Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done

by Larry Bossidy

What kinds of assumptions are we talking about? They cover the lot—anything that can affect your business requires some kind of assumption.

First and foremost: Who is the customer? How does he buy it, and why? What’s the need? How long will the need last? What is the competition doing? Is your value proposition good enough?

And if you’re an industrial business: Who is the customer’s customer? Or even the customer’s customer’s customer? His demands or problems are going to affect your customer. Many people look myopically at their primary customers and don’t pay enough attention...

Most important, the discussions must include close attention to gross margins. Too many people look for revenue gains without planning to build or protect gross margins at the same time. But gross margins are where the bottom line comes from—all operating expenses are deducted from the gross margin, not the revenues. Everything flows from gross margins. If you can’t get the pricing you need to achieve them, then you have to cut costs.

“People, we’re talking about operating plans. This is not about hopes and dreams. This is about realities. Don’t tell me you hope it’s going to get better. Don’t tell me that you dream about doing it better. The reality is that in the first quarter it wasn’t better.

The heart of the working of a business is how the three processes of people, strategy, and operations link together.

Leaders need to master the individual processes and the way they work together as a whole. They are the foundation for the discipline of execution, at the center of conceiving and executing a strategy. They are the differentiation between you and your competitors.

See things as they are, not the way you want them to be.

Consistent behavior is a sign of a contained ego, and inspires confidence in you from those around you.