You’ve created your strategic action plan and now it’s time to put it to work for you. As you created the plan, plenty of ideas for implementation surfaced. You remember, you kept asking yourself, “How am I going to make this happen?” Now is the time to actually answer that all important question and focus on action.

From my days as a project manager, I know implementation is a critical phase of any action plan. So critical in fact that it requires the same degree of attention that’s gone into your plan thus far. Implementation this is truly where the bulk of the action on your plan happens.

Consider the outcomes.
Paint yourself a vivid picture of what successful implementation means for you. What would you like to be able to say about how your role as a CEO favorably affected your business in six months from now? Or a year from now? Outline the specific steps you’ll take to realize your vision. Incorporate the detailed steps into your strategic plan as the next, concrete layer requiring action.

Identify the members of your team who must be involved.
Think of the talents and skills required to complete the work. Things may get a little tricky if you fail to assign the right tasks to the person MOST qualified to get the work done. If someone on your team doesn’t possess the skills, add a team member that does. Right person to right job! Enough said?

Communicate your plan to the team.
Boy, is this step ever omitted! Your team MUST know the breadth and width of your plan so they can fully support it. If your team doesn’t have a FULL view of the plan, it makes it harder for them to adapt to any changes that may occur. Keep the lines of communication open throughout implementation to ensure constant engagement from the team.

Acknowledge and eliminate hurdles or roadblocks.
You may encounter challenges in even the best strategic plans. Encountering a problem is not the issue; finding the solution is. Focus on the root and know that a solution is possible when you’re empowered to arrive at resolution. Determine that there is only room for success!

Execute, evaluate, adapt and evolve.
Be patient as you implement and make room for growth and change. This is a tough area and thankfully, you can prepare yourself to readily overcome any challenges that arise. The possibilities are limitless when you’re open to the evolution occurring as a direct result of you implementing your plan.

Finally, keep the big picture in mind. Focus on your overall goals; monitor and measure your progress; and make note of what works. We’ll talk more about these aspects in the next post in this series.

As you put your plan into action, remain flexible and be willing to do what needs to be done to get the job done. It’s YOUR time to make it happen!

When do you know you’re ready to put your strategic plan into action?