Another good HBR article: Bringing Your Strategy to the Front Line

Excerpt:

Simply put, it’s about the transformational power of routines.

The word “routine” implies an ordinary, everyday occurrence. But if you can make your company’s routine behavior mirror your strategy, you can transform your business. So when I work with companies, I’m always looking to see if managers are translating strategies into front line routines…

…The secret to success is actually quite simple. At great companies, management teams focus on a few ways to differentiate themselves from their competition, they translate those into front-line routines, they make sure the organization supports these routines (or gets out of the way!), and they thrive on customer feedback, improving their routines over time.

(Emphasis is mine)

To read more goto: Bringing Your Strategy to the Front Line