Experts Tell Us the Best Books on Strategy Execution

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2 years ago
This article showcases our top picks for the Books on Strategy Execution. We reached out to industry leaders and experts who have contributed the suggestions within this article (they have been credited for their contributions below). We are keen to hear your feedback on all of our content and our comment section is a moderated space to express your thoughts and feelings related (or not) to this article This list is in no particular order.

SEO for Growth by John Jantsch

This product was recommended by Ray Leon from Pet Insurance Review

Understanding the ins-and-outs of search engine optimization is essential knowledge for all business owners. ‘SEO for Growth’ is an excellent source of invaluable insight to help rank higher in search engine results. Effective search engine optimization is a pivotal marketing strategy that businesses can’t ignore as a channel on par with PR and advertising. SEO for Growth is filled with SEO best practices that all business owners should learn in order to effectively strategize and execute brand growth.

Execution by Larry Bossidy

This product was recommended by Adam Korbl from iFax

This book was absolutely pure gold. This should be mandatory reading in HIGH SCHOOL. This book DOES tell you HOW to get things done. It brings to light all the tough issues most people don’t want to face, but if you DON’T face them, your business ultimately suffers. Every single page has underlining on it now, a very very good book if you care about business and making yours better. This book now resides higher than Drucker books, simply because it is not theory only. Larry Bossidy means business. Discipline is a great thing in this world. I found his methods fascinating and useful for people who want to work hard and don’t expect everything handed to them in life. This book gets 6 out of 5 stars.

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith

This product was recommended by Julian Goldie from Goldie Agency

If you are looking for some good, practical advice on how to be more successful, this is a good place to start. Marshall Goldsmith, author of What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, is one of the world’s foremost thought leaders on executive coaching and what it takes to become successful. Mr. Goldsmith writes in a very conversational style. He has a wealth of experience in working with some of the most successful people in the world. He has brought his experiences together and shares a number of success stories. He cites numerous examples of how his ideas have been used to great success in business and life. His concepts are straightforward and easy to understand. There are a lot of fantastic ideas and concepts presented in this book. As Mr. Goldsmith is quick to point out, ideas are not what matter. It is the execution. Do not expect to become more successful simply be reading this book. It is up to you to put these ideas into action.

The 4 Disciplines of Execution by Chris McChesney

This product was recommended by Prasad Patil from HookmyBook

This book is about a simple, repeatable, and proven formula for executing your most important strategic priorities in the midst of the whirlwind. By following the 4 Disciplines—Focus on the Wildly Important; Act on Lead Measures; Keep a Compelling Scoreboard; Create a Cadence of Accountability—leaders can produce breakthrough results, even when executing the strategy requires a significant change in behavior from their teams.

The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker

This product was recommended by Prasad Patil from HookmyBook

This book is about how to be an effective executive, and it tells you how to make better decisions in your workplace. Intelligence, imagination, and knowledge are essential resources, but only effectiveness converts them into results and that’s why Effectiveness is essential for success.

Blue Ocean Strategy by W Chan Kim

This product was recommended by Prasad Patil from HookmyBook

The Blue Ocean Strategy is a business strategy that challenges the common belief that you have to outcompete your business rivals to achieve sustained profitability. The alternative is to make your competitors irrelevant through innovation and creating your own market. This new market is called your blue ocean.

Getting things done by David Allen

This product was recommended by Prasad Patil from HookmyBook

Getting things done is a way of being productive that starts with taking control of your daily tasks. This will help you to focus on bigger goals, and achieve a sense of control over your life. To get things done, you need to know what finished means to you. Most people don’t have a clear idea of what a finished task looks like, because they’re not used to solving problems this way. You should always try to reach a clear stopping point, so you can know when you’ve completed a task.

Good to Great by Jim Collins

This product was recommended by Prasad Patil from HookmyBook

Good to Great is a business book written by Jim Collins that identifies the common features that successful companies share. These features include hiring the right people, firing the wrong people, adapting when needed, and promoting effective leaders. The book’s key is to have a positive momentum that will snowball the company towards greatness.

Start with Why by Simon Sinek

This product was recommended by Prasad Patil from HookmyBook

In Start with Why, Sinek explains how to create a successful business by focusing on the reasons why the business was created in the first place. This will help to overcome unstable markets and build loyal customers. People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe.

HBR’s 10 Must Reads On Strategy by Harvard Business Review

This product was recommended by Jason Cordes from CocoLoan

A nice and practical book on a strategy that includes ten articles selected by HBR. Those who are looking for the right strategy for their business and are looking for new ideas for their business can look at this book. This book will help readers to make decisions faster. This book is available in paperback, kindle and audiobook format.

Strategy = Execution by Jacques Pijl

This product was recommended by Dean Kaplan from The Kaplan Group

Whereas most books on strategic execution only talk about theory, this book also gives practical solutions. The author has over 20 years of experience in advising leading organizations on strategic execution and he provides examples from a range of different industries. As a strategic consultant myself, I found the examples interesting and easy to relate to. In today’s competitive marketplace, effective strategic execution is a critical success factor for businesses and this book contains applicable steps that all leaders can follow to improve their execution.

Strategy That Works by Cesare R. Mainardi

This product was recommended by Lindsey Hyland from Urban Organic Yield

This book is about bridging the strategy-to-execution gap and making strategy work in your organization. It is written by Cesare Mainardi, an experienced consultant and CEO, and he knows what he is talking about. The book is based on real-world case studies from a wide range of industries, so you can see how the concepts are applied in practice. And, most importantly, it provides a step-by-step framework that you can use to close the gap in your own organization.

Creating Your Strategic Plan by John M. Bryson

This product was recommended by Mimi Paul from Starkflow

This book is just what you need to learn about strategic execution. It gives great guidance to those who wish to learn more clearly the nuances of strategic planning and how to accomplish it more effectively. Highly recommended.

The Art of War by Sun Tzu

This product was recommended by Span Chen from The Karate Blog

Business and competition are a form of war. The Art of War is a timeless book about war strategy written by the Chinese general and military strategist Sun Tzu.

The Art of Action by Stephen Bungay

This product was recommended by David Wurst from WebCitz, LLC

This book investigates the gap that exists between strategy, execution, and results achieved. The book deconstructs strategy advice from different authors and works of literature into advice that delivers. It provides tangible and executable principles and ideas that most managers and leaders can put into practice. It offers guiding principles for generating outstanding results from unfavorable conditions, as well as a keen assessment of why too much planning and a status quo mentality can be detrimental to businesses. It emphasizes the necessity of providing clear direction rather than extensive instruction because it allows individuals to respond to and adapt to changes in unique circumstances.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick M. Lencioni

This product was recommended by David Patterson-Cole from Moonchaser

By far the best book on strategy execution I’ve read, and the one I recommend to others, is The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni. What I really like about this one is that it’s easy to read and lets the lessons sink into your brain without being didactic. As the title says, it’s a fable—a fictional story that provides its morals in a clear, engaging way. If you like business books and books on strategy, this is an essential one to give you a new perspective and understand how to better run a team.

The Innovator’s Dilemma by Clayton M. Christensen

This product was recommended by Shawn Plummer from The Annuity Expert

This book deserves all the accolades it has received thanks to the author’s perceptive insights on disruption. While the world has changed quite a bit since its first publication, the deep research into concepts like disk drives and retail stores shows you how the fundamentals have not changed. We’re perhaps more ripe for disruption now than at any time in the past, so having these lessons available at hand is a must for your strategic execution of new ideas.

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