Sometimes I find a book on a topic that really interests me, but I just can’t get into it. “The Execution Premium” by Robert Kaplan and David Norton was one of those books.
The book is the latest in the group of balanced scorecard based books by Kaplan and Norton. It’s a great concept, linking strategy to operations. There’s definitely some good content in the book, too.
What’s difficult, though, is the book is so academic and dry that I found it hard to get past more and a couple of pages in a sitting. That type of reading leaves me failing to grasp the content in it’s entirety, so I have difficulty enjoying it.
Content-wise, the book has some fantastic ideas around how strategy should be set and analysis methods around that concept. What it doesn’t have, however, is content about execution. I found that odd, given the books subtitle is “Linking Strategy to Operations for Competitive Advantage”. It’s really about how the strategy process itself is executed.
Overall, it’s an alright read. Dry in places, but good to have on the bookshelf. It’s on special at Amazon.com currently, but then everything is always on special at Amazon!