Services
World Class Performance Management - Capabilities that Accelerate Strategy Execution
More and more CEOs recognize that performance management plays a critical role in superior strategy execution. In fact, the Conference Board CEO Challenge 2012 survey reported that improving performance management processes and accountability is a top-10 priority for CEOs globally.
Performance management – when done well – has the power to accelerate strategy implementation by building alignment, creating the right mindset and promoting the capabilities needed to execute. Nevertheless, companies have struggled for years to effectively build performance management capability in their organizations. Performance management is often viewed as a process that takes place once or twice a year. Now, there is a better way. Performance management must be viewed as a holistic process that touches every part of the organization, taking place every minute of every day throughout the year – with coaching as its key element.
The involvement of the leader is the key to unlocking critical behaviors that drive execution and, therefore, is critical to successful performance management. Our approach integrates with and leverages the investment of tools and processes already in place and adapts to evolving strategic initiatives. While each program is unique, the flow generally involves a series of engaging, blended learning experiences with leader involvement throughout the program. The following is a high-impact, multi-phase process that will accelerate performance management in your organization.
When done successfully, the return on investment is profound, illustrated in everything from revenue growth to employee engagement to improved efficiencies and organizational alignment.
Strategy Execution
New research exposes top strategy execution drivers, and reveals CEOs overestimate their company’s ability to execute strategy.
Based on a global survey of over two hundred executives, senior leaders and managers conducted for BTS by The Economist Intelligence Unit, "Cracking the Code" explores how to maximize the full potential of strategic initiatives by focusing on the people part of the strategy execution equation.
The research reveals the critical enablers of effective strategy execution, details the leadership actions and behaviors that deliver the greatest impact, and explores key organizational challenges and disconnects that companies must overcome to realize results.
• Strategy Development or Execution? Companies who adopt a balanced approach between strategy formulation and implementation outperform competitors.
• High vs. Low Performing Companies: Alignment, Mindset and Capability drive exceptional execution and deliver tangible results.
• Execution Capability: Leaders’ capabilities are identified as the most important predictor of an organization’s ability to execute.
• High-Impact Leadership Behaviors: A hands-on approach to implementation is proven to pay dividends, enabling strategy to effectively cascade down into an organization.
• Top Strategy Execution Challenge: Leaders at top-performing organizations perceive cross-company collaboration as the biggest impediment to effective strategy execution.
• CEOs Overestimate Company’s Ability to Execute: Without an accurate understanding of their organization's abilities, CEOs will struggle to take the necessary actions to drive skill development and effective execution.
Our experience from dozens of strategy execution assignments will help you avoid pitfalls and drastically shorten your time-to-execution.
Get the research report here.
The understanding, skills, and tools that salespeople need to deliver maximum value
Based on years of global sales research, our results-focused sales skills training reflects the realities of selling in today’s business-to-business environment. Our research shows that customers today want salespeople who deeply understand their businesses, and they want their purchases to impact their desired business results as rapidly as possible. We focus on the four key areas that our research has shown lead to success: aligning your sales process with the customer’s buying cycle, asking high-impact questions that focus on desired business results, co-creating solutions with clients, and advancing at every stage of the buying process.
All our sales skills training seeks these world-class sales outcomes:
• Transition from conversations about products and solutions to conversations about business results
• Build a deep understanding of the customer’s business priorities and the trends affecting his or her business
• Understand the customer’s buying cycle and how to accelerate it by meeting the customer’s needs
• Practice asking high-impact questions that create value and uncover the customer’s interests
• Develop advanced questioning skills to explore the customer’s desired business results
• Map proposed solutions to the customer’s business priorities
• Recognize the customer’s business priorities and align them with the customer’s definition of value
• Understand what closing looks like at each phase of the customer’s buying cycle
Business acumen, also referred to as commercial acumen, is critical to effective strategy execution. In fact, a recent study reports that two-thirds of corporate executives believe a lack of business skills or business acumen inhibits their company from meeting strategic priorities.
What is business acumen? Synonymous with business skills, business acumen is defined as an intuitive and applicable understanding of how a company makes money. It includes a thorough understanding of what drives profitability and cash flow, a market focused approach to the business, and an overall big picture understanding of the business and its interrelationships.
Strategic Perspective
An overall big picture understanding of the business; the critical interdependencies across functions and divisions; the short- and long-term trade-offs of decisions.
Financial Acumen
A comprehensive understanding of the drivers of growth, profitability, and cash flow; a firm’s financial statements; key performance measures; implications of decisions on value creation.
Market Orientation
The ability to analyze and synthesize market and competitive data; a deep understanding of the customer’s business objectives and purchasing criteria; an appreciation of the value of each customer to the company.
Business Acumen development continues to be a unique cornerstone of our service. Why? Because we are able to generate strong execution leading to tangible, fast results improvements and superior measurable ROI.
In close partnership with BTS we have access to ongoing global research, world-leading solutions and a global network of professionals.
