One of the best things about working with a world-class team that thinks beyond the norms is that you challenge your beliefs every single day. For instance, let me share what I have learnt from my experience as a young management professional. One of the really ground-breaking experiences for me in this context has been to question my deep-seated beliefs and assumptions.
One of the core set of beliefs that I have recently questioned, are those about execution. In a lot of my previous roles, I used to think, execution was about doing things. However, I’ve discovered in the last few years, that it is about getting things done. The idea is not to do everything yourself, or even to do everything you ‘can’, but to do what ‘only you’ can do.
Partnerships, collaborations, tie-ups, support systems, vendors, suppliers, colleagues, mentors, coaches, proteges, are all your partners in professional life. The idea of execution is in knowing ‘what’ needs to be done, ‘how’, and ‘who’ can do it the best. The idea of execution is not in controlling these professional relationships. The idea of execution is not to set a hierarchy, but to embrace the roles that we all fulfil.
One of the other beliefs about execution that got challenged was about day-to-day mundane tasks. In most jobs, younger professionals are simply going through a daily grind and nothing more. However, firms that focus on execution, have a clear understanding (at all levels, and in all roles), as to how is the daily grind woven into the larger vision. Execution in places like BeOne is a cultural norm, not a mandate. It’s not that you have to execute tasks to get stuff done. It’s like you execute because it is aligned with strategy, goals, ambitions, aspirations, because it’s THE thing to do!
Now, the interesting bit in my experience is that a lot of times, one needs to deal with other professionals (specially outside the organization), where execution is NOT a cultural norm. In such scenarios, the best way is to find partners who have similar professional values and place the same kind of emphasis on execution.
As I look at how we choose our vendors, our suppliers, and partners, I realize why some firms grow and why some of the best firms vanish after a point. A lot of times, it is not that any of these firms, these business models, or these people are any less than the other. It is simply about whether or not they have the culture of execution.
Throughout this pandemic, as we run various and customized programs for the business community by and large, I have noticed, and observed very closely, a lot of businesses. It is clear and obvious how execution-centric firms have been able to continue sailing with fewer hiccups through the unprecedented times. The ones who didn’t have the culture of execution and didn’t realize that they needed to build it fast and quick, had far more problems to deal with than their counterparts.
As a young manager, I am developing execution as one of my core strengths at work. What are you building?