Mind the Gap

Remember that old cliche'“"culture eats strategy for lunch"?” What does that really mean? Let’s take a look at some statistics and when you look under the cover, whatever word you may choose, your company culture will determine your success. Company success statistics are staggering: > 87% of companies fail to execute their strategy successfully. Failure results from misjudgment in both design and execution. > Only 8% of leaders are good at both strategy and execution. > 80% of businesses fail within the first 18 months. Levels of employee engagement globally make a success of your strategy even more difficult: > 13% of the world's workers are engaged, with 29% engagement in the U.S. > 85% of employees worldwide are not engaged, meaning they lack motivation and are less likely invest extra effort. > 38% productivity: 2 hours and 53 minutes out of 8 hours is the amount of time the average worker is productive. > In 2020, the freelance workforce (Gig Economy) is predicted to rise to 43%. > Half of today's workforce could be automated by 2055, but could happen earlier. 60% of occupations have at least 30% of activities that could be automated. How do companies prepare and create a competitive advantage for a sustainable future with the challenge of these statistics? Do you have something that is rare or unique that no one can duplicate? Does your organization deliver your products and services better than other organizations? Are you prepared for the Gig Economy and the impacts of automation on the future of your workforces? Every organization has a problem, or many, that create a gap in performance. And the deeper you go in your strategy, the harder that gap is to fix. Many leaders will focus on what looks easy or the surface symptoms only to then miss the root cause. So the question becomes, how do you "Mind the gap" and create a strategic foundation for your company that accomplishes three things: > Differentiates > Is difficult for competitors to emulate > Provides the ability to grow The focus of this book is on defining, diagnosing, and building measurable organizational capabilities based on the needs of your company that accomplishes these primary goals. Have you ever experienced any of the following?: > a large amount of fear from your employees > lack of accountability > finger pointing > long delays to get something done that, in reality, shouldn’t be that difficult > too many number-one priorities > silos > lack of the right talent > lack of use of best practices > lots of manual processes > lots of activity but no results Maybe you have experienced a few, or even all of them? Something within your organization's DNA is not functioning well. And when the organization is unhealthy, it affects everything you do. The following chapters will explain an approach to "Mind the Gap" that repairs the gap you have today and unleashes limitless performance by improving your organizational capabilities, and ultimately, your culture. The organizational capabilities that you identify with which you identify, represent who your company "is", as perceived by your employees, customers, stakeholders, etc. These capabilities will enable your company to outperform your competitors and dominate your markets. Through their continued evaluation and strengthening, these organizational capabilities will become increasingly more difficult, if not impossible, for any competitor to understand and emulate, providing the organization the basis for sustainable growth.