By: Jim Roddy, President & CEO at the RSPA
I have a few hot buttons that instantly raise my interest level from 0 to 100. Among those topics are:
- Basketball
- New business books
- Business failures
When former Nike, Sur La Table, and Borders VP Kevin Ertell connected with me on LinkedIn earlier this year, I was intrigued because our interests overlapped.
Kevin informed me about his soon-to-be-published book The Strategy Trap: Why Companies Fail at Execution and How to Get it Right, plus I saw he was currently working with Minnesota’s NBA and WNBA teams.
Ertell’s book is filled with principles and guidance for SMB executives. Let’s dive into some key passages from The Strategy Trap to see what insights it offers to VAR and ISV leaders:
- The Strategy Trap: Over-focusing on polishing ideas while short-changing the conditions people need to successfully turn them into reality.
- The problem is generally not poor strategies. It’s failed execution. It’s the gap between vision and action where everything falls apart.
- Leaders often get caught up in the thrill of new ideas and ambitious goals and skip the hard work of equipping the humans who have to bring the vision to life.
- The fix requires a mindset shift: Strategy and execution aren’t sequential phases – they’re inseparable from day one.
- A so-so idea with amazing execution will outperform a brilliant idea with weak execution every time.
- Peacock Phase: A bold, attention-grabbing moment that gets people excited about a new strategy. Woodpecker Phase: The relentless effort of embedding the strategy into daily operations.
- This can’t be about checking a box and saying, “We involved people.” You have to intentionally design a process that taps into the right expertise, builds buy-in, and creates the momentum needed to turn strategy into action.
- Challenge assumptions before jumping to solutions.
- Validation is not bureaucratic drag; it is the translation layer that turns boardroom ambition into executable reality.
- Instead of viewing detractors as obstacles, you should see them as early warning systems.
- Clarity drives execution. If your team doesn’t “get” the strategy, you have no chance of executing it.
- People need the right numbers presented in a way that connects to their daily work.
- To win in the marketplace, you must first win in the workplace.
- Autonomy without structure leads to chaos.
- The key is balancing freedom with guardrails so teams can move fast without drifting off course. Guiding principles and constraints act as preapproved decision criteria, giving teams the confidence to move fast while staying aligned with strategy.
- Some ideas are promising, but not right now.
- If you don’t budget for innovation, you’re planning to fail. Create a flexible pool of funds specifically for innovation: money set aside to explore new ideas without having to cannibalize core operations.
- Setting the stage now doesn’t mean locking everything in stone; it means creating a framework that you can adapt as you learn and progress.
- Communication should begin before the strategy is even finalized. You have to build the case for change, create space for feedback, and prepare the team for the inevitable disruption that follows.
- Too many organizations treat strategy rollouts like a surprise wave, leaving employees scrambling to stay afloat as change washes over them. Instead, help them see the tide shifting in advance and give them time to wade in.
- This isn’t bureaucracy. It’s infrastructure. It’s how strategy becomes reality.
- A fundamental truth about execution: Too much structure stifles agility, but too little creates chaos.
- Like any marathon, you can’t just fixate on the finish line. You have to create the environment that keeps your team moving mile after mile.
RSPA Recommended Read Rating: 9.5/10
In his book, Ertell shares details about businesses tripped up by the Strategy Trap – and how some avoided it. Inspired by that, I’ll share here how RSPA is embracing Strategy Trap principles for an important initiative we plan to launch in 2027.
First let me set the scene for our business challenge/opportunity: We know from RSPA member interactions what they value most from the association is connections with potential new partners. If we continue to add to our community vendors, VARs, ISVs, ISOs, distributors, and service providers who can enhance their business and make it easier for them to connect with those members, they’ll continue to be raving fans.
A popular benefit is access to the RSPA Member Directory. It’s been a good tool, but there’s room for improvement like making it faster to navigate and search.
We decided to improve the directory more than incrementally; our goal is to make it a compelling and irresistible value for members. We want that resource to be such a good value for retail IT solution providers they would be irresponsible to not take advantage of the new “RSPA Solution Finder & Partner Directory.”
Now let’s talk Strategy Trap principles and Team RSPA’s attempt to execute them.
“You have to intentionally design a process that taps into the right expertise, builds buy-in, and creates the momentum needed to turn strategy into action.”
My nervous system tells me “start improving the Member Directory now!” but that’s not going to achieve our ultimate outcome.
Instead, we’ve developed a process that started with deep-dive conversations by the RSPA Board, RSPA leadership team, and Member Directory Task Force. But most important is our dialogue with the RSPA Member Services team and a series of member focus groups.
We’ve shared with members across nearly 10 focus group sessions how we envision the new Solution Finder, and we ask where they see strengths and pitfalls. “I’m worried I could get flooded with emails” has turned into a solution where we connect members through an outreach form instead of listing in the directory email addresses (which could be scraped and spammed with AI tools).
We’ll add to the directory important details like geographies served, partner/agent programs, and current APIs not because our team is intuitive savants but because our process is tapping into the right expertise.
“If you drop big changes without warning, worries, doubts, and fears will drown out everything you’re saying.”
We’ve now talked with our entire staff and dozens of members about the new and improved Member Directory plan. And when I say “talked with” I don’t mean “talked at,” deluging them with a rambling PowerPoint presentation.
We’ve asked, “What information should we include?”, “What information would you be willing to share?”, and “How would you use the directory?” among other probing questions.
At the end of our conversations, we ask skeptically, “We’ll be asking you for a lot of information. Are you sure you’d be willing to take the time to share all that?” Nearly every member has responded with great enthusiasm because they see how more detailed member profiles and a refined search can help them connect faster with more potential partners.
Genuine excitement for change? Believe it.
“Strategy and execution aren’t sequential phases – they’re inseparable from day one.”
The document we’re using for the Solution Finder project has tons of ideas and thoughts on the first four pages.
But let me share with you some of what’s on pages 5-6 under the header “Action Plan Framework.”
- Shaping Directory: Member Services Manager feedback, member feedback, Board Task Force, finalize fields and functionality, update Salesforce with appropriate fields
- Collecting Data: Determine tool to use (include self-update option), determine Salesforce data integration, determine email/phone call outreach execution
- Website Launch: Connect [name] and [name] so website and Salesforce communicate properly, finalize directory design and logins, port over current content
- Pre-Promotion
- Ongoing Promotion/Distribution of Data
- Maintaining Data
- Lapsed Member Outreach
The idea of upgrading the Member Directory makes everyone smile enthusiastically. But if we don’t have a plan to update its data in perpetuity, we’ll see frowns of frustration over time. What would be gold for our members in 2027 would turn into a hunk of lead over time if we didn’t think about execution now.
Avoid the Strategy Trap. Close the gap between vision and action.
Purchase your copy of The Strategy Trap here.
