The Strategy-Focused Organization

In this summary you will learn

• How to transform your company into a "Strategy-Focused Organization;"
• How to use the five principles, the "Balanced Scorecard" and "strategy maps" to focus on strategy
• How to achieve internal alignment to support your strategy
• What problems can upset the balance of your Balanced Scorecard initiative

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Why you should read The Strategy-Focused Organization

The fact that executives keep trying new strategic initiatives despite their abysmal rate of success is, like second marriages, a triumph of hope over experience. Or, it may indicate just how much pressure top managers face to improve their profits. By one estimate, nine out of ten companies fail to execute their strategic visions. Yet, CEOs - who witness a world in constant flux- continue to introduce change initiatives. Are they trapped in the operational definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result? Or, are they just ready for this book? Authors Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton offer wise counsel to help executives break the cycle of strategic flops. They advise executives to transform their companies into "Strategy-Focused Organizations" using the "Balanced Scorecard" and "strategic mapping" tools. With these initiatives, CEOs can ensure that every employee pays attention to strategy implementation. Kaplan and Norton, the all-star co-author team who wrote The Balanced Scorecard and Strategy Maps, have done it again, in this well-organized but somewhat dry volume. getAbstract.com strongly recommends this book to any manager who is responsible for designing or implementing a strategic change initiative.

About the Authors

Robert S. Kaplan is a professor of leadership development at Harvard Business School and chairman of the Balanced Scorecard Collaborative, where David P. Norton is co-founder and president. The two writers also co-authored The Balanced Scorecard and Strategy Maps.