When you’re running a small business, it’s wise to have a strategy to ensure that you meet the needs of your customers and reach your objectives. However, having a strategy on its own is not enough. Implementing your strategy is a vital element that leads to success. Follow the strategic implementation steps to ensure your strategy gets put into place.

Build a Strategy Framework and Plan

Begin by defining your strategy and the framework you need to get all of your team on the same page. Your framework should include your vision, the value of your strategic decisions, areas of focus, key performance indicators and business objectives. Anyone on your team who is involved with implementing your strategy should be familiar with these elements.

Develop a detailed plan that directs your employees on how to implement the strategy. Your implementation plan should include:

  • Who is involved in strategy implementation
  • What they need to accomplish
  • How they will accomplish it
  • When they need to accomplish it
  • Where they will be completing their tasks
  • Why these tasks are important to the success of the business

Create a strategy implementation process .ppt presentation and share it with your implementation team. Give them the opportunity to ask questions and review the plan in detail so they are familiar with the process.

Follow the Strategy Implementation Steps

Implementing a strategy requires intense planning and research. When developing the process for your strategy implementation steps, be sure to consider the following:

  • Resource allocation: Take into account how much time, money, personnel and technology you will need to implement your strategy. Do you have enough? If not, can you increase your resources or alter your strategy? If you need to manage your personnel schedule and ensure that everyone is allocated the right tasks, an employee scheduling platform like Sling may be a good option.

  • Team specialization: When figuring out who on your team will be part of your strategic implementation plan, be sure to review their areas of strength and expertise. Give your team members the chance to take ownership of their areas of expertise, build new skills and improve their weaknesses. Consider whether you have the skills you need in house or if you have to outsource in order to implement your strategy.

  • Measures of success: How will your team members know they have done a good job in implementing your strategy? Define your key performance indicators in detail, including a range of metrics for varying levels of success. How often will you check the KPIs to ensure you stay on track?

  • Progress reports: When implementing a large-scale strategy, it’s imperative to track your progress along the way. Will your team meet weekly or monthly? What will you discuss during the meetings? Who will be in charge of developing progress reports? What will those reports include? Consider using a strategy management platform like Cascade to keep you on track.

Pivot and Reorient Your Strategy to Meet Goals

Keep in mind that your strategy is not set in stone. There are many factors, both internal and external, that may cause you to consider altering your strategy. For example, a key employee involved in the implementation may leave the business, or customer trends may dictate that they are suddenly interested in different kinds of products.

Throughout your implementation, keep track of your progress toward hitting your business objectives and key performance indicators. If it seems that you are far from meeting your goals, consider why that is. Has there been a shift in the market that caused the change, or is your strategy outdated for the customers’ current needs?

If your business is achieving objectives far ahead of schedule, consider whether your goals were not challenging enough. Did your business gain new employees and skill sets you didn’t have before, perhaps? It’s wise to research internal and external factors that affect your strategy and its implementation. You may need to adjust your strategy and the implementation plan to better help your business succeed.