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Execution is everything.  Plan all you want, dream all you can, then turn that key or you’ve accomplished nothing.  Execution is what separates those who merely have lofty ideas from those who end up winning the game. It’s about taking strategies and making sure they are implemented with power.

Creating a culture of execution is a leadership issue. It combines creating a “no-excuses, get-it-done” culture with the systems, processes, and accountabilities that ensure things are done consistently and done well.

But it’s also more than a leadership issue.  People at every level in an organization can get bogged down in planning and strategizing without ever getting off the pot.

It’s easy to guess which things in a company are measured and audited:  It’s the things that people actually DO and do well.  If you want something done with fairly strong consistency, set measurable benchmarks.

But don’t forget to put systems in place to see if the benchmarks are being met.  If a standard is measured in the forest, and no on is there to audit it—does it make a difference?  Not bloody likely.  Why should it?

You can’t monitor and audit every facet of your business, or you won’t have time to run the business.  So where does execution matter most?  It matters most in the critical moments I call Moments of Truth—the moments where execution can mean the difference between success and failure.

Moments of Truth are those critical times when a customer forms an impression of you, deciding whether your offerings and their standards see eye-to-eye.  Though they vary from industry to industry and business to business, every business has them.  Define them, create measurable goals and a way to assess progress, and GO.

Use weekly planning meetings in which each attendee declares focused results following a clean process and you will create magic. These meetings create the engine to keep people focused on doing the right things and getting results in the areas that matter. It also reveals the “stealth slackers”—those who are otherwise masterful at hiding and looking busy.  Got some of those?

Top performers don’t just stay busy—they know how to get the RIGHT things accomplished. Top performing leaders also know how to get their people focused on doing the right things, especially those things intimately tied to the Moments of Truth that can make or break a company.  They know that accepting no excuses from their team members means permitting no excuses from themselves as well.

For an organization to thrive in these highly competitive times, it is more critical than ever for leaders to build an environment where their word is law. Only by conveying that attitude can they expect others to be held to the same standard.

Miracles are supposed to happen, but they require a steadfast, ironclad system of execution and a leader who is committed to making the miracle happen.  So be the miracle!