Are we too comfortable with Excel and PowerPoint?
Usage rates suggest yes. In the United States alone, 60% of businesses rely on spreadsheets. Conversely, only 21% of businesses are looking at other software solutions.
You likely fall into the 60%. Why? Because if it isn’t broken, why fix it, right? Or, perhaps it’s challenging the norm, or simply being unaware of a world of solutions out there for your Strategy Execution.
Stop, read these stats and ask whether traditional tools still have a place in planning, executing, and tracking your strategic plans and operational efforts with:
If your strategy rests upon a spreadsheet that is prone to human error, that truly isn’t a solid foundation.
The cost argument
Excel, PowerPoint, Prezi, Google Sheets etc. – they’re bread and butter tools with generational buy-in, commonplace in organizations, at a seemingly cost-effective license fee.
But:
Indeed, you may still sit in the camp where cost is the bottom line. If so, that’s fine. As your business grows, the need for an enterprise-level system to manage your strategy increases.
And, if at present, your data is poorly managed and inaccessible, even with errors limited to the smallest of statistical risks, alarm bells should be ringing. Price will be important, so do take the time to understand how much your strategy software may cost.
Excel templates for strategic planning, projects, and performance management
Knowing you could ask a member of your team to jump into your strategy spreadsheet and pull together a presentation in PowerPoint on your current performance is a major plus.
But can they demonstrate the overlapping layers of dependencies between objectives, resources, and goals across corporate, functional, plant, and product line level, such as with our X-Matrix?
Do they have the skills to know how a rotation can change the output of the cells on a tab, and that it’s because the data that sits within that very cell is populated by a formula on another page? Confused?
Keep in mind that there is a difference between skilled and ‘casual’ users of Office applications. If you do have those skills, and budget is a concern, there’s a plethora of resources to sink your teeth into:
And the alternative? To reduce the risks around unsecured, disconnected, and time-consuming strategy, goal, and performance management, it pays to consider an all-in-one Strategy Execution solution.
The case for Strategy Execution Management software
When a strategy must be built, deployed through hundreds of initiatives, containing a long list of KPIs and is actioned daily by thousands of staff, the case for a traditional-tool lead approach is quickly discredited.
a) Why there’s a need for the solution
Enter enterprise strategy software, and the evident case to leave the planning of the 90s firmly behind:
- Strategy execution mature organizations are conscious of the need for a well-oiled, intuitive deployment and management of their strategy and initiatives, which are fine-tuned with continuous improvement
- Great resource goes into developing a vision and strategy, the same due care is needed for setting your goals, the initiatives to achieve them, and tracking their progress
- Standalone, organization-wide projects require the c-suite to look beyond separate systems like BaseCamp and Power BI to a more complete, collaborative solution
b) The benefits of an all-in-one Strategy Execution solution
The question really needs to be asked about the benefits of an all-in-one solution. We know that Excel and PowerPoint aren’t right for your strategic management, so what is?
If you’ve got this far into your research, you’ll know your company needs a solution which:
- Offers a single source of truth for strategy execution
- Enables strategic goal cascade at all levels within a global matrix
- Drives long-term strategic initiatives and continuous improvement
- Supports performance management progress and outcomes through facts and data
- Easily integrates with your existing platforms and data sources
- Is based on a secure private SaaS infrastructure
c) How to achieve buy-in
The disconnect between boardroom strategy and the ‘nuts and bolts’ activity of Project Management teams within an organization can be a critical weakness in strategy execution.
From an overview of the value of Strategy Execution software to the support that i-nexus provides your organization in implementing the platform, including the best-in-class WalkMe™ adoption system, book a demo today with a member of our team.