Editorial Review:
The book that shows how to get the job done and deliver results . . . whether you’re running an entire company or in your first management job
Larry Bossidy is one of the world’s most acclaimed CEOs, a man with few peers who has a track record for delivering results. Ram Charan is a legendary advisor to senior executives and boards of directors, a man with unparalleled insight into why some companies are successful and others are not. Together they’ve pooled their knowledge and experience into the one book on how to close the gap between results promised and results delivered that people in business need today.
After a long, stellar career with General Electric, Larry Bossidy transformed AlliedSignal into one of the world’s most admired companies and was named CEO of the year in 1998 by Chief Executive magazine. Accomplishments such as 31 consecutive quarters of earnings-per-share growth of 13 percent or more didn’t just happen; they resulted from the consistent practice of the discipline of execution: understanding how to link together people, strategy, and operations, the three core processes of every business.
Leading these processes is the real job of running a business, not formulating a “vision” and leaving the work of carrying it out to others. Bossidy and Charan show the importance of being deeply and passionately engaged in an organization and why robust dialogues about people, strategy, and operations result in a business based on intellectual honesty and realism.
The leader’s most important job—selecting and appraising people—is one that should never be delegated. As a CEO, Larry Bossidy personally makes the calls to check references for key hires. Why? With the right people in the right jobs, there’s a leadership gene pool that conceives and selects strategies that can be executed. People then work together to create a strategy building block by building block, a strategy in sync with the realities of the marketplace, the economy, and the competition. Once the right people and strategy are in place, they are then linked to an operating process that results in the implementation of specific programs and actions and that assigns accountability. This kind of effective operating process goes way beyond the typical budget exercise that looks into a rearview mirror to set its goals. It puts reality behind the numbers and is where the rubber meets the road.
Putting an execution culture in place is hard, but losing it is easy. In July 2001 Larry Bossidy was asked by the board of directors of Honeywell International (it had merged with AlliedSignal) to return and get the company back on track. He’s been putting the ideas he writes about in Execution to work in real time.
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Customer Reviews
Average Customer Rating: 
It's a must read for CEOs  2008-11-17
I have required all of my management team to read "Execution" book. This book tells you why many companies fail to execute its strategies and how you can implement a performance management system to execute your business model. The book also provides tools to execute better, faster and consistently. The leaders will also learn about required qualities needed to build a high performing organization.
Here is the book structure :
1. Why Execution Is Needed (The Gap nobody Knows, The execution Difference, The Building Blocks of Execution)
2. The building blocks of execution (The leader's seven essential behaviors, creating the framework for cultural change, the job no leader should delegate-having the right people in the right place)
3. The Three core processes of execution (The People Process: Making the Link with Strategy and Operations, he Strategy Process: Making the Link with People and Operations, The Operations Process: Making the Link with Strategy and People)
I am big fan for Ram Charan. You should also read What CEO wants you to know, Every Business is a growth business, What the customer wants you to know, Confronting reality and Game Changer. You should at least read What the CEO wants you to know and Execution.
Russell Sarder
Chairman and CEO
NetCom Information Technology
www.netcominfo.com
www.sarder.com
Insights into Execution as a Discipline & System  2008-10-29
This book teaches that `Execution' is not just tactics - it is a discipline and a system. Former CEO of Allied Signal (now Honeywell) Larry Bossidy and top business consultant and author Ram Charan bring decades of experience to the subject of Execution. Together they stress that to be successful, execution must be built into a company's strategy, its goals, and its culture.
One of the pillars of the book is that Execution is a systematic way of exposing reality and acting on it. Bossidy and Charan state that most companies don't face reality well, and state that unless you translate big thoughts into concrete steps for action, they're pointless. Execution becomes the missing link between aspirations and results. To be successful, strategies must take into account the organization's ability to execute.
The book Execution states, "In an execution company's operating review, the leader will want to know if the goal is realistic. "Fine, but will the increase come from? What products will generate the growth? Who will buy them, and what pitch are we going to develop to those customers? What will the competitor's reaction be?" If a milestone hasn't been reached at the end of the first quarter, it's a yellow light: something's not going as planned, and something will need to be changed. "Are the right people in charge of getting it done? Is their accountability clear? Whose collaboration is required and how will they be motivated to collaborate? Will the reward system motivate them toward a common objective?" The leader does not just sign off on a plan. She wants an explanation, and she will drill down until the answers are clear. "What are the programs? Where is the money going to be saved? What's the timeline? How much is it going to cost us to achieve it? And who is responsible for it all?"
Optimism, motivation and realism are keys to success.
Bossidy & Charan's First Building Block of Execution: 1. Know your people and your business 2. Insist on realism 3. Set clear goals and priorities 4. Follow through 5. Reward the doers 6. Expand people's capabilities 7. Know yourself
"Execution" contends that leaders who execute focus on a very few clear priorities that everyone can grasp. Give people a small number of clear priorities to execute well. A leader who has "ten top priorities" doesn't know what he's talking about - he doesn't know himself what the most important things are. Have few, clearly realistic goals and priorities that will influence the performance of the department.
The book highlights the importance of simplicity, stating that Leaders who execute speak simply and directly. A key takeway in the book is to simplify things so that others can understand them, evaluate them, and act on them. The authors rigorously promote that Execution is a systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, questioning, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability.
Inspiring  2008-10-13
Inspiring book. I also loved 'Running with the Rhinos" most recently published and fantastic insight on leadershipRunning with the Rhinos: Courageous Leadership for a Complex World
A "Must Read" for Executives 2008-10-13
If a business leader were to select one book as a guide to success, this would be my choice. As a former AlliedSignal executive, I have seen these practices applied and reinforced; I have also seen the results that they deliver. The book defines Execution as "...a systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, questioning, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability." This clearly, crisply defines what must be the major focus for each executive in today's challenging business climate.
The 7 Essential Behaviors for Leaders should be posted on the office wall of every executive. They are timeless and appropriate in any business serving any industry.
The 3 Core Processes collectively cover all business activities that directly impact the ability to deliver superior performance - People, Strategy, and Operations. The discipline of structured, interactive reviews that cover the breadth and depth of the issues is a critical element, and written notes and action items provide a tangible record of decisions and "next steps".
The 3 Principles of Execution capture the essence of the subject matter. I find the first principle especially insightful - "Execution is a discipline and integral to strategy".
I strongly recommend that every leader in business read (and reread) this book.
Obviously if you're going to get things done, you gotta "execute" them... 2008-10-07
This (audio) book has some good examples of bad execution that lead to recent high-profile corporate troubles, and then gives some suggestions on how to do things. A lot of it is common sense and discipline, though, but there are a few helpful items - especially if you didn't pay the new-item proce and got it used :)
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