From Thinking to Doing: Designing Initiatives with Purpose

Strategy Serios 3

How to turn strategic objectives into actionable, owned, and fundable initiatives

With your strategic themes and objectives in place, the next leap is to move from thinking to doing. This is the phase where many strategies lose momentum, not because of weak ideas, but due to poor translation into tangible work.

Strategy that cannot be operationalized is just a speech. And the tool that operationalizes strategy is the initiative.

1. The Purpose of Initiatives: More Than Just Projects

Not every project is an initiative, and not every initiative is just a project. A strategic initiative:

• Is directly linked to a strategic objective

• Drives measurable outcomes that shift performance or behavior

• Requires coordinated effort across functions or sectors

• Has leadership visibility and resource implications

If your strategy is a roadmap, initiatives are the vehicles that move it forward.

2. Start With an Initiative Pipeline

Begin by translating each strategic objective into a pipeline of possible initiatives. This pipeline is not a wish list, it must be framed with feasibility, value, and ownership in mind.

Use guiding questions like:

• What must happen to fulfill this objective?

• What’s already in motion, and what’s missing?

• Who owns the levers to make this change?

Each idea should have an initial name, description, and a strategic theme linkage.

3. Prioritize Before You Build

Don’t approve everything. Prioritization brings focus and efficiency. Use a clear evaluation framework based on:

• Impact (how much value will it deliver?)

• Feasibility (can we actually deliver it?)

• Urgency (how time-sensitive is it?)

• Stakeholder support (how likely is buy-in?)

• Strategic fit (how directly it serves our objectives?)

Score, sort, and filter. The strongest ideas now move to the next stage.

4. Build the Initiative Charter: The DNA of Execution

An Initiative Charter is the foundational document that defines and communicates each initiative. It must include:

• Initiative Title

• Purpose & Background

• Strategic Objective Linkage

• Lead Entity / Owner

• Key Stakeholders

• Expected Outcomes & KPIs

• Scope (In/Out)

• Timeline & Milestones

• Estimated Budget

• Risks & Dependencies

• Execution Enablers Needed (e.g., policy change, IT tools, partnerships)

The goal is clarity, commitment, and readiness. These charters will be the basis for funding, governance, and progress tracking.

5. Stress-Test the Charters

Before approval, every initiative charter should face a challenge panel or peer review. This ensures:

• Alignment with the strategy

• Realistic timelines and outcomes

• That it’s not duplicating other efforts

• That it has clear ownership and sponsor support

This step helps eliminate fluff and raise delivery confidence.

6. Create an Initiative Portfolio View

Once validated, initiatives should be grouped into a portfolio view for leadership. This enables:

• Resource planning

• Governance setup

• Cross-initiative dependency management

• Sequencing and timing

• Alignment with the execution rhythm (monthly/quarterly tracking)

This also sets the stage for integration with the PMO or TMO.

Final Thought

Brilliant strategies fail when no one knows what to do next. Strategic initiatives are how strategy comes alive. But they must be well-formed, prioritized, and owned. A strong initiative charter is not just paperwork, it’s a delivery contract between vision and execution.

If your initiatives are unclear, you don’t have a strategy. You just have ideas.

Next in the series: Article 4 Execution by Design: How PMOs and TMOs Bring Strategy to Life