Every great organization requires a strong strategic plan and the discipline to stay committed to the plan. Every successful CEO is the keeper of this plan and must ensure that their priorities are directly linked to that plan.

Leaders must set these priorities and ensure that the organization is mobilized to action them. This can be much easier said than done however. Market conditions can change rapidly, customers can quickly shift their desires and stakeholders are managing their own priorities. So how do we maintain focus and commitment? Hard work and connectivity!

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Successful CEO’s stay closely connected to their employees and either through them or on occasion directly, stay connected to key customers and stakeholders. In doing so, CEO’s can judge the significance of changes that are occurring and determine if any shift in the priorities should occur. More often than not, maintaining the course and dedicating to the priorities created with the strategic plan is the best course of action.

It also ensures that employees and customers see a consistent implementation of the plan and are reassured that they can count on the CEO and Senior Leadership.

Maintaining a disciplined approach to delivering on the known and agreed to priorities will ensure the greatest likelihood of achieving results.

Finally, many successful CEO’s develop advisory councils to create a forum to evaluate changes in the marketplace and new ideas to address them. Listening intently and analyzing the advisory councils input remains the responsibility of the CEO, as does the final decision to make any change in priorities.

It’s a delicate balance and a critical one.