Who's in the Room?: How Great Leaders Structure and Manage the Teams Around Them

CHAPTER 9

Prioritize and Integrate Initiatives to Hit the Strategic Bull's-Eye

Even the best-run companies are likely to have scores of initiatives under way, with each part of the organization supporting projects it believes to be worthy, and everyone competing for the same pool of resources. A few projects—typically a dozen or less—may be intended to fulfill the handful of overarching, direction-setting strategy objectives that emerge from an SMT-level strategic discussion. But in addition there are the myriad smaller programs, task forces, or other activities that go above and beyond the day-to-day responsibilities of a single function.

Initiatives constitute a significant part of an organization's activities: a plant expansion, a new ...