Article On Strategy Execution
Article On Strategy Execution
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            Massimo Maoret
            IESE Business School
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                                                                                                      STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
                                                                                                      A
                                                                                                                   s General Manager (GM), your role         – will impact thousands of lives. Your compa-
                                                                                                                   is a constant challenge. Your com-        ny may need some change, but where should
                                                                                                                   pany may be performing below              you start? With your strategy? But having the
                                                                                                                   expectations; an external threat to       best strategy is of little use if it can’t be imple-
                                                                                                      your business model may be looming on the ho-          mented. Should you start by tackling internal
                                                                                                      rizon; or maybe you spot a market opportunity          resistance? Or reviewing the composition of
                                                                                                      and are wondering whether you should jump              your team? Should you convene a board meet-
                                                                                                      on it. Your excitement may be tinged with pan-         ing to clarify your goals or ratify them later on?
                                                                                                      ic, because the complexity of your work – and          Meanwhile, your inner voice is asking: do I have
                                                                                                      the potential consequences of your decisions           what it takes to succeed?
                                                                                                        These questions highlight why strategy            Throughout the article, Minoli interjects doses
                                                                                                    execution is an increasingly sought-after skill       of wisdom and realism: “You have to have a di-
                                                                                                    in management. For instance, a 2017 Henley            rection,” he says, and that’s what we endeavor
                                                                                                    Business School survey of 446 managers and            to give you. “Then you can enjoy the journey,
                                                                                                    directors from 51 countries revealed that strat-      wherever it takes you.”
                                                                                                    egy execution was the second most important
                                                                                                    development priority for executives and senior        Strategic Leaders:
                                                                                                    managers, moving up a place from 2016.                More Than Just Managers
                                                                                                        What makes the GM job so tough is there’s         Through our research, we discovered that suc-
                                                                                                    no all-purpose manual to study, apply and fol-        cessful GMs don’t see themselves simply as
                                                                                                    low. The technical knowledge that served you          managers, but rather as strategic leaders, which
                                                                                                    well as a functional manager is of little or no use   we define as a leadership style not limited to
                                                                                                    in resolving the trade-offs involved with mak-        making rational economic decisions (valid as
This document is an authorized copy for personal use of Mr. Maoret, 22/03/2018
                                                                                                    ing and acting upon the corporate-level deci-         they are) but one that reconciles the hard and
                                                                                                    sions that GMs have to face. Your abilities, and      the soft aspects of strategy execution in a single,
                                                                                                    the challenges you have to deal with, are part of     holistic process.
                                                                                                    a personal journey that will be different from the        All too often, GMs behave purely as hard
                                                                                                    journeys of other GMs, because it is an expres-       strategists, analyzing the competitive land-
                                                                                                    sion of who you are and the situations you have       scape and sending out orders, like generals to
                                                                                                    to face.                                              their troops. The problem with single-minded
                                                                                                        Federico Minoli, a globally renowned turn-        rational management is that it can lead to busi-
                                                                                                    around manager (see bio below), puts it bluntly:      ness strategies that aren’t actionable, because
                                                                                                    “Strategy execution is quite chaotic. Success         they fail to account for human, organizational
                                                                                                    will come from getting your hands dirty, talking      and political dynamics. At the other end of the
                                                                                                    to people on the shop floor, and being humble         spectrum lie those GMs who just focus on inter-
                                                                                                    enough to admit what you don’t know. All your         personal relations. These touchy-feely manag-
                                                                                                    beautiful plans and spreadsheets will fail if they    ers risk losing sight of the bottom line, leaving
                                                                                                    are not attached to reality.”                         the firm vulnerable to competitive threats or
                                                                                                        Overwhelmed? Don’t worry, we’re here to           the next economic or technological shock. We
                                                                                                    help. Together with our colleagues in the Stra-       contend that you need to be a fusion of both, if
                                                                                                    tegic Management Department at IESE, we’ve            you want to be able to execute strategy and be a
                                                                                                    developed a road map for successful strategy          successful GM.
                                                                                                    execution. Use it to guide you through your               Exhibit 1 presents our road map to help GMs
                                                                                                    next challenge, but treat it like a doctor’s pro-     think and act as strategic leaders. It depicts suc-
                                                                                                    tocol – a structured reference that still requires    cessful strategy execution as a constant unfold-
                                                                                                    critical judgments and on-the-spot adaptations        ing of four processes – diagnosis, direction,
                                                                                                    to be made in light of on-the-ground realities.       action and personal development – each with
                                                                                                                       EXHIBIT 1
                                                                                          Strategic                                                                             PROC
                                                                                          Leadership                                                                                    ESS
                                                                                                                                                                                              1: D
                                                                                          in Motion                                                                                                  IA
                                                                                          THESE FOUR PROCESSES                                                                                            GN
                                                                                                                                                                        Governance                             O
                                                                                          DRIVE SUCCESSFUL
                                                                                                                                      Consider                                                                     S
                                                                                          STRATEGY EXECUTION.
                                                                                                                                    the strategic,                                         Strategy
                                                                                                                                                                                                                   IS
                                                                                                                                                                    What skills do
                                                                                                                                     operational                  I need? Do I have
                                                                                                                                      & political                    the time and       What is my
                                                                                                                                   implications of:                 will to develop    responsibility
                                                                                                                                                                         them?           to others?
                                                                                                                     sta enga
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Organization
                                                                                                                                                        P
                                                                                                                        keh gin
                                                                                                                            old g                RO                                                (People, Culture,
                                                                                                                               ers                                                                    Structures,
                                                                                                                                             E SS   C
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                                                                                                                  commu
                                                                                                   PROCESS 3: ACT
                                                                                                                        nicatin                                                                        Systems)
                                                                                                                                g
                                                                                                                                           4: PERSONA
                                                                                 CURRENT                                                                                                                                               MOVING
                                                                                 SITUATION                               networking                                                                                                  TOWARD THE
                                                                                 OF YOUR                                                                                                                                               FUTURE
                                                                                                                                                                                                        Reach a Shared
                                                                                 FIRM                                            ing &
                                                                                                                          recruit ffing                                                                 Understanding
                                                                                                                               sta
                                                                                                                                                                                                        of the Situation
                                                                                                                                               LD
                                                                                                                                           g.           V
                                                                                                                                         or s               EL
                                                                                                                                                    E
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                ON
                                                                                                                                    in g    re                   OP
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                                                                                                                  IO
                                                                                                                                a
                                                                                                                                                                      MEN
                                                                                                                                     r
                                                                                                                              ch st yst                                     T                       Set
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                TI
                                                                                                             N
                                                                                                                                        s                                                        Strategic
                                                                                                                                             ou ing
&
                                                                                                                                                                                                                            EC
                                                                                                                                                    s
                                                                                                                                                                                                   Goals
                                                                                                                                          res locat
                                                                                                                                                rce
Develop
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           IR
                                                                                                                                            al
Monitor a Change
                                                                                                                                                                                                                       D
                                                                                                                                                                                      Strategy                         2
                                                                                                                                                                                                                   :
                                                                                                                                                                 the Journey                                   S
                                                                                                                                                                                                            ES
                                                                                                                                                                                                        C
                                                                                                                                                                                                 O
                                                                                                                                                                                              PR
                                                                                                         associated activities. Usually, these processes                                stakeholders that have to be managed inside and
                                                                                                         unfold sequentially, i.e., diagnosis before action.                            outside the firm. Success is measured not just
                                                                                                         Yet they can also be intertwined and recursive,                                in terms of maximizing returns for sharehold-
                                                                                                         i.e., given the high levels of uncertainty that                                ers but by your ability to balance diverse stake-
                                                                                                         GMs face, you sometimes only arrive at a correct                               holder interests and perspectives, and translate
                                                                                                         diagnosis after taking some action. Thought and                                them into governance body activities. You need
                                                                                                         action cannot be compartmentalized, so as you                                  to nurture relationships with your board of di-
                                                                                                         follow this road map, bear in mind how each ele-                               rectors and the key stakeholders represented
                                                                                                         ment is intertwined through continuous learn-                                  there, such as shareholders, unions and employ-
                                                                                                         ing and feedback loops.                                                        ees, as well as with external groups such as your
                                                                                                                                                                                        customers, governments and NGOs.
                                                                                                         Process 1: Diagnosis
                                                                                                         The first process – diagnosis – focuses on mak-                                STRATEGY. Next, you need to check the strate-
                                                                                                         ing sense of the situation your company is in. Of                              gic health of your firm to see whether it is able
                                                                                                         course, this is not something you do just once                                 to generate competitive advantage, defined
                                                                                                         in a while. The following activities, in three core                            as creating customer value above and beyond
                                                                                                         areas, must be priorities that you repeatedly di-                              competitors. Here is where the traditional
                                                                                                         agnose as situations evolve.                                                   tools of industry analysis, value creation
                                                                                                                                                                                        frameworks and business models come into
                                                                                                         GOVERNANCE. Diagnosis starts by understand-                                    play. You should be able to answer these inter-
                                                                                                         ing the institutional configuration in which                                   related questions:
                                                                                                         your company operates. By governance, we do                                     	 What should my strategic position be, in
                                                                                                         not refer solely to ownership structures and                                      terms of geographic, customer and product
                                                                                                         boards, but to the broader configuration of                                       scope? Where should we not be?
                                                                                                  T
                                                                                                           here are two approaches to diagnosis:          	 Structures & Systems. Not all organi-
                                                                                                           one way is to see the company as a               zational structures are the result of con-
                                                                                                           spreadsheet, and the other is to dive            scious design decisions. Sometimes, they
                                                                                                   into the company by talking to its people.               are the result of “path dependence,” arising
                                                                                                   The latter is what I do. Companies are not               from inertia. Before deciding if structural
                                                                                  spreadsheets: a company is made of the sounds and smells                  changes are necessary, you need to spend
                                                                                  of its people, each with their own issues and problems.                   sufficient time understanding how your
                                                                                  Don’t waste too much time optimizing your spreadsheet,                    structures function. Is it a matter of mak-
                                                                                  but rather dedicate yourself to the deep understanding of                 ing a few small changes to be more effective
                                                                                  what is the talent that every single employee can bring to                and efficient? Or is a complete reorganiza-
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                                                                                  the party. You’ll quickly understand if the job is right for the          tion called for? Don’t limit your analysis of
                                                                                  talent that the person has.                                               systems to the company chart but study: 1)
                                                                                      At Ducati, I once realized that one of our employees was              transversal corporate systems for strategic
                                                                                  bored and wanted out. His true passion was history, so I                  planning, budgeting, reporting, innovation,
                                                                                  made him the company historian. He single-handedly built                  decision-making and control; 2) people sys-
                                                                                  the Ducati Museum, which became a core component of our                   tems for recruiting, promotion, training and
                                                                                  marketing strategy. If you’re guided by this principle, you               compensation; and 3) operational systems
                                                                                  can pretty much understand what’s needed.                                 for purchasing, planning, logistics and sales.
                                                                                                                                                         Beyond checking that these elements are con-
                                                                                                                                                         sistent with each other, you must ensure they
                                                                                                                                                         are aligned with your business strategy. For in-
                                                                                                     	 Does my company create and capture value in       stance, a functional structure will be ill-fated
                                                                                                       its current market position, i.e., do we have a   for a customer-centric strategy, just as a well-
                                                                                                       competitive advantage?                            defined strategy filtered through misaligned
                                                                                                     	 What are the critical activities, capabilities    people, structures and systems will generate
                                                                                                       and resources that generate and sustain our       higher costs, and economic and social value
                                                                                                       competitive advantage?                            will not be delivered in a sustainable way.
                                                                                                    If you cannot answer these questions in 40
                                                                                                    words or less, it may be time to go back to the      Process 2: Setting Direction
                                                                                                    drawing board. After all, if you can’t synthetize    Once an overall diagnosis has been made, you
                                                                                                    your strategy in a short statement, how do you       are now in a position to chart a future course
                                                                                                    expect thousands in your firm to grasp and           for the company. As with the diagnosis, set-
                                                                                                    share your strategic vision?                         ting the direction is not a solitary endeavor
                                                                                                                                                         – or at least it shouldn’t be. Even though the
                                                                                                    ORGANIZATION. A third diagnosis relates to           GM is ultimately responsible for the direction
                                                                                                    the organizational components necessary to           the company takes, he or she should involve
                                                                                                    achieve the strategic goals effectively and ef-      people at all levels of the organization.
                                                                                                    ficiently. This analysis should serve to high-
                                                                                                    light changes that may need to be made to the        REACH A SHARED UNDERSTANDING OF THE
                                                                                                    following:                                           SITUATION. The earlier diagnoses should lead
                                                                                                      	 People & Culture. Strategy execution de-         you to define your business situation, by which
                                                                                                        pends on how well the organization can           you articulate the core challenge your com-
                                                                                                        identify, recruit, retain and leverage hu-       pany is facing – whether startup, growth, re-
                                                                                                        man talent, and their fit with the corporate     alignment or turnaround. Each situation will
                                                                                                        values. Analyze the stock of knowledge and       have its own unique set of challenges that will
                                                                                                        skills in your workforce, not limiting your-     condition the strategic decisions you make.
                                                                                                        self to your top management team, but ex-            The GM, together with the executive team,
                                                                                                        tend it to include the informal network of       must reach some consensus about what your
                                                                                                        relationships in the organization. Consider      business situation is before deciding the best
                                                                                                        how these relationships shape and sustain        way to address it. For instance, treating a re-
                                                                                                        the organizational culture, comprising the       alignment as a turnaround would be akin to us-
                                                                                                        values and norms that inform the behavior        ing antibiotics to treat flu – doing more harm
                                                                                                        of the organization’s members. Identify          than good.
                                                                                                    W
                                                                                                                  hen you get into a company,        profitability in this situation. This exercise must
This document is an authorized copy for personal use of Mr. Maoret, 22/03/2018
                                                                                                                  you have 100 days where            take account of the previously identified con-
                                                                                                                  everybody is expecting             straints under which the firm currently oper-
                                                                                                     something new from you. The defenses            ates, along with the resources the company has,
                                                                                                     are down, and maybe the company is in           and then translate those into concrete policies,
                                                                                                     financial difficulties. But if you spend your   resource commitments and actions at corpo-
                                                                                      first 100 days over-analyzing the current situation, you       rate, business unit and functional levels (e.g.,
                                                                                      may lose precious time.                                        marketing, operations, HR, finance), each of
                                                                                          I don’t recommend bringing in too many outside             which should be coherent and nested within
                                                                                      consultants, unless it’s for a very limited period,            the other.
                                                                                      on a very limited issue. In my view, implementable                 Strategizing starts with the definition of a
                                                                                      strategies come from within the company itself.                corporate vision – a vivid description of the com-
                                                                                          Your job is to act as an organizer of thought, to help     pany’s future state, which could be expressed as
                                                                                      the company find the solution within themselves. So,           a sales goal (Walmart in 1990: “Become a $125
                                                                                      you need to come up with a vision up front about what          billion company by the year 2000.”), a competi-
                                                                                      to do. My idea is to offer some broad, top-down, five-         tive goal (Nike in the 1960s: “Crush Adidas.”) or
                                                                                      year targets, with some generic strategies. Then, you          an imitational goal (Stanford University in the
                                                                                      feed those to your people, asking them to match your           1940s: “Become the Harvard of the West.”). No
                                                                                      top-down strategies with their bottom-up initiatives,          matter what your corporate vision is, it should
                                                                                      which they can own and take responsibility for.                have two traits: it must be very long term (a min-
                                                                                          As you start reorganizing, you have to celebrate           imum of 10 years) and it must be aspirational, to
                                                                                      early successes, to dramatize your points. The                 motivate and inspire all other employees.
                                                                                      celebration can occur for things that are real                     Then, it is essential to define, usually with
                                                                                      achievements, things that are half achievements or             the board of directors, the criteria that will be
                                                                                      things that you think are achievements. The important          used to evaluate the strategy. Example criteria
                                                                                      thing is that whenever someone achieves something,             are: Does it fit with our mission? How much val-
                                                                                      you collectively celebrate for going in the right              ue will be created? Is it sustainable? How much
                                                                                      direction.                                                     risk does it entail? Does it fit internally with our
                                                                                                                                                     organizational configuration?
Minoli on Action
                                                                                                  I
                                                                                                      ’m not a             Resistance is a challenge         great things together.”
                                                                                                      huge fan of      you’ll have to overcome, because          Recruiting is one of the keys to
                                                                                                      structures.      change doesn’t come naturally         strategy execution. Personally, I
                                                                                                  I think they         to people. If your mission is to      like to bring in young people – 10,
                                                                                                  burden people.       change something, you have to         20 or 30 people, fresh off their
                                                                                  Something structural is, by          generate a certain level of chaos     MBAs. The impact they have on
                                                                                  definition, not very flexible. But   at the beginning just to start        the company is usually amazing,
                                                                                  the world and markets change         moving things around. That will       not because of their competence
                                                                                  so quickly that you need to be       destabilize people who do not         but because of their energy, their
                                                                                  able to continuously morph into      want to change and at the same        freshness, their desire to achieve,
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                                                                                  something new. Meg Whitman           time excite people who do.            which infects everybody around
                                                                                  (former CEO of eBay and Hewlett          Remember: people change not       them. They challenge our sacred
                                                                                  Packard) once told me, “I don’t      because you promise them more         truths.
                                                                                  have time to create a structure      money; they aren’t motivated to           Don’t design KPIs around
                                                                                  because by the time I have one,      “grow the business by 10 percent      wishful successes, but rather in-
                                                                                  things have changed and I need to    next year,” particularly if they've   centivize their initiative-taking. Of
                                                                                  come up with another one, so why     been in a slump for many years.       course, with inexperience come
                                                                                  bother? Instead, I rally people      They're motivated by saying,          mistakes, so you will have to be
                                                                                  around a mission.”                   “We’re going to go and do these       ready to mop up the spilled milk.
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                                                                                  LAYERS OF
                                                                                                                                                                            DOES THE ACTION I AM ABOUT TO TAKE...
                                                                                  CONSEQUENCES
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	 contribute to the long-term implementation
                                                                                                                                                                     of the intended strategy?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	nurture core assets and capabilities?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	align with our vision and fall within our
                                                                                                                                                                     business scope?
                                                                                  Strategic                                                                        ...	prepare our company for future competitive
                                                                                  Implications                                                                       challenges?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	 have an immediate, short-term impact
                                                                                                                                                                       on the company’s economic position and
                                                                                                                                                                       financial health?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	support operational priorities and address
                                                                                                                                                                       operational demands?
                                                                                  Operational                                                                      ...	fix an urgent operational issue or neutralize
                                                                                  Implications                                                                         an urgent threat?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	strengthen the position of the firm with its
                                                                                                                                                                     stakeholders?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	consolidate the internal coalition guiding
                                                                                                                                                                     the company?
                                                                                                                                                                   ...	undermine the power position of a key
                                                                                  Political                                                                          internal stakeholder?
                                                                                  Implications                                                                     ...	generate internal resistance or overcome it?
                                                                                                             E
                                                                                                                      ducation-wise, I’m a generalist. I don’t      that holds common across all situations is that
                                                                                                                      know much vertically, but I do know           the job requires:
                                                                                                                      people. Of course, an industry cannot          	 a high level of responsibility, as decisions
                                                                                                              do without vertical experience because,                  are taken in a context of uncertainty and im-
                                                                                                              at the end of the day, if you have to design             ply risk-taking, with impacts felt both inside
                                                                                             an engine, you need to know how to design an engine. But                  and outside the firm.
                                                                                             there are plenty of people with that vertical knowledge.                	 shaping people’s lives, as decisions ulti-
                                                                                             And if I need technical expertise, I can go out and employ                mately have an impact on people, either di-
                                                                                             that – or buy it in. What we lack are people with horizontal              rectly or indirectly, and people are ultimately
                                                                                             competencies – people who think in broader terms, and who                 responsible for the actions of their firms.
This document is an authorized copy for personal use of Mr. Maoret, 22/03/2018
                                                                                             know what makes people tick.                                            	 taking actions conscious of the lasting im-
                                                                                                 I think that’s what defines a good CEO: to have the con-              pressions (or “footprints,” in the words of
                                                                                             viction that everybody has a talent and your role is to make              IESE’s Rafael Andreu) that these actions will
                                                                                             the most of those talents, for their sake, for the company,               leave on people, organizations and society,
                                                                                             for society at large and for yourself – because if you capture            which will define your personal reputation
                                                                                             a talent and help someone else grow, you grow yourself.                   and legacy.
                                                                                             You grow by spending the first hour of every morning going              	 continuous learning that draws on past ex-
                                                                                             down to the plant and talking to your people: you always get              periences to rise to future challenges.
                                                                                             something back.                                                        The organizational and technological com-
                                                                                                 In this sense, I like to recall the wisdom of Mr. Dainese,         plexity of global corporations today makes it
                                                                                             who, at a certain point in his life, stated that he did not want       easy to miss the causal link between corporate
                                                                                             to become a caricature of himself, so he decided to leave.             decisions and their consequences. Yet make no
                                                                                             That’s the most difficult decision a CEO has to make: you              mistake: your actions do have consequences on
                                                                                             have to nurture somebody else who will be able – and will-             real human beings, which is why we believe that
                                                                                             ing – to stab you in the back. Otherwise, nobody ever leaves           strategic leaders need to be ever mindful of it.
                                                                                             a position of power. Strong leaders know when it’s time to                 Demanding that GMs weigh the conse-
                                                                                             move on. It’s a tough reflection, but you have to make it –            quences of their decisions on all the people
                                                                                             not only for the sake of the company, but also for your own.           affected by their actions might seem too high
                                                                                                                                                                    a standard for strategic leadership. However,
                                                                                                                                                                    we would contend that, for too long, the bar
                                                                                                                                                                    has been set too low, contributing to less sus-
                                                                                                               detect and the personal qualities you have – or      tainable corporations and societies, which has
                                                                                                               will have to develop – to tackle those needs.        given rise to many of the social, economic and
                                                                                                                   This self-analysis is perhaps the most diffi-    political ills that we are witnessing around the
                                                                                                               cult, because it necessitates an honest, objec-      world today. Celebrating corporate leaders only
                                                                                                               tive self-assessment. It means accepting you         for their financial results, without scrutinizing
                                                                                                               might not have all the skills and competencies       how their companies treat workers, customers
                                                                                                               required to get the job done. And it often implies   and the natural environment and how they in-
                                                                                                               a radical change in your behavior.                   teract with governments, not only perpetuates
                                                                                                                   On the plus side, this process helps clarify     this sorry state of affairs but ultimately reduces
                                                                                                               which roles you may need to delegate to others       the long-term viability of corporations.
                                                                                                               on your executive team and which professional            Your challenges as a GM are exciting, com-
                                                                                                               adjustments you may need to make to align your       plex and imply a high level of responsibility
                                                                                                               profile with the tasks and behaviors this new        toward others. “Encourage people to dare,”
                                                                                                               phase calls for.                                     insists Minoli. “The respect and openness that
                                                                                                                   However, some activities and areas simply        you instill between people are what will help
                                                                                                               cannot be delegated, so you will have to ask         you survive.”
                                                                                                               yourself how willing you are to acquire the req-
                                                                                                               uisite skills and whether you can do it. Here, one         TO KNOW MORE
                                                                                                               factor makes the difference: your degree of free-
                                                                                                               dom. How much time do you have to dedicate           n   	 Ferraro, F. and J.M. Argüelles. “Strategic
                                                                                                               to these activities? How much decision-making              Leadership: A Road Map for the General
                                                                                                               autonomy and ability to influence do you have?             Manager’s Journey.” IESE Technical Note, 2017.