HBR Guide to Managing Strategic Initiatives

CHAPTER 19

Good Strategy Execution Requires Balancing Four Tensions

by Simon Horan and Michael Connerty

Putting strategy into practice is notoriously difficult. In our experience, the primary obstacle to strategy execution is a failure to balance the inherent tensions that characterize any major initiative. Successful strategy execution calls for skillful orchestration of sometimes opposing forces and competing needs. In particular, there are four core tensions that leaders need to balance.

Tension #1: An Inspiring End State versus Challenging Targets

A vision of an inspirational “end state” is essential for getting people to commit to change: a simple narrative that articulates not only why change is necessary but also what life will look and ...