Implementation / Execution

“Success lies in the relentless execution of the basics.” Leonardo da Vinci

“The urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.” Leonardo Da Vinci

“Vision without execution is hallucination.” Thomas Edison

“A plan without action isn’t a plan, it’s a speech.” T. Boone Pickens

“Execution – getting the task done, making it happen – is the most underappreciated skill of an effective business leader.” Louis Gerstner Jr, IBM

"Many a brilliant idea has been lost because the man who dreamed it lacked the spunk of the spine to put it across." A.P Giannini, founder Bank of America

“You can have a great strategy but execution, of course, is everything.” Mark Leonard, Constellation Software

“Execution : The most important factor for success. Never forget this word. Strategy and analysis are less important. As long as the process of execution is good and fast it is sufficient to have decided on ‘almost’ the correct way forward. It is possible to change direction later, if it is not entirely right. Good execution accounts for 90 per cent of success, strategy accounts for 10.” Percy Barnevik, ex CEO ABB

“I had one philosophy about new ventures: If you like the idea, get on with it. Don't over-analyse it, don't waste time making decks and projections where it's absolutely certain, absolutely, that they will be wrong, high or low. Don't do anything other than shake the idea back and forth until your resolve that the only known is - it's a good idea. And then, just get on with it! Make mistakes and correct them as fast as you can, and eventually there will be fewer mistakes. This is the way non-geniuses succeed, and I'm very squarely in that camp. I don't see things clearly in the beginning; I can't see around corners. It's process I prize the rocky road from idea to implementation. The consternation and the thrill of pulling it through to success is the most gratifying work. Once that's done, I lose interest and want to find my way to the next gnarly process.” Barry Diller

"I have too many ideas. Ideas are relatively easy, execution is hard." Elon Musk

“The doers are the major thinkers. The people that really create the things that change this industry are both the thinker-doer in one person.” Steve Jobs

“Most would-be executives are reasonably good at conceptualizing, but poor at implementing new ideas and concepts. It is the individual who possesses both of these qualities, particularly the latter, who succeeds most of the time.” Jon Huntsman

“Because many people in the organisation do not share the manager’s ability to visualise the consequences of great managerial decisions, the best decisions are frequently the most difficult to implement. In my experience, making decisions is the fun part of being a manager, and; the difficult part of management is implementation.” Peter Schutz, Porsche

“When something has to be done, do it! In France we are full of good ideas, but we rarely put them into practice.” Bernard Arnault

“Execute. ‘It is easier to develop a plan than to execute it,’ Henry Bloch says. The best-laid plans are worthless without effective execution. Although traditional business schools do a good job of teaching students how to develop strategy, more attention should be placed on implementing strategy. ‘Execution boils down to having the right people with the right skills in the right place.” Thomas Bloch, founder H&R Block

“You need ideas but the idea is just 20%. Execution is 80%.” Bernard Arnault

“Businesses with good ideas but poor execution ultimately fail.” Charles Koch, Koch Industries

“I am convinced that a wealth of knowledge does little good if there is a lack of execution. This is a decisive point if we want to ensure that our company remains competitive in the future.” Reinhold Würth, Würth Industries

“No matter how inspiring the vision or lofty the goals, success of failure always come down to execution.” Mark Bertolini, Aetna

“Knowledge alone is not much help – it only becomes effective when practical results follow. This is why I once produced the slogan, ‘Knowledge is sleep – implementation is power.’ No one can rise to the top without observing this rule.” Reinhold Würth, Würth Industries

“We’ve found that innovation is a mixture of luck, choosing ideas that work best with our organisation and superb execution. Of these, execution is by far the most important factor.” Chester Cadieux, Quiktrip

“My revelation is that the execution is far more important than the idea. The people I most admire are those who know how to execute. The quality of execution is far more important than the quality of the idea. I was taught at a very young age to let individuals do things their own way as much as possible even if I thought my idea was somewhat better. That advice spoke to execution. People believe in their own ideas and will generally execute those ideas far better then someone else’s!” Barnett Helzberg

“Everyone values creative thinking and smart strategies, but those rarely determine the success or failure of any given program or initiative. The outcome depends on execution - on the organisation’s ability to get on it’s belly, crawl through mud, and carry out the mission effectively.” Mark Bertolini, Aetna

“Executing an average idea well will far exceed results of a great idea executed poorly! If the person who executes believes in the idea, the likelihood of success is far greater than in cases where that person is not convinced or excited or committed.” Barnett Helzberg

“A flawed decision that is well implemented will yield more in the way of results than a perfect decision that is not implemented well. Peter Schutz, Porsche

“The successful implementation step is sometimes more important than the generation and acceptance of ideas. On more than one occasion, I have witnessed a well-implemented mediocre idea that has produced great results. I have witnessed poorly implemented great ideas that produced poor results.” Madan Birla, Fedex