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Amit Dixit

Quantive provides a clean and user-friendly solution to adopting OKRs.



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Audrey Bricout

Quantive's approach to the OKR methodology has allowed us to capitalize on our culture and achieve more.

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Alejandro Artacho

By integrating all the business systems and updating OKRs automatically, Quantive Results was the perfect solution. It was a no-brainer.

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Markus Kieslich

Quantive doesn't just offer an intuitive solution that can be easily adapted to our OKR approach, they really care about us and provide outstanding support.

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Quick start your OKR journey 

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Successful OKR software implementations start with the right support

<p>So, you’re looking for a solution to manage your company’s OKRs. &nbsp;It’s a big undertaking — and we’re here to help.</p><p>Whether you’re a <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-in-business" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">startup, SMB, or enterprise</a>, the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">right OKR software</a> will support the way you do OKRs. It should be easy to use, help everyone see their contributions and goal commitments, and facilitate a frictionless OKR process across your whole organization.&nbsp;</p><p>With the right OKR software, you should be able to:</p><ul><li>Create and manage OKRs</li><li>Do the OKR work</li><li>Track and report on progress</li><li>Manage users and your organization</li><li>Support app and data integrations</li><li>Understand service and support options</li><li>Evaluate security options</li></ul><p>We’ll cover what each capability means and help you ask the right questions so you can learn your non-negotiables, get the features you need most, and ultimately choose the right provider for your unique OKR journey.</p><hr><p style="margin-left:0px;text-align:center;">Don't have time to read the full article now? <a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive_Guides/OKR_Software_Buyers_Guide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Download the pdf</a> and save for later.</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive_Guides/OKR_Software_Buyers_Guide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670538172/site-v5/Buyers_guide_39278b0979.png" alt="Buyers guide.png"></a></figure><hr>

<p>OKR software should support the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">OKR framework</a> within its design and features. When the creation and management capabilities of an OKR platform are intuitive, flexible, and work at scale, the process can run smoothly, helping everyone stay aligned and informed without constant oversight.&nbsp;</p><p>For example, consider the ability to organize the OKR cycle to best fit your organization. This involves different sessions, cadences, and levels to support your unique execution needs. If your company is like many other modern organizations shifting towards shared OKRs, you should choose software with fully customizable OKR ownership.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>The ability to create depth without complication is the sign of a great OKR platform.</p></blockquote><p>Whether it’s collaboration, task management, or alignment-dedicated tools, OKR software should leave you feeling in control of your creation and management process.&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://quantive.com/solutions/results/okrs-for-enterprise" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">OKR software specifically aimed at enterprises</a> can go even further in-depth to support collaboration, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/cross-functional-collaboration" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cross-functional</a> OKRs, and automation at scale.</p><h3>Checklist for OKR creation and management</h3><ul><li>Can the software support a variety of cycles and sessions?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the software align different OKR cadences?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software support dynamic OKR levels?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software offer <a href="https://marketplace.gtmhub.com/marketplace/okrs-examples?currentPage=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">OKR templates?</a>&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software enable shared team ownership and collaboration?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Are there built-in best practice tools that guide your OKR creation?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the software support a full alignment view?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software come with built-in task management?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software give you search and filter capabilities?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><h3>Enterprise checklist for OKR creation and management</h3><ul><li>Does the software offer cascaded key results?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the OKR platform automate repetitive tasks?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the platform integrate with other technology systems to automate <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-vs-kpis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">OKR and KPI</a> updates?</li></ul><hr>

<p>Creating and managing OKRs is just the start of a successful OKR transformation.&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/how-to-implement-okrs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Getting teams to engage with OKRs</a> is the greatest challenge of any implementation, and the best OKR software tailors itself to promoting organization-wide engagement.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Software makes OKRs more approachable, from managing day-to-day work like projects and tasks, to features that connect that work with your greater OKR strategy.&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Tagging OKR or KR owners, sharing in-line commentary with updates, viewing how OKRs align hierarchically — these are just a few examples of how software helps you do the &nbsp;OKR work.&nbsp;</p><p>Having the ability to customize and expand work options for your operations can help support engagement. Be sure to examine the execution-focused capabilities of the platform to see how they support alignment and ease of collaboration.&nbsp;</p><p>These options ensure your teams aren’t inhibited in how they choose to do their work, whether it’s alone or with others.&nbsp;</p><h3>Checklist for OKR work capabilities</h3><ul><li>Does the software have a built-in collaboration tool (i.e. Whiteboards, project boards, tasks, etc.)?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the OKR platform automate repetitive tasks?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><h3>Enterprise checklist for OKR work capabilities</h3><ul><li>Does the software offer project boards and tasks?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the software align tasks with OKRs?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software support bulk OKR actions?</li></ul><hr>

<p>OKR software should provide an overview of your performance to show how effectively your organization runs the OKR process.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>OKR-related reports illuminate what issues have occurred and where, helping you identify performance problems or trends that need further investigation. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>For technical capabilities, look for hands-off tracking and full use of your data reporting. Data access and transparency are critical for building a results-focused culture committed to adaptation and improvement.&nbsp;</p><p>Enterprises should note the OKR software’s extensibility in advanced reporting and tracking. Manual updates can cost your enterprise thousands of input hours per quarter — the right enterprise software saves you time in all the right places.</p><h3>Checklist for OKR tracking and reporting</h3><ul><li>Does the software enable alerts and notifications?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software offer real-time progress reports?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can you customize your reports?</li></ul><hr><h3>Enterprise checklist for OKR tracking and reporting</h3><ul><li>Can you export data and download reports as CSV or PDF files?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software support dynamic key results?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software offer <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-vs-kpis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">KPI tracking?&nbsp;</a></li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software offer advanced reporting on performance and benchmarks?</li></ul><hr>

<p>OKR software should enable proper management of users, profiles, and access to OKR-related data to eliminate security threats and minimize human error. &nbsp;</p><p>Customizable organization management is the first step in understanding who is doing what in your organization. Assigning roles, adjusting permissions, and tracking changes are basic features you should find in any OKR software.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>From general activity to authorizations and permissions, proper organization management capabilities simplify how you organize your people and process. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Permissions allow level-based access to certain features, data, and other information. This keeps the noise out of places where you don’t need it. Authorizations ensure any human input into your software is tracked, managed, and as a result, fully accounted for.&nbsp;</p><p>Enterprises should take note of how permission and authorization-based capabilities change depending on the demands and scale of the software.</p><h3>Checklist for OKR user and organization management</h3><ul><li>Does the software offer an effective user account management capability?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>How long does the software keep a history of user activity?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software offer role-based user permissions?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software track the change history of user authorizations?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><h3>Enterprise checklist for OKR user and organization management</h3><ul><li>Can the OKR software automate user and organization management?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software lose any capabilities or show limitations at scale?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr>

<p>Whatever process you design, someone will forget about it. That’s why <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/integrations" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">integrations</a> are an indicator of a mature OKR software, so you can use:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Data to understand what’s happening to inform decision making</li><li>Automation to offload human activity to achieve more with less effort&nbsp;</li></ul><p>No matter your current tech stack, OKR software should be adaptable in incorporating your unique set of applications and programs into its platform. It’s critical for your future OKR implementation that OKR software supports your process, instead of inhibiting it.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>OKR software should help you close the strategy execution gap by automating data-based metrics and repetitive tasks.</p></blockquote><p>Not every OKR software is going to have all the integrations you need. However, you should check to see how frequently new integrations are being added and what the requirements are for custom integrations.&nbsp;</p><p>Enterprises should consider the selection of integrations, where there’s room for adaptation, and how these adaptations will enable your organization to be more successful with OKRs.</p><h3>Checklist for OKR integrations</h3><ul><li>Does the OKR platform offer core integrations like Slack and MS Teams?</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software have a full-featured mobile app?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR platform offer a continually growing library of out-of-the-box integrations?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><h3>Enterprise checklist for OKR integrations</h3><ul><li>Does the OKR software provide API for integration with existing business applications and workflows?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software have extensive integrations for unique departmental functions?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the OKR software rapidly add new integrations to meet your evolving needs?</li></ul><hr><p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Software deployment is rarely a plug-and-play event and as you go through the implementation process you want to ensure the platform is rolled out well to all end users. Your software vendor should consciously tailor the experience to your needs through their <a href="https://quantive.com/products/services-and-support" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">services and support options.</a>&nbsp;</p><p>Service and support features will vary based on your cloud strategy, compliance frameworks, and OKR platform requirements.&nbsp;</p><p>Stellar support and SLA (Service Level Agreement) commitments can turn an overall great OKR software into the right one for your business. They can de-risk performance concerns and strengthen the relationship between you and the OKR software vendor.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Enterprise-ready OKR software bolsters service and support capabilities through a customer success and technical success team.&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>The customer success function is the team for your team — dedicated to successful deployment and effective use of the platform. &nbsp;The technical success function guides enterprises throughout the &nbsp;OKR software journey, from onboarding, through adoption, to continued use of the platform.</p><h3>Checklist for OKR services and support</h3><ul><li>Does the OKR software provide a user help center?</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software aid your OKR learning experience?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software offer at least 99.99% SLA uptime?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software vendor provide a standard support function?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><h3>Enterprise checklist for OKR services and support</h3><ul><li>Does the OKR software vendor provide your enterprise with 24/7 support?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software vendor have a customer success team?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software offer at least 99.95% enterprise SLA uptime?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Will the vendor provide a dedicated account manager?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR vendor provide in-house technical success support for onboarding?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Can the technical success team translate your requirements into custom solutions?</li></ul><hr>

<p>As your organization looks to scale, security grows in priority. Your OKR software should be conscious of the unique stresses and challenges your organization will face as it grows.&nbsp;</p><p>User management and authentication, for example, are the core focus for enterprise security.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Administrators must be able to easily control access to the software for things like onboarding and offboarding users, dictating a directory service for authentication, and authorizing/ auditing user access. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Whether you’re an SMB, scale-up, or enterprise, the ability to manage up to millions of users effectively and securely should be on your checklist.&nbsp;</p><p>Check out our <a href="https://quantive.com/products/privacy-security" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">full guide on IT and security</a> as a reference for your OKR software buying journey.</p><h3>Checklist for OKR security</h3><ul><li>Does the software let you choose different user and account-level languages?</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software provide SSO authentication?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software offer stronger means of authentication than login &amp; password?</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software support the most popular SSO integrations?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software support account lockout?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the OKR software encrypt the data contained in the database?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Have the security controls of the OKR software been audited by a third-party auditor for security?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Are the OKR software’s data centers compliant with the most rigorous security standards like ISO (27001 &amp; 22301) and SOC (1 &amp; 2)?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Is the OKR software SOC2 Type II compliant?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Is the OKR software GDPR compliant?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software vendor have data centers in more than one location?&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><ul><li>Does the software vendor conduct penetration tests?</li></ul><hr>

<p>Before you dive into your exploration, these final tips will keep you grounded in choosing the best OKR software for your startup, SMB, or enterprise:&nbsp;</p><ol><li><strong>Don’t let surface-level impressions be the extent of your research. </strong>Test the OKR platform yourself.&nbsp;</li><li><strong>If you don’t have time to test each software, organize demo calls. </strong>Count the clicks needed to perform an action and understand where the platform places emphasis.</li><li><strong>Be specific about your needs. </strong>However, no vendor is perfect and you may have to take ‘no’ for some answers. But appreciate the honesty if the vendor is transparent — this speaks to their integrity.</li><li><strong>Check out customer reviews. </strong>The truth about the platform experience is usually embedded in them.</li><li><strong>Don’t rush into a decision and be certain. </strong>At the same time, make room for mistakes. A growth mindset is what OKRs are all about.&nbsp;</li></ol>

<p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business.<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> The Modern Operating Model </a>brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

Unleash the Power of OKRs for Your Business

Buyer's Guide: How to Choose the Right OKR Software for Your Business

<p>Strategy execution is a complex undertaking for any organization. Between the foundational definition of strategy to its never-ending adaptation, organizations are stuck on “how” exactly to master strategy execution.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Maybe this is your organization — you know the answer to this challenge is far more nuanced than “create a better strategy” or “execute better.” But where do you start?</p></blockquote><p>This is where a great strategy execution platform can be a game changer for your organization. A strategy execution platform can be the missing solution businesses worldwide use to create a mission-driven strategy, engage teams, and deliver better strategic outcomes at scale.&nbsp;</p><p>A strategy execution management platform gives your organization a seamless approach to plan, align, execute, and assess strategy across your business.</p><p>This article shows you how the right strategy execution platform will help your teams develop a proactive, outcome-driven approach.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Before we get into strategy execution management platforms, let's do a refresh on the basics. Strategy execution is how <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/ai-for-decision-making" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">decision-making</a> and team inputs align with the strategic priorities of an organization. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>In other words:&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>“Strategy is a living, breathing entity, not an A-to-Z journey, meaning the process doesn’t end just because it’s been executed. Strategy must be optimized, which informs a refreshed cycle of definition, deployment, and execution.” &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>It’s about meeting goals on time, on target, and on budget — no component of strategy execution can be neglected.</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn more about the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategy execution process</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670611665/site-v5/4_stages_of_successful_strategy_execution_1c658351c6.png" alt="4 stages of successful strategy execution.png"></a></figure><hr>

<p>While strategies differ from company to company, there are four key components in creating a <a href="https://hbr.org/2008/06/the-secrets-to-successful-strategy-execution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">successful strategy execution</a> process:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/plan" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Plan:</strong></a><strong> </strong>Create an informed, outcome-driven strategy</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/align-and-activate" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Align &amp; Activate:</strong></a><strong> </strong>Connected decision-making with clear definitions of success</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/execute" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Execute:</strong></a><strong> </strong>Enable seamless, mission-focused collaboration</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/assess-and-adapt" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Assess &amp; Adapt:</strong></a><strong> </strong>Know what works, what doesn’t, and make changes quickly</li></ul><p>Planning the strategy is about determining your organization’s direction, while alignment and activation are the tactical setups for bridging strategy to execution. Executing, assessing, and adapting strategy maintains a connection between teams and decision-makers, continuously improving each level of strategy. &nbsp;</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">See how top companies close the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategy execution gap</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670611665/site-v5/close_strategy_execution_gap_8de6ba8e73.png" alt="close strategy execution gap.png"></a></figure><hr>

<p><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">A strategy execution management platform</a> enables your organization to focus on the right goals while giving your teams the freedom to execute.</p><p>As a leader, you know strategy doesn’t just fall into place. There are too many moving parts, like:</p><ul><li>Resource allocation</li><li>Corporate, business, and functional tasks</li><li>Assigning roles, responsibilities, and deadlines</li><li>Establishing priorities</li><li>Managing changes, challenges, problems, and solutions</li><li>Measuring success</li><li>Tracking progress</li><li>Using data to inform decision making</li></ul><p>Your challenges aren't single-minded — neither is the right software when it comes to its capabilities. You must be able to manage all the moving parts of strategy execution in a single platform.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>By incorporating the power of your data and promoting transparency, a strategy execution platform taps into the full potential of your organization.</p></blockquote>

<p>Between the four strategy execution components — plan, align and activate, execute, assess and adapt — there are grey areas that can lead to strategic disconnection.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>A strategy execution platform reduces friction and fills in the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">strategic gaps</a> to prevent this disconnect. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Anyone can plan a strategy, but creating a strategy aligned with your organization’s priorities requires visibility and transparency. Leaders can cascade a strategy down to teams, but without a strategy execution platform engaging employees through a shared purpose, the strategy will lack impact.</p><p>Finally, let’s not forget data, the buzzword everyone likes to talk about. Strategy execution software doesn’t just collect data — it transforms it into actionable insights without the hassle and inaccuracy of manual inputs.&nbsp;</p><p>Even when strategy is executed, the world is in constant flux. The right platform helps you watch internal and external signals and act on them.</p>

<p>The right strategy execution platform should deliver on all components of strategy execution.&nbsp;</p><h3><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/plan" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Plan</a></h3><p>Break down silos in the strategy creation process and plan openly with a strategy execution management platform.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>With the strategy visible to the entire organization, it can be critiqued and validated before it’s deployed, saving your organization from resource waste.&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>A strategy execution platform also incorporates your data into your strategic planning, infusing your strategy with rich insights for an informed and impactful approach.</p><h3><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/align-and-activate" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Align and activate</a></h3><p>A platform lets you consolidate your data and access it at any time.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Through a data-first approach, you can coordinate teams on metrics and develop outcome-focused contributions.&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>When everyone is aligned on outcomes through your strategy execution management platform, you can create connections between teams and ensure measurements of success are clear.&nbsp;</p><h3><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/execute" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Execute</a></h3><p>Because strategy execution platforms focus and align teams on desired outcomes, transparency and trust pave the way to value adds from every team member.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Beyond enhancing team culture, a platform bolsters decision making through data-driven feedback.&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Bring clarity on what’s creating true impact and ensure consistency in execution using a strategy execution management platform.&nbsp;</p><h3><a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/assess-and-adapt" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Assess and adapt</a></h3><p>With a strategy execution platform, feedback loops are compressed through real-time key results and KPIs.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Supported by your data, a strategy execution platform helps you monitor progress and shift resources to the tactics driving the right outcomes.&nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>You can pivot when you need to, focus on what’s working, and do it faster all through the convenience of a platform.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In a world that shifts daily, the ability to pivot strategy without friction is a distinct competitive advantage. A strategy execution management platform <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/integrations" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">integrates your data</a> seamlessly applies it to your decision making and drives an outcome focus for your organization.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Your strategy execution process must adapt to the modern era, or it will fail.</p></blockquote><p>With these capabilities, you can ensure your strategy execution process isn’t operating in the past. By reducing friction, inefficiency, and disharmony, strategic planning software can help your organization achieve the best results possible.&nbsp;</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Check out our “Read Next” article to learn <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/why-strategy-execution-platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">why it’s time for your company</a> to integrate a strategy execution management platform</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/why-strategy-execution-platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670611665/site-v5/why_you_need_a_Strategy_Execution_Platform_9b52b7e54f.png" alt="why you need a Strategy Execution Platform.png"></a></figure><hr><p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and set your business objectives.<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> The Modern Operating Model </a>brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive business transformation.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

Why Your Company Needs a Strategy Execution Platform

What is Strategy Execution Software? How A Strategy Execution Platform Can Help Your Company

<p>The business environment has been rapidly changing since the pandemic, as companies have been perpetually uprooted from what they deemed to be the status quo. While many business challenges have posed difficulties for companies over the last few years — with some even facing bankruptcy — <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-adaptability" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business adaptability</a> has been hailed as the new competitive advantage.&nbsp;</p><p>Companies looking to thrive must be aware of current business issues and create flexible goals tailored to ongoing changes. To help you succeed amidst current business problems, this article covers the five most pertinent business challenges in 2023 and solution-oriented goals you can create to overcome these.&nbsp;</p>

<p>While many business challenges have surfaced (or worsened) in 2023, companies should address the following current business issues:</p><ol><li>Creating stability in the age of uncertainty&nbsp;</li><li>Adapting to the future of work&nbsp;</li><li>Adopting ESG as part of your business model</li><li>Accelerating digital transformation&nbsp;</li><li>Cultivating robust agility</li></ol>

<p>COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war have disrupted the equilibrium of supply and demand, sending shock waves through the world economy. The compounding effects of these current business problems affected demand, the cost of goods, supply chains, and investment decisions, resulting in a period of inflation — and increasing the likelihood of a recession or stagflation.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><h3>Inflationary pressures&nbsp;</h3><p>According to the <a href=" https://www.oecd.org/newsroom/consumer-prices-oecd-updated-5-july-2022.htm">OECD</a>, year-over-year inflation rose to 9.6% in May 2022, representing the steepest price increase since 1988. This resulted from a combination of inflationary pressures, namely an increase in demand, energy costs, and supply chain disruptions.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>While the pandemic initially <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/the-consumer-demand-recovery-and-lasting-effects-of-covid-19">decreased demand</a> due to health scares, lockdown measures, and travel restrictions, vaccine rollouts and monetary stimuli policies skyrocketed demand beyond what supply chains could handle. The increased demand, coupled with the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war, has caused the <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2022/04/26/food-and-energy-price-shocks-from-ukraine-war">largest increase in energy prices</a> since the 1973 oil crisis, affecting the overall price of commodities.&nbsp;</p><p>In addition, the pandemic caused delays in the production of many goods, which resulted in undiversified supply chains, mass layoffs, trucker shortages, and factory shutdowns that slowed the continuity of supply chains and raised prices for consumers. Combined, these pose one of the biggest challenges for businesses today.</p><h3>Looming recession or stagflation&nbsp;</h3><p>Given these inflationary pressures, experts worry about a looming <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/07/1123342">recession</a> or <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2022/06/07/stagflation-risk-rises-amid-sharp-slowdown-in-growth-energy-markets">stagflation</a> as governmental entities step in to correct inflation.&nbsp;</p><p>Central banks have already started implementing contractionary monetary policies to counter the effects of inflation. Yet, achieving the textbook “soft landing” <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2022/04/02/can-the-fed-pull-off-an-immaculate-disinflation">is rare</a>, as restrictive monetary policies can easily lead to a full-blown recession. This can prompt businesses to prioritize cost-effectiveness, resulting in layoffs, decreased profits, reduced cash flow, and limited R&amp;D.&nbsp;</p><p>Stagflation (where a recession sets in before prices have had a chance to decrease) is also a possible business challenge that can result in low growth, high unemployment, and inflated prices. This unfavorable combination can wreak havoc on economies and cause a dilemma for policymakers, as trying to lower inflation may cause further unemployment, while decreasing unemployment can worsen inflation.&nbsp;</p><h3>What to do&nbsp;</h3><p>Given this period of instability, it’s a good opportunity to readjust your business goals and adapt to economic rifts by, for example, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/recession-proofing-your-business" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recession-proofing your business</a>. Here are three focus areas for your <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/company-okrs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business goals</a> to navigate this business challenge:&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><ol><li>Ensuring spending visibility&nbsp;</li><li>Investing in technology and innovation&nbsp;</li><li>Upskilling existing employees&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ol><h4>Ensuring spending visibility&nbsp;</h4><p>Gaining an acute understanding of your organization’s spending can help your business stay afloat. By creating better visibility into your spending, you can get a detailed picture of how, where, and why money circulates throughout your company. Using this knowledge, your organization can:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>See where money is wasted, allowing you to cut costs and increase your savings&nbsp;</li><li>Enhance prioritization and resource deployment&nbsp;</li><li>Understand which activities can be automated&nbsp;</li><li>Improve and adapt your sourcing strategy&nbsp;</li><li>Streamline operations&nbsp;</li></ul><h4>Investing in technology and innovation &nbsp;</h4><p>Technology can <a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/articles/cfos-use-technology-in-your-inflation-fight">reduce business costs</a> via “digital deflation.” As digital products and services are cheaper than offline alternatives, your business can use them to decrease costs and lower consumer prices. Moreover, implementing tech tools that automate repetitive tasks, such as scheduling and billing, can streamline processes and allow employees to focus on more strategic activities. This facilitates more cost-effective business operations and weakens the effect of economic fluctuations on your business, thus reducing its impact as a current business issue.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>“What economists know, but the news reporters generally ignore...is that digital goods and services typically reduce both actual and measured inflation.”&nbsp;</p><p>- <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddoty/2022/06/09/how-digital-technology-fights-inflation-a-tool-consumers-need-now/">Forbes</a></p></blockquote><h4>Upskilling existing employees&nbsp;</h4><p>As increasing headcount becomes expensive during periods of inflation (and challenging during a recession or stagflation), your organization should set goals around upskilling employees. In addition to mitigating the effects of economic disruptions, upskilling employees can benefit your company in several ways, including:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Driving employee engagement and productivity&nbsp;</li><li>Making your employees and business adaptable&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Increasing talent retention and acquisition&nbsp; &nbsp;</li><li>Improving ROI and reducing waste&nbsp;</li><li>Saving on recruitment costs&nbsp;</li></ul>

<p>Ever-changing market dynamics placed adaptability at the forefront of strategic business initiatives, resulting in deviations from traditional working models. More and more businesses are now taking part in the gig economy and introducing hybrid work structures — and while these enable flexible operations, they also create a few business challenges.&nbsp;</p><h3>Gig economy&nbsp;</h3><p>While the gig economy is not a new concept, the pandemic accelerated its adoption rate, with <a href="https://www.mastercard.us/content/dam/public/mastercardcom/na/us/en/documents/mastercard-fueling-the-global-gig-economy-2020.pdf">Mastercard</a> revealing that the gig economy will be worth $298B by 2023 — a 122% increase since 2018. The rise in these transitory business relationships can bring about business problems, including:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Difficulty setting expectations: </strong>Companies and gig workers may be unsure of what they can expect from each other due to ambiguous and undefined contracts or service level agreements&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Poor communication: </strong>Businesses may find it challenging to manage and track communication with gig workers&nbsp; &nbsp;</li></ul><h3>Hybrid work&nbsp;</h3><p>Contrastingly, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/hybrid-work">hybrid work</a> was primarily unheard of before the pandemic. According to a <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/12/09/how-the-coronavirus-outbreak-has-and-hasnt-changed-the-way-americans-work/">2020 Pew Research survey,</a> 20% of employees whose jobs could be done remotely worked from home either all or most of the time pre-pandemic compared to 71% working from home post-pandemic. This rapid switch to hybrid work increased <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/283985/working-remotely-effective-gallup-research-says-yes.aspx">employee engagement </a>and <a href="https://fortune.com/2022/08/02/spotify-allowed-6500-employees-work-from-anywhere-in-world-turnover-rate-dropped-remote-work/amp/">decreased turnover rates </a>— but also propelled current business issues such as:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Organizational misalignment: </strong>Achieving alignment in a hybrid workforce can be difficult, with remote employees feeling disconnected from the broader company strategy&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Difficulties establishing connection and culture: </strong>In-office employees can easily collaborate, assimilate to the company culture, and build rapport with leadership, while remote workers may feel isolated and detached&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Trust issues: </strong>Hybrid work can foster feelings of mistrust and hostility, where managers don’t trust their remote employees, and in turn, employees resent managers for deeming them incapable in a remote setting&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><p style="text-align:center;">See more <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/hybrid-work#hybrid-work-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">challenges of hybrid work</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/hybrid-work#hybrid-work-challenges " target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670611665/site-v5/hybrid_work_e6fcc5b829.png" alt="hybrid work.png"></a></figure><hr><h3>What to do</h3><p>To work around these current business problems and make the gig economy and hybrid model work for your organization, set goals around:&nbsp;</p><ol><li>Enriching your tech stack&nbsp;</li><li>Facilitating interpersonal relationships&nbsp;</li><li>Building trust by setting clear expectations&nbsp;</li></ol><h4>Enriching your tech stack &nbsp;</h4><p>An upgraded tech toolkit focused on productivity, collaboration, and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/product-management-okrs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">product management</a> is necessary when working with hybrid, remote, and gig employees. These tools can help you streamline communications, assign tasks, and track progress — making them essential to the effectiveness of your organization.&nbsp;</p><h4>Facilitating interpersonal relationships&nbsp;</h4><p>A proactive approach to cultivating internal relationships is necessary for building unity amongst hybrid workers. This can involve regular check-in meetings, reiterating organizational goals, creating Slack channels for various hobbies, and establishing shared rituals. While these may not feel the same as in-person interactions, they can strengthen interpersonal connections and boost teamwork.&nbsp;</p><h4>Build trust using clear expectations &nbsp;</h4><p>A great way to fortify trust and enhance communications with remote and gig employees is to clarify expectations collaboratively. This involves outlining duties, contributions, and means of working (e.g., availability, work-life balance, documentation) to enhance the well-being and efficiency of employees.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The younger generations today are known for their purpose-driven, ethical, and community-oriented approach to consumption, careers, and investments. Given the environmental and social impact of current events, newer generations have nurtured a keen interest in <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-esg">Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) initiatives,</a> with:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.morganstanley.com/assets/pdfs/2021-Sustainable_Signals_Individual_Investor.pdf">99%</a> of millennial investors interested in sustainable investing&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/17/why-many-young-esg-investors-also-own-cryptocurrencies.html">54%</a> of millennials and Gen Z holding ESG investments&nbsp;</li><li>Gen Z preferring to <a href="https://www.firstinsight.com/white-papers-posts/gen-z-shoppers-demand-sustainability">purchase from — and spend more on — sustainable brands</a></li></ul><p>Therefore, ESG initiatives are becoming a must-have for business longevity. Yet, a key business challenge faced by companies is uncertainty on how to incorporate ESG into their operations.&nbsp;</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn more about <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-esg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ESG principles</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-esg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670611666/site-v5/What_is_ESG_1ade2dfc44.png" alt="What is ESG.png"></a></figure><hr><h3 style="margin-left:0px;"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);">What to do&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></h3><p style="margin-left:0px;">The importance of ESG makes it integral to your <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business strategy</a>. You can get your company on the right track with ESG — and avoid the business challenges brought on by not doing so — by:&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><ol><li>Using an ESG framework&nbsp;</li><li>Introducing DE&amp;I initiatives&nbsp;</li><li>Educating employees on ESG&nbsp;</li></ol><h4>Using an ESG framework&nbsp;</h4><p>While adopting ESG can seem complex, using an <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/esg-frameworks">ESG framework</a> can simplify the process. These frameworks help you structure ESG commitments, ensure consistency across ESG reporting, and meet stakeholder needs. A few popular ESG frameworks your business can use are:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi): </strong>Enables companies to set science-based targets to increase their competitiveness&nbsp;</li><li><strong>The Future-Fit Business Benchmark (FFBB): </strong>Transforms theory on systems science into a set of principles, indicators, and guides for businesses&nbsp;</li><li><strong>ISO 14001: </strong>Highlights organizational requirements for improving environmental management systems and environmental performance&nbsp;</li></ul><h4>Introducing DE&amp;I initiatives &nbsp;</h4><p><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/diversity-equity-inclusion">Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&amp;I)</a> is part of the ‘Social’ component of ESG. It involves welcoming a diverse workforce, valuing different identities and perspectives, and ensuring employees can access the same opportunities. Therefore, working towards DE&amp;I goals is crucial to ESG success. As you evaluate your <a href="/resources/articles/dei-goals">DE&amp;I goals,</a> start by:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Auditing the existing DE&amp;I culture in your organization&nbsp;</li><li>Emphasizing your organization’s dedication to DE&amp;I across the company&nbsp;</li><li>Tracking <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/dei-goals#how-to-measure-de&amp;i-success">DE&amp;I metrics to measure the success of your initiatives</a></li><li>Ensuring senior leadership is on board with current DE&amp;I initiatives&nbsp;</li></ul><h4>Educating employees on ESG&nbsp;</h4><p>Another critical aspect of integrating ESG into your organization is ensuring your employees understand ESG. Therefore, one of your focus areas should be to create training programs that educate employees on the purpose, benefits, and value of ESG. This training program can discuss:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Facts about ESG (e.g., statistics on climate change)&nbsp;</li><li>The current state of ESG in your company&nbsp;</li><li>The value ESG can bring to your business&nbsp;</li><li>How your organization will incorporate ESG (e.g., ESG-based investing, DE&amp;I policies)&nbsp;</li><li>What metrics and tools your organization will use to measure ESG performance&nbsp;</li></ul>

<p>A robust <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/digital-transformation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">digital transformation</a> strategy improves productivity, data-driven insights, decision-making, customer engagement, and revenue. With more and more companies recognizing the value (and necessity) of ongoing digital transformation, global investment in digital transformation is <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/870924/worldwide-digital-transformation-market-size/">set to double between 2020 and 2024</a>.&nbsp;</p><p>However, the widespread investment in digitization tools — and the vast amount of data these generate — can give rise to several business challenges, including:&nbsp;</p><h3>Data management issues</h3><p>Companies are now working with large sets of data extracted from diverse sources. These tend to have different formats, purposes, and levels of completeness, making it difficult to identify errors, erase duplicates, and assess the validity of your data.&nbsp;</p><h3>Cloud computing limitations</h3><p>As more industries rely on cloud computing in the wake of the pandemic, a one-size-fits-all, general-purpose cloud service may be insufficient for industries that need to meet specific requirements, regulations, or guidelines.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><h3>Data privacy and cybersecurity&nbsp;</h3><p>Hybrid work, digitization, and cloud reliance threaten data security, as employees now use both company and personal devices to manage their work. Consequently, data security is a pertinent business challenge, with cyberattacks such as phishing, ransomware, and cloud vulnerabilities <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/risk-and-resilience/our-insights/cybersecurity/cybersecurity-trends-looking-over-the-horizon">on the rise</a>.&nbsp;</p><h3>What to do &nbsp;</h3><p>To diminish the adverse effects of digital transformation — and stop it from becoming an ongoing business challenge — you can establish business goals that cover:&nbsp;</p><ol><li>Data consolidation and observability&nbsp;</li><li>Shifting to industry cloud&nbsp;</li><li>Investing in cybersecurity AI&nbsp;</li></ol><h4>Data consolidation and data observability&nbsp;</h4><p>Given the amount of disjointed data businesses deal with, data consolidation and <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals">observability</a> are essential to data management. By consolidating your data and storing it in one place, you can better manage it, reducing operating costs and improving productivity as a result. Once you’ve consolidated your data, data observability is imperative. This involves monitoring and tracking your data to discover issues, remove bottlenecks, and assess overall performance.&nbsp;</p><h4>Shifting to industry cloud &nbsp;</h4><p>If your business is in a highly regulated industry (e.g., finance, healthcare) or requires specialized needs, you can shift to using the industry cloud (aka vertical cloud). This is a tailored, purpose-built cloud system that you can customize to meet your industry and business needs (e.g., compliance, operatory, security). This way, you can easily accommodate for challenges in business, disruptions, or changes in your industry.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><h4>Investing in cybersecurity AI &nbsp;</h4><p>Another one of the current business issue is increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks, which are difficult to anticipate and overcome manually. Targeting these threats requires complex and self-adaptive solutions, such as cybersecurity AI. Cybersecurity AI detects and responds to breaches by analyzing vast amounts of historical data in real-time and pinpointing deviations from the norm. As such, they can be a valuable tool for businesses looking to stay on top of their data threats.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Agility helps your business stay competitive and buffers against sudden jolts in the environment, and it’s become even more necessary to your organization in 2023 — especially as it <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-for-employee-engagement" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">increases employee engagement</a>, customer centricity, and operational performance by <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-impact-of-agility-how-to-shape-your-organization-to-compete">30%.</a> Yet, despite <a href="https://i.forbesimg.com/forbesinsights/pmi/achieving_greater_agility.pdf">92%</a> of C-level executives believing that agility is vital to organizational success, there is a lack of clarity on how businesses can create an <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/agile-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">agile</a> working environment, with agility engrained in the company’s culture, employees, and systems.&nbsp;</p><h3>What to do &nbsp;</h3><p>There are many ways of cultivating a company that functions on agility. However, the best ways to incorporate agility into the core of your company involve:&nbsp;</p><ol><li>Thinking of your business as an adaptable organism&nbsp;</li><li>Relying on agile goal setting</li></ol><h4>Thinking of your business as an adaptable organism&nbsp;</h4><p>The age-old understanding of businesses as machines was born when Henry Ford created the assembly line. While this business paradigm has spread since then, it hinders organizations from becoming agile, as simply placing a machine in a new environment isn’t effective.&nbsp;If taken to the extreme, it can become an outright challenge for businesses.</p><p>To create agility, think of your organization as a living organism, where different parts of your business interact with components inside and outside your environment. Introducing this new paradigm requires you to reorient your business’s internal structure by:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Moving from complete bureaucracy to structures that empower teams to take accountability, collaborate, and become self-sufficient&nbsp;</li><li>Encouraging continuous learning cycles and short feedback loops that incorporate experimentation, innovation, and growth&nbsp;</li><li>Establishing a united purpose and end goal that enables everyone to recognize and seize opportunities&nbsp;</li><li>Creating a people-centered organization that focuses on collaboration&nbsp;</li><li>Integrating new technologies to stay competitive and subdue the impact of current business issues&nbsp;</li></ul><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670601291/site-v5/Agile_vs_Traditional_Organisation_23b0287b0f.svg" alt="This is a diagram highlighting the main differences between traditional and agile organizations, showing how agile organizations are better fit to overcome business challenges in 2023"></figure><h4>Relying on agile goal setting</h4><p>An agile organization recalibrates goals according to current business problems, keeping the business relevant, timely, and aligned. Use the following tips to create agility across your business goals and overcome incoming business challenges:&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Create short-term and long-term goals: </strong>Your long-term goals act as a North Star, while short-term goals adapt to changes in the market environment and align with your long-term vision&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Establish measurable goals: </strong>Without goal measurability, you don’t know what (or whether) things need to change&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Schedule regular check-ins with employees: </strong>This can cultivate a qualitative and nuanced view of goal progress, goal relevance, existing challenges, and overall alignment&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Set collaborative team goals: </strong>A collaborative <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/goal-setting">goal-setting</a> approach can help you prioritize goals, discover solutions, and accommodate changes at the macro and micro level&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Choose an agile goal-setting framework: </strong>An adaptable goal-setting framework such as <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-meaning">objectives and key results (OKRs)</a> can help you create adjustable, measurable, collaborative, and ambitious goals that keep your organization aligned and agile&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn how <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-and-agile">OKRs and agile work together</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-and-agile" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1670611666/site-v5/OK_Rs_and_Agile_3dd7e4cb90.png" alt="This is a diagram depicting how OKRs and agile work together"></a></figure><hr>

<p>With the tumultuous business environment and increasingly challenging business issues, staying afloat is no longer an option. Proactively reorienting your business systems towards adaptability is vital to your business’ success. To overcome today's business challenges, focus on:&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Upgrading your internal resources, including financial operations, skillsets, and tools&nbsp;</li><li>Improving communications and relationships with employees&nbsp;</li><li>Making ESG a non-negotiable aspect of your business strategy&nbsp;</li><li>Facilitate data management, compliance, and security using specialized tools&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Incorporating agility across your business&nbsp;</li></ul><hr><p>Quantive serves as your bridge between strategy and execution, enabling you to refine your strategic path and overcome business challenges. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p style="margin-left:0px;">As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business. <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Modern Operating Model</a> brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p style="margin-left:0px;">Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p style="margin-left:0px;">Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

How to Recession-Proof Your Business in 2023

Top 5 Business Challenges in 2023 and How to Overcome Them

<p>Decentralized and distributed, yet connected and continuous.</p><p>All seemingly incompatible elements of the third industrial revolution, also known as the digital revolution, when we moved our analog world first to computers and then to the cloud.</p><p>Decades in, we’re learning something new: You cannot overlay <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/digital-transformation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">digital transformation</a> atop traditional ways of doing business and expect traditional outcomes. Instead, there’s a ripple effect where those conventional ways of making decisions and managing people eventually lead to lackluster results.&nbsp;</p><p>As we now enter a fourth industrial revolution, which is even more complex than the last, we’re facing a set of new and unfamiliar challenges.</p><ul><li><strong>Dynamic innovation. </strong>The fusion of technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning, 5G and IoT connectivity, 3D/4D printing, cloud and edge computing, blockchain, and so on, present complex and unfamiliar changes.</li><li><strong>Global integration.</strong> The global economy is increasingly interconnected. Unlike just 200 years ago, we now share goods, services, people, and information with a growing list of trade partners.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/global-flows-the-ties-that-bind-in-an-interconnected-world">No region is self-sufficient</a> anymore which means we are tied to our trade partners’ prosperity, as well as their scarcity.</li><li><strong>Macro and micro climate crises.</strong> Increased human activity, as well as unprecedented population growth (i.e. the 1 billion people we’ve added to the world population&nbsp;<a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/11/1130417">in the last 12 years</a>) is disrupting our natural world. How do governments and corporations respond? How do companies create value through an&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-esg">environmental, social, and governance</a> (ESG) proposition?</li><li><strong>Geopolitical unrest.</strong> Political polarization all over the world is shifting the political foundations that have been laid in some countries for hundreds of years. And as tensions rise, it’s not just supply chains that stall — so does corporate innovation — and the effects can be long-lasting.</li></ul><p>The level of uncertainty regarding our future, not to mention the sheer amount of external and internal variables required to process and make sense of it all, is overwhelming.</p><p>Yet the ways we’re thinking about <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/ai-for-decision-making" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">decision making</a>, leading people, and delivering value are rooted in decades-old habits and mindsets. And they’re barely keeping pace.&nbsp;Indeed, as the&nbsp;things we work on evolve, so must the ways&nbsp;in which we work.</p><p>Businesses today need a framework that makes strategy fluid and decentralizes decision-making and action to continuously align key players in the organization. We need a Modern Operating Model that puts the focus on execution, ensuring the right data is accessible, at the right time, to the right people, so that those people are equipped to collaboratively create the best possible outcomes.</p><p>So where do we begin?</p><hr><p style="margin-left:0px;text-align:center;">Don't have time to read the full article now? <a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive_Guides/The_Modern_Operating_Model_Manifesto.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Download the pdf</a> and save for later.</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive_Guides/The_Modern_Operating_Model_Manifesto.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1671869904/site-v5/mom_1_d57deb218f.png" alt="The Modern Operating Model Manifesto"></a></figure><hr>

<p>Strategy execution is not a new challenge. But it’s a challenge today for new reasons. Historically,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gartner.com/smarterwithgartner/the-five-pillars-of-strategy-execution">67% of strategies</a> failed due to poor execution and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gartner.com/smarterwithgartner/the-five-pillars-of-strategy-execution">83% failed due to faulty assumptions</a> when the strategy was created.</p><p>So what is it that makes execution so hard? In a word —&nbsp;<strong>complexity</strong>.</p><p>As a leader, you’re tasked with distilling high level company aspirations down to a handful&nbsp;of priorities, then refining those priorities into clear, actionable steps with accompanying metrics of success. The translation itself is challenging, but you’ve only just begun.</p><p>Then there’s complexity in terms of scale and participation.</p><p>You’re taking an idea from a small executive group to a much larger population, all with a unique role to play. That demands precise and near-constant communication that elicits buy-in, creates alignment, and empowers people within their spheres of responsibility. When those outcomes aren’t met, you risk frustrating your employees, executing on the wrong things, and under-resourcing your workforce — all of which create both internal and external vulnerabilities.</p><p>And then there’s the challenge of logistics, where the “plan” goes from the theoretical realm into the real world. At this phase, you must allocate resources, determine roles and responsibilities, make a plan for responding to challenges, support employee morale, gather data and feedback, and coordinate communication between internal and external teams and partners.</p><p>You must also be ready to change course at a moment’s notice. Why? The list of reasons keeps growing. Change can come in the form of traditional people, processes, or resource issues to evolving issues like groundbreaking technology, customer expectations, expanding employee needs, regulatory changes, or political unrest.</p><blockquote><p>“What if your company’s health insurance plan (or your hiring and training practices, or your policy on guns in the workplace) violates a new state law? And what if your efforts to comply with fast-changing laws and regulations are met with condemnations from employees, customers, and investors? These were not questions that business leaders were asking themselves even a few years ago. Now they must.”&nbsp;</p><p>-&nbsp;<a href="https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/every-company-needs-a-political-strategy-today">MIT Sloan Management Review</a></p></blockquote>

<p>To solve the&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap">strategy execution gap</a> in an ever-evolving context, we first must break down the problem into clearly identifiable parts. Historically, organizations had trouble executing strategy when there are roadblocks in six key areas:</p><ol><li>Alignment</li><li>Prioritization</li><li>Observability</li><li>Agility</li><li>Capabilities</li><li>Culture</li></ol><h3>Alignment</h3><p>The larger an organization is, the more challenging it is to get all key players on the same page and ‘rowing in the same direction’. Yet even the slightest misalignment can result in missed opportunities, wasted time, poor communication, and worst of all — executing the wrong tasks. All of which lead to lost revenue.&nbsp;</p><p>For instance, a strategic disagreement at BMW&nbsp;<a href="https://www.predictiveindex.com/blog/cost-strategic-disagreement/">cost the company $10 billion</a>. The stakes are that high. And at most companies, executives agree on only 50-70% of their strategy, leaving the door wide open for misalignment with a cost of up to 25% of revenue.</p><p>Alternatively, strategy alignment fuels action, agility, and trust. When a strategic plan is clearly communicated and people are equipped at every step, they are then free to set goals and pursue them knowing they’re working on the right things.&nbsp;</p><h3>Prioritization</h3><p>Organizations with prioritization problems often fail to cast a compelling vision. And with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.strategyand.pwc.com/gx/en/unique-solutions/cds/the-strategy-crisis.pdf">74% of executives</a> saying they ask employees to focus on too many priorities, and 21% admitting their organizations don’t have a set of strategic priorities, this is a huge problem when it comes to strategy execution.</p><p>If there’s a prioritization problem, culture starts to crumble and employees end up with&nbsp;<a href="https://hbr.org/2018/09/too-many-projects">too many competing projects</a> and tasks. Their valuable time is spent on activities for which there is little to no return on investment.</p><h3>Observability</h3><p>Knowing what’s&nbsp;really going on in a business has always been a challenge. But as we’ve discussed, the moving parts today are&nbsp;more distributed than they’ve ever been, yet less tangible. It’s a complicated combination.</p><p>The&nbsp;<a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fnewrelic.com%2Fobservability-forecast%2F2022%2Fabout-this-report&amp;esheet=52888776&amp;newsitemid=20220914005057&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=2022+Observability+Forecast&amp;index=2&amp;md5=5e6830bb0e346abfea599217bef7a11c">2022 Observability Forecast</a><a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fnewrelic.com%2Fobservability-forecast%2F2022%2Fabout-this-report&amp;esheet=52888776&amp;newsitemid=20220914005057&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=report&amp;index=3&amp;md5=b2ed7a22db501c04da1d25d76c0673d9"> report</a> found that technology professionals are eager to accelerate observability capabilities to preempt issues related to application security and ultimately customer experience.&nbsp;</p><p>Three in four of the professionals surveyed said their company executives are advocates of observability, with 78% reporting observability as a “key enabler for achieving core business goals,” which indicates that observability is quickly becoming non-negotiable in the C-Suite.</p><p>Why? In a knowledge economy, sharing knowledge must be easy and fast. We need something that pushes the right data to the right people at the right time, then reports when people have acted on that data.</p><h3>Agility</h3><p>We’ve known for a long time that those who adapt well to their changing environment have a better chance of survival. But today, the time we’re allowed to figure out how to adapt is compressed.</p><p>An organization’s ability to respond to change quickly&nbsp;and effectively is essential. No longer is there time to run every decision up and down the leadership chain. Flatter, better-aligned organizational structures are winning out over those that are deeply hierarchical.</p><blockquote><p>Hierarchy is not working anymore — agility is.</p></blockquote><h3>Capabilities</h3><p>As the ways in which we work evolve, so do the skills and resources we need. However many strategic plans fail because they were aiming at the wrong target, making assumptions about the market, or overestimating what was actually possible in the span of time.</p><p>It’s easy to believe there will be time to develop the skills and resources needed to compete in the marketplace, but that time is not always a given. Failing to plan for skills and competencies presents considerable risk.</p><p>Take the film photography company Kodak for instance. The company became a cautionary example of short-sightedness when, despite its position as a market leader, revenues plummeted and ended in bankruptcy.&nbsp;</p><p>What happened? Kodak and other companies in the film sector were aware the industry was heading in a digital direction, yet they continued focusing on what worked in the past. They failed to build the capabilities required to operate in a new world.</p><p>Defining and documenting the competencies and capabilities a company will need — and when it will need them — is critical.</p><h3>Culture</h3><p>Finally, company culture is too often an afterthought when it comes to strategy execution. Yet a strong culture reinforces each of the other strategy execution components. When a workforce is&nbsp;engaged they stay aligned, focus on priorities, advocate for observability, create an <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/agile-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">agile</a> structure, and develop new capabilities.</p><p>Weak cultures result in higher labor costs, lower productivity rates, and trouble finding and keeping the best, most creative talent. On the contrary, organizations that work on strengthening company culture see a net profit increase of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/229832/culture.aspx">85% in the first five years</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It’s hard enough to execute a strategy in a world we’re familiar with where we can predict the results of our actions with some degree of confidence. But in the context of such rapid change, it’s even harder. So what exactly are these “<a href="/resources/articles/business-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">new business challenges</a>” impacting strategy execution?</p><ul><li>Business velocity</li><li>Generational changes</li><li>Decentralized work</li><li>Elevated uncertainty</li><li>Data overload</li></ul><h3>Business velocity</h3><p>According to McKinsey, we’ll witness&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/tech-at-the-edge-trends-reshaping-the-future-of-it-and-business">more technological advances in the next 10 years than the last 100</a>. And seeing as autonomous vehicles are right around the corner, while a century ago we didn’t even have power steering — that’s saying a lot.</p><p>Meanwhile, market changes are also becoming more dynamic than ever before. The levers that stimulated or cooled an economy 20 years ago aren’t nearly as reliable as they once were. Using the financial tools we’re familiar with will not solve the business problems of the future.</p><h3>Generational changes in the labor environment</h3><p>Meanwhile, as Baby Boomers exit the workforce en masse, Gen X and Millennials are replacing them in leadership positions while Gen Z fills out the bottom ranks. And these generations’ coming of age experiences have been markedly different from those of previous generations.</p><p>Thanks to internet-based tools and platforms, it’s easier than ever to start your own business and be your own boss. As a result, many individuals who would have once sought to build high-performing careers in large corporations are now trading that idea for more autonomy and the same-sized paycheck.</p><p>And with the changes over the last few years, the average employee today seeks more flexibility, autonomy, personal meaning, and social impact in their work than their predecessors did. The idea of “community” is starkly different now than it was for their parents and grandparents when people lived, worked, and socialized with their neighbors. Today one’s community may be distributed all over the world, held together by common values, interests, or business endeavors.</p><h3>Decentralized work</h3><p>Sending a workforce home with a laptop and an internet connection is not modern. For a distributed environment to actually&nbsp;work, the flow of information has to change, too.</p><p>In a knowledge economy, where data reigns supreme, the right information must travel to the right people at the right time. But that’s easier said than done in a world where colleagues work from various time zones, and when the sheer amount of information needed to make a single decision is overwhelming.</p><h3>Data overload</h3><p>The digital revolution dumped an overwhelming amount of new information in our laps. Now we have to figure out how to use it. That’s why the global enterprise data management market&nbsp;<a href="https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/enterprise-data-management-market">will reach nearly $100 billion</a> by the end of 2022.</p><p>Yet to date, too much data remains unleveraged. In many companies, the data people need may be&nbsp;present. But too often it’s not&nbsp;connected or&nbsp;useful. Data overload is negatively impacting job performance and increasing stress, which in turn negatively impacts strategy execution.</p><h3>Elevated uncertainty &nbsp;</h3><p>Covid was a watershed moment, of course. And now, the Russia-Ukraine war has further disrupted the equilibrium of supply and demand, sending shock waves through the world economy.</p><p>The compounding effects of these issues has significantly affected consumer demand, the cost of goods, and investment decisions, resulting in a period of inflation — and increasing the likelihood of a recession or stagflation.</p><p>And that’s on a global scale. For individual companies, in addition to day-to-day supply chain challenges and cost of goods challenges, it’s nearly impossible to plan for the future, at least beyond the six to nine month mark.</p>

<p>Adapting to these changes isn’t easy…which is a manifestation of the problem itself. We need a means to effectively execute strategic objectives in a fast and constantly changing world.</p><p>That’s where the&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model">Modern Operating Model</a> comes in. Based on a few core beliefs, the Modern Operating Model instills the following mindset:</p><ul><li>Team&nbsp;priorities should be connected to top-line objectives</li><li>Decision-making should be decentralized</li><li>Organizations should be transparent and trustworthy</li><li>Business should be outcome-focused</li><li>Teams should be fast and agile</li><li>Feedback loops should be compressed</li></ul><h3>Connecting priorities to top-line objectives</h3><p>With clear lines of sight to the top, workers can spend less time working on anything misaligned with company objectives. Not only does alignment produce faster results, employees are also able to see the impact of their work. And more importantly, see why their work matters. While there is no shortage of work to be done in any organization, alignment ensures we’re working on the&nbsp;right work.&nbsp;</p><h3>Decentralizing decision-making</h3><p>Data and insights are only valuable when you have access to them with enough time to change outcomes. If the data is delivered too late, you may as well not have it at all.</p><p>Yet the volume of decisions that need to be made on a daily basis in most organizations is much, much more than any one executive team can process and make sense of. That is why the top-down model of the past is not the way forward.&nbsp;</p><p>In the Modern Operating Model, as data is unlocked from silos and the right information is put in the hands of decision makers, two things happen: decision-making time goes down and decision-making quality goes up.</p><h3>Creating transparent and trustworthy organizations</h3><p>A culture built on integrity and transparency is the only way to empower employees to perform at their highest levels. With the focus on outcomes, as well as clear ownership and alignment, there’s a decrease in time spent finger pointing and deciding who’s to blame. In turn, people want to show up to work, to solve problems together, and communicate when things start to drift off course.</p><h3>Building outcome-focused businesses</h3><p>During the assembly line era, we learned to obsess over inputs. The outputs took care of themselves. But today, it doesn’t work that way. Outcomes are evidence. Activities — those day-to-day tasks being executed by individuals in your organization — do matter; but they will never, on their own, indicate how close you are to meeting your goals. Moving beyond opinions, egos, and activities to a focus on results is the only way for modern businesses to succeed.</p><h3>Creating fast and agile teams</h3><p>Excellence is never achieved without practice. And practice entails trying, failing, learning, then trying again. Today’s businesses need to establish an operating cadence that allows the organization to manage fast, then to quickly adjust as needed. Since most teams spend their time finding solutions to new problems, encouraging a "test and iterate" mindset empowers people to move faster without fear of failing.</p><h3>Compressing feedback loops</h3><p>We can’t make good decisions without good information. Today, knowledge drives everything. By collapsing feedback loops, and getting data into the hands of decision makers at the time they need it, we’re able to dramatically reduce the time it takes to pivot or persevere. And by removing unnecessary hurdles, we empower&nbsp;more people to make decisions when they have the right insights — instead of only informing a select few at the top.</p>

<p>So how do you make the Modern Operating Model a reality in your organization? Success requires implementing five major components. Each depends on the others, and we’ll examine them in sequence.</p><ol><li>Define the destination</li><li>Change the business</li><li>Run the business</li><li>Do the work</li><li>Assess &amp; adapt</li></ol><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1669895185/site-v5/visual_MOM_Small_1b5afd02d4.svg" alt="Modern Operating Model"></figure><h3>Component 1: Define the destination</h3><p>In order to be aligned, your team needs to know where they’re going, why it matters, what they need to accomplish, and how to get there. In short, they need a defined destination. It’s key for building trust, resiliency, and focus.&nbsp;</p><p>A well-defined destination is made up of a common mission and cultural values, a company vision, and an overarching strategy.</p><h4>Mission and cultural values&nbsp;</h4><p>Having a shared perspective or mission binds people together powerfully. It’s also a strong motivator of engagement. Gen Z’s and Millennials in particular seek out organizations that promote purpose and conscious culture.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><h4>Vision</h4><p>Vision shapes priorities and refines strategic focus. It yields better decisions about relevant work, potential opportunities, and more. If you want your team to work as a unified whole, it’s important to give them a shared picture of the future.</p><h4>Strategy&nbsp;</h4><p>Your strategy is the critical link between your defined destination and the active phases of carrying it out. It provides your organization with the practical aspects of the plan.</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn about the differentiating <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">components of mission vs. vision</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/mission-vs-vision" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1679576222/site-v5/mission_vs_vision_4831a60599.png" alt="A green flag with hollow filling placed to the left of an outline of an eye, with the iris also outlined in green, all on a green background, to signal mission vs. vision"></a></figure><hr><h3>Component 2: Change the business</h3><p>Next up: determining what needs to change (objectives) and how to get people moving together in that direction (alignment).</p><h4>Set strategic objectives and OKRs&nbsp;&nbsp;</h4><p>Without objectives, strategy is vague — your goal is to clarify it, quantify it, and fit it to a timeline. Break down the larger plan into tangible steps that can be concisely communicated. Establish OKRs (<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-meaning">objectives and key results</a>), which define the specific outcomes for each part of the organization.&nbsp;</p><p>Strategic objectives and OKRs impact strategy execution by:</p><ul><li>Supplying ambitious, achievable goals&nbsp;</li><li>Building vertical alignment so each person works toward the strategic objectives&nbsp;</li><li>Enabling horizontal alignment, increasing collaboration, and highlighting interdependencies&nbsp;</li><li>Boosting efficiency, prioritization, engagement, and focus through individual involvement in goal-setting</li><li>Creating an outcome-focused (rather than activity-focused) culture&nbsp;</li></ul><h4>Plan the execution</h4><p>With strategic objectives and OKRs established, plan the governance and execution. Spheres to consider in this phase:</p><ul><li>Culture design (transparent, trusting, consistent)</li><li>Modes of working (remote, hybrid, etc.)</li><li>Processes and playbooks</li><li>Policies and procedures</li><li>Roles/responsibilities&nbsp;</li><li>Tools and technology</li><li>Resource allocation&nbsp;</li><li>Workflows and project management</li><li>Communication plan (from rollout to final review)</li></ul><p>Success is won or lost in the planning stage.</p><h3>Component 3: Run the business</h3><p>Once the plan is in motion, you need data and feedback — that means internal and external monitoring. Together,&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okrs-vs-kpis">OKRs and KPIs</a> can show you what’s going on and how it affects progress toward strategic goals.</p><p>Pull KPIs (for employee performance insight) from a connected technology stack to support&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals">business observability</a>. Then set your KPIs to continuously update alongside your OKRs. OKRs provide quantitative data in the form of key results and confidence assessments toward meeting objectives. They also offer qualitative data through weekly&nbsp;<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-cycle">OKR reviews</a> and quarterly retrospectives.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>External monitoring is critical too. Observe your business environment for threats, shifts, and opportunities. It might mean keeping an eye on <a href="/resources/articles/business-challenges" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">unfolding megatrends</a> or staying attuned to the latest startup.&nbsp;</p><p>Together, internal and external monitoring can shorten learning feedback loops and strengthen business observability. That means more accurate decisions when it comes to adapting your strategic execution.&nbsp;</p><h4>Component 4: Do the work</h4><p>Think about the basics: completing tasks, inputs, transformations, and outputs. Those agenda items remain, but under a Modern Operating Model, the atmosphere is different.&nbsp;</p><p>What should it look like?</p><ul><li>Fully engaged employees, expending discretionary effort&nbsp;</li><li>Collaboration and communication between teams</li><li>Continuous learning and feedback (with regular OKR reviews and KPI observability)&nbsp;</li><li>Ownership and accountability through transparency&nbsp;</li><li>Data-driven decisions</li><li>Emphasis on outcomes, rather than tasks and activities&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>Growth mindset that embraces failure and experimentation</li><li>Merit and values based recognition and rewards</li></ul><p>This ideal state of work won’t happen overnight, but the components of a Modern Operating Model are designed to optimize your strategy execution over time, getting you closer to the goal every day.</p><h3>Component 5: Assess &amp; adapt</h3><p>Good business monitoring will set you up with the right data and information. From there, you’ll assess, gather insights, distill the narrative, and then adapt your strategic execution accordingly. The goal is to get knowledge for decision making.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>At the macro level, you may be navigating tumultuous economic, political, and social conditions, adapting to innovation, and <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-esg">ESG (environment, social, and governance</a>) concerns. The hope is that you’ll be able to make smart changes to your destination and how to get there mid-process.</p><p>At the micro level, routinely assess and adjust for:</p><ul><li>Efficiency and effectiveness: Optimize even en route&nbsp;</li><li>OKR progress: Search the data for underperformance, determine the cause, and decide whether the current OKRs set are still achievable and critically relevant</li><li>Insight and foresight (as opposed to hindsight): Look for warning signs through AI and KPI data for things like tech issues and business challenges to high churn rate among a customer group</li><li>Internal opportunities: Look for trends that lead to new opportunities like customer support data that may reveal an unmet or emerging customer need</li></ul>

<p>Guiding your organization through digital transformation is like untying a knot on the end of a ball of yarn — doing so frees you, but it also starts to unravel everything else.</p><p>Likewise, organizational leaders focused on digital transformation have freed their companies to compete in the marketplace of the future. Without it, many will not survive.</p><p>But the hard truth is, you can’t solve 21st century problems using 20th century thinking. And you cannot overlay digital transformation on top of traditional ways of doing business. The entire operating model must change.</p><p><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model">The Modern Operating Model</a> is a set of principles and practical tools that guide enterprise executives to operational excellence using data and insights to make better and faster decisions. Adopting the Modern Operating Model involves a culture shift, new mindsets, and new habits.&nbsp;</p><p>And this model is not just possible — it’s critical to the future of work.</p><hr><p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business. <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Modern Operating Model</a> brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free</a>.</p>

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Quantive provides a clean and user-friendly solution to adopting OKRs.

Amit Dixit

Co-founder and CTO, Sedemac

Quantive's approach to the OKR methodology has allowed us to capitalize on our culture and achieve more.

Audrey Bricout

FIC Business Manager, Sociate Generale

By integrating all the business systems and updating OKRs automatically, Quantive Results was the perfect solution. It was a no-brainer.

Alejandro Artacho

Founder and CEO, Spotahome

Quantive doesn't just offer an intuitive solution that can be easily adapted to our OKR approach, they really care about us and provide outstanding support.

Markus Kieslich

Head of Marketing, idgard | uniscon GmbH

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Buyer's Guide: How to Choose the Right OKR Software for Your Business

What is Strategy Execution Software? How A Strategy Execution Platform Can Help Your Company

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Modern Operating Model Manifesto

Take strategy execution to the next level

The best platform for turning strategy into results

Quantive Results

Quantive Singularity​

The Modern Operating Model

Trusted by

users

organizations

industries

Quantive provides a clean and user-friendly solution to adopting OKRs.

Amit Dixit

Co-founder and CTO, Sedemac

Quantive's approach to the OKR methodology has allowed us to capitalize on our culture and achieve more.

Audrey Bricout

FIC Business Manager, Sociate Generale

By integrating all the business systems and updating OKRs automatically, Quantive Results was the perfect solution. It was a no-brainer.

Alejandro Artacho

Founder and CEO, Spotahome

Quantive doesn't just offer an intuitive solution that can be easily adapted to our OKR approach, they really care about us and provide outstanding support.

Markus Kieslich

Head of Marketing, idgard | uniscon GmbH

Successful OKR software implementations start with the right support

Consulting services

Quick start your OKR journey

Explore our resources

Buyer's Guide: How to Choose the Right OKR Software for Your Business

What is Strategy Execution Software? How A Strategy Execution Platform Can Help Your Company

Top 5 Business Challenges in 2023 and How to Overcome Them

Modern Operating Model Manifesto

Take strategy execution to the next level

Quantive Singularity