Despite clear growth intentions across UK industry, many businesses are falling short when it comes to delivering against their strategic goals. Recent research by Strategy Management Partners shows a significant gap between ambition and execution. The findings show that over 63% of organisations are pursuing aspirational growth, with a further 16.4% targeting complete transformation. However, only 18.4% of all businesses in the survey are able to achieve more than 80% of their growth objectives within three years.
This gap is not due to a lack of ambition or planning. Our research makes it clear that the challenge lies in execution.
Growth Requires More Than Strategy
While nearly 75% of business leaders told us they prioritise execution, less than 60% actually treat it as a core discipline, and only 40% have embedded the necessary capabilities to achieve successful execution. Strategy development continues to outpace delivery, and without execution capability, even well-designed growth plans will fail to produce results.
A key differentiator among better-performing organisations is the ability to quantify the “value gap” - the gap between current performance and strategic targets. Just 46% of surveyed companies have a clearly measurable value gap - but those that do are far more successful. Nearly half meet at least 61% of their goals, compared to only 27% of those without one.
This highlights the importance of structured goal-setting and continuous performance tracking as a foundation for execution.
Internal Constraints Limit Strategic Progress
Talent and capability gaps remain the most commonly cited internal barrier to execution. According to our findings, 50.4% of business leaders say their organisation lacks the skills and capacity needed to deliver on strategic priorities. This is consistent with market data from ManpowerGroup, which shows that 76% of UK employers are struggling to fill skilled roles.
This issue affects both planning and delivery. Without the right talent in place, organisations are unable to implement change at scale or respond effectively to performance shortfalls. In many cases, the strategy itself is sound - the limitation lies in execution ability.
In addition, only 23.6% of large UK businesses demonstrate a proactive approach to innovation. Most organisations (61.2%) pursue incremental innovation reactively, with 22% indicating that employees are only encouraged to challenge norms in response to external disruption. A reactive mindset limits progress and slows the pace of change.
External Conditions Are Intensifying
Businesses today are also operating in a more challenging environment. Macroeconomic instability continues to affect confidence and investment planning, while supply chain disruption, rising operational costs, and increasing cybersecurity threats are putting additional strain on business performance.
In our study, 76% of surveyed business leaders cited global supply chain disruptions as a significant concern, and nearly 80% flagged rising costs and policy instability as key threats. These issues make execution discipline even more critical - enabling organisations to stay agile, reallocate resources, and adapt as needed.
What High Performers Are Doing Differently
Our findings draw a clear distinction between high-performing companies and those struggling to deliver. Among organisations that achieved over 80% of their growth objectives, 69% treated execution as a core business discipline. These businesses were more likely to set measurable targets, monitor progress closely, and make timely adjustments when performance deviated from plan.
Notably, 77% of high performers had both a clearly defined target state and a reliable process for measuring the gap between current and future performance. This allowed them to plan more effectively and respond more precisely to operational or market changes.
Our findings reinforce the view that execution capability is an essential driver of growth. It must be led from the top, integrated into operational planning, and tracked with the same rigour applied to financial reporting.
Leadership Implications
The delivery gap is not simply a result of execution oversight. It reflects deeper issues in organisational structure, capability, and strategic alignment. Leaders must now prioritise execution readiness as a fundamental part of business performance.
This requires action in several areas:
- Measurement: Organisations must define and quantify their value gap. Without clear metrics, performance management is reactive and inconsistent.
- Capability development: Addressing talent shortfalls is critical. Businesses must invest in building the skills and capabilities needed to deliver change and maintain momentum.
- Integration: Strategic plans must be directly linked to operational delivery, supported by accountable teams and transparent reporting structures.
- Adaptability: Businesses need mechanisms to adjust strategy execution quickly in response to external changes. This includes scenario planning, resource flexibility, and ongoing performance review.
- Accountability: Leaders must ensure that ownership of execution is clearly assigned and supported by incentives, expectations, and regular feedback.
Our research offers a timely reminder that growth depends not just on vision but on organisational readiness. The businesses most likely to succeed over the next three years will not be those with the most ambitious strategies, but those that are best equipped to deliver them.
Execution capability is now a core determinant of business performance. For UK companies looking to close the gap between strategy and results, the next phase of growth will depend more on delivery.
