Integrated Tactical Planning

CHAPTER 7Running Smoothly: Structure and Cadence

A client once quipped when she was asked how she felt about the uncertainty of being recently acquired by a private equity firm, “Process is performance, and performance is protection.” Although most of us shun process, especially when it is seen as overly bureaucratic and controlling, the fact is that we are in business to perform. Hence, process discipline is critical to optimal performance. We would also debate that appropriate process discipline is in fact liberating.

Think about it from a personal perspective. Without a lot of muscle memory the human body would not function properly. Imagine having to think through everything single thing you do in a day—every step you take, every word you say, every action in driving your car—every minute of the day. There must be some things done at the subconscious level to be able to get on with your day and to focus your brain power on the unique events.

Top athletes know this well. It is common for athletes, after performing at their peak, to have little memory of the specifics of how they performed. That is because their muscle memory was playing the game for them while they used their conscious brains to stay calm, focused, and continually strategizing.

This is how we see process and discipline in businesses. It is a way to do the routine things routinely and release thinking time. To achieve this level of routine, in this chapter we will cover these topics:

• The daily‐weekly cadence. ...