From Vision to Impact: Aligning Goals for Maximum Productivity

Establishing alignment between vision and delivery is crucial for monitoring outcome productivity and ensuring long-term success. In a recent survey conducted by Forbes, I was not only unsurprised but also relieved to find that 90% of senior leadership respondents “believe a strategic plan is necessary to execute business activities.” However, it is concerning that only 46% confirmed they had “developed a well-defined and deliberate strategic plan” for their business operations. Setting aside those who do not believe in the necessity of a business plan, it is noteworthy that half of the respondents expressed dissatisfaction with their capacity for business planning.

Certainly, some organizations without a plan may stumble upon success through strategic innovation by sheer luck. However, research suggests that between 70% to 90% of innovations fail, with 67% of well-thought-out strategies specifically failing due to inadequate execution.

When we merge these two areas of research, we could infer that: 1- Senior leaders often face time constraints for strategic planning and may lack full confidence in their organization’s capacity to develop well-structured strategic innovations. 2- Once an innovative idea receives approval, it is likely to fail three-quarters of the time due to subpar execution.

Risks for innovative projects

Forbes also identified 3 forms of risk for the delivery of innovative projects:

1- Risk of Execution: This refers to the possibility that planned activities may not be executed effectively

2- White Space Risk: This refers to the chance that certain key activities may not be identified beforehand

3- Integration Risk: This highlights the risk that diverse activities may not align seamlessly at project end

A crucial underlying theme across these risks is the ability to adapt. A general rule of thumb is that “two-thirds of successful innovations must significantly change their original plans to achieve their desired objectives”. Therefore, having a system that supports adaptability and agility it seems is essential for long-term success. 

What makes a great innovative idea

Mitigating these risks wherever possible with agility baked into your strategic project management is not merely a nice to have; it is fundamental and critical. However, you must also consider what constitutes a compelling case for a new strategic innovation.

Innovation is at its best when it upholds the company’s purpose and generates shared value for its key stakeholders: customers, employees, suppliers, communities, and investors who all play a significant role in the innovation’s success. To kickstart this process, it’s essential to force innovative thinking in the context of the company’s purpose, focusing on the value it intends to deliver to specific stakeholder groups. Following this, leveraging a structured innovation platform with approval governance is needed to guide innovations towards creating value for the prioritized stakeholder segments. Armed with promising opportunities, and baked in agility, teams can then work on devising solutions (we call this ideation) that creates the stakeholder value, and makes a contribution to fulfill the organizations purpose.

Monitoring outcome productivity

Effective productivity management requires clear measurement of outcomes, for without the ability to measure, we cannot effectively monitor success. So it is imperative that we meticulously establish a clear linkage between project delivery—our organizational output (that work that we each do), encapsulating the contributions and efforts of each individual—and the tangible measurable outcomes (key metrics) received by our stakeholder segment(s).

Successfully navigating the complexities of strategic innovation requires more than just brilliant ideas; it demands a robust system that fosters agility, adaptability, and clear alignment between vision and execution. StrategyBlocks provides precisely that. Our award-winning, visually intuitive platform simplifies strategy execution, allowing you to mitigate risks, monitor outcome productivity, and ultimately, transform your vision into tangible impact. 

Ready to experience the difference? Request a live demo of the StrategyBlocks platform today and discover how we can help your organization achieve its full potential!