are a staff man or facilitator, you'll be providing the support. If you are a participant, you'll be carrying out exact tasks."
Chapter two is interrogatively entitled What's that again? Define your assignment - in writing. Here, this author says ideally, execution begins with an assignment, an legal payment to tackle a goal. "A good assignment generates a spark, enthusiasm, a spring to your step. It comes from your boss, your administration team, or your board, and it spells out what you need to achieve and gives you some guidance on how to proceed," illuminates Neiman.
He adds that ideally, you will be able to discuss the assignment first, then you will get a written memorandum summarising it. He says the tone will be encouraging and you and your boss will both have a warm feeling that you are all together and off to a good start. Agreeing to this author, "All of this might sound like the most basic aspects of administration 101. But because it is so basic, giving assignments is often slighted, treated inadequately or superficially. You might scrutinize that there are quite separate views of just what the assignment unmistakably is. It might be ambiguous or confusing because it overlooks foremost questions, or has the wrong tone, or covers up incommunicable but foremost concerns. It's tempting to shrug and move on, doing the best you can."
Neiman stresses that for sufficient execution, however, you must sort out the issues and define the assignment early on, adding that if you skip over this step, or leave it too loose, your whole attempt will be on shaky ground.
In chapters three to eight, this author examines concepts such as organising your core team and creating a strategy; getting input and preserve from key players; keeping a compelling kick-off event to originate momentum; development all the pieces fit by using plans, schedules, budgets and controls; development demands effectively; and following up like crazy without driving population crazy.
Chapter nine is based on the branch matter of using political skills to win constituents and overcome opposition. Agreeing to Neiman here, "Political skill is primary to get things done in an organisation. You made a start on this process when doing the reconnaissance to test your strategy... Then you uncovered issues to deal with, discovered the attitudes of population with respect to your strategy, and made adjustments to your strategy to accommodate what you learned. In this chapter, we get into greater depth on the politics of execution to deal with some of the more difficult issues."
He says for great execution, five basic political skills primary are focusing on readiness rather than resistance; getting behind the masks that difficult population wear; construction a mission and a constituency that can win; communicating a consistent message strategically and dealing with the unengageable few.
In chapters 10 to 12, this author analytically X-rays concepts such as using creative problem-solving to overcome unforeseen risks, delays and obstacles; managing an intense push to get the final results and rewards; and capturing and spreading what you learn.
Part two is summarily woven together as Accelerated execution: Using small breakthrough projects to achieve large strategic goals and contains four chapters, that is, chapters 13 to 16. Lesson 13 is based on the branch matter of what crises can teach us about accelerated execution. Agreeing to Neiman here, "Just think how much more organisations furnish in a crisis than under general conditions. Crises communicate for an instant the astonishing execution potential of an organisation...capability not visible before. population rally round and do whatever it takes to deal with the situation. And nothing has changed except the crisis and significance of the challenge to be met and the level of execution to respond."
In chapters 14 to 16, this author beams his intellectual searchlight on concepts such as getting crucial results fast, generating momentum and construction new organisational capabilities; multiplying breakthrough project successes to reach the big goals; and focusing your organisation on the few most crucial goals.
Stylistically, this text is okay. The language yields itself to easy understanding and the concepts are logically and didactically presented. Neiman makes the text practical and interactive by including a worksheet/exercise section to test readers' understanding and arouse their active participation.
One of the errors noticed in the text is "His 12-steps provide..." (outside back cover) instead of "His 12 steps provide..." Also, a technical error of prepositional redundancy is noticed on page one thus: "Twelve Steps to Achieving Any Goal on Time and on Budget" instead of "Twelve Steps to Achieving Any Goal on Time and Budget."
These errors need to be corrected in the next edition.
On a note of analytical finality, this text is very recommended to all managers and organisations that want to achieve success straight through allowable execution strategy.
carrying out Plain and simple
