Strategic-management process does not end when the firm decides what strategies to pursue. There must be a transition of strategic thought into strategic action. Implementing strategy affects an organisation from top to bottom; it affects all the functional and divisional areas of a business.
A technically imperfect plan that is implemented well, will achieve more than the perfect plan that never gets off the paper on which it is typed. Change comes through implementation and evaluation and not through the plan.
Strategy execution deals with the managerial exercise of supervising the ongoing pursuit of strategy, making it work, improving the competence with which it is executed and showing measurable progress in achieving the targeted results.
Strategy formulation is fundamentally different from strategy implementation :
Strategy Formulation
Positioning forces before the action
Focuses on effectiveness
Focuses on effectiveness
Requires good intuitive and analytical skills
Requires coordination among few individuals
Strategy Implementation
Guiding forces during the action
Focuses on efficiency
Primarily an operational process
Requires special motivation and leadership skills
Requires coordination among many individuals
Strategy formulation concepts and tools do not differ greatly for small, large, for-profit or non-profit organisations. However, strategy implementation varies substantially among different types.