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To motivate individuals and that need to be performed well in order
to execute effectively against the strategy.
teams, it is important to create These are the capabilities and activities
that need to be monitored and reported
on.
an incentive compensation help business leadership ensure that
The finance department can further
structure that aligns with responsibilities and accountabilities for
decisions and actions are clear and
agreed upon and help leadership resolve
execution of the company’s areas of overlapping responsibility by
highlighting them.
The finance department can also add
strategy. value by evaluating outsourcing
opportunities for noncritical activities.
This will allow a company to concentrate
its energies and resources on value-
chain activities where it has a
To determine how finance executives competitive advantage or needs direct
can help bridge the execution gap, it is 9 steps to effectively implement control. Thus, a company improves its
important to appreciate the common strategy chances of outclassing competitors in
challenges faced in the execution To become better at implementing performing strategy-critical activities.
process. These include a breakdown in strategy, finance executives can follow
communicating the strategy to middle these steps: 3. Identify key decisions
managers and frontline staff; lack of a Based on the critical capabilities and
common definition of success; issues in 1. Dig into the details activities identified, list the significant
resource allocation, performance If your role and situation permit, seek a questions that need to be addressed and
tracking, and incentive alignment; chance to participate in the strategy the key decisions that need to be made.
failure to hold people accountable; and formulation process. If this is not This will help you understand how
the inability to adapt the chosen strategy possible, you can study the approved leaders and business users will actually
in an agile manner when circumstances strategy, brainstorm with functional and use the information. Adopt the Pareto
change. business managers to identify the principle to identify, set, and measure
Implementing strategy effectively specific achievements to execute against the few key metrics that matter (KPIs)
requires team members to buy into it the strategy, and develop these into and provide the information needed for
and the entire leadership team to be action plans with milestones. each question/decision. The Pareto
actively involved together with the team Each strategic initiative should have a principle, or 80/20 rule, suggests that
members. For effective implementation: timeline, a predetermined target value of most consequences can be traced to a
y Senior leaders must initiate and success, and a causal relationship to the few causes.
orchestrate the big initiatives and overall company strategy. It is also important to identify the key
must communicate the strategy For example, if one of the strategic assumptions (which need to remain true
in a way that team members can priorities of a Singapore-HQ company is for the strategy to succeed) and potential
comprehend it and understand how to drive international expansion, a risks that need to be regularly monitored.
their work will contribute to the finance executive can team up with
strategy’s success. business partners to further define the 4. Establish data sources for a
y Middle- and lower-level managers priority as: balanced scorecard
must ensure all goes well in their y Enter ABC markets in fiscal 2023 and Determine the relevant primary data
respective areas of responsibility by DEF markets by fiscal 2024. sources for the information and work
allocating responsibilities, training y Achieve a minimum 25% market with the business partners to finalise the
their people, tracking performance, share by the end of year two after format required for the reports. Make
holding people accountable, and market entry in each market. sure the scorecard is balanced, with
taking corrective measures as needed. y Ensure revenue from international financial and nonfinancial measures,
y Operating-level employees must markets reaches x% of total revenue and both leading and lagging indicators.
upskill as needed and perform their by fiscal 2024.
individual roles competently as well 5. Match incentives to strategic
as proactively help others to do well, 2. Address capability and clarify targets
too. responsibilities and accountabilities To motivate individuals and teams, it is
Finance should partner with the important to create an incentive
business leadership to understand the compensation structure that aligns with
critical capabilities that people need to execution of the company’s strategy.
possess or develop, and the key activities Here again, the finance department can

24 I FM MAGAZINE I February 2023