Even the best marketing plans can fail — not because they’re poorly written, but because they’re poorly implemented. In this practical framework by Edmund Bradford of Market2Win (with contributions from Professor Malcolm McDonald and Steve Erickson), readers are introduced to the concept of Marketing Navigation: a risk-aware, testable method for keeping your plan on track from strategy to execution.
Based on research with executives across 17 countries, the authors outline why implementation fails, how to assess risk, and how to apply proven ideas from change management, project management, and engineering to create a marketing dashboard that works in real-time.
Why It Matters
- Only 9% of executives say their marketing plans hit their targets “all the time”
- Most failures happen during implementation — not strategy formulation
- Marketing Navigation provides a GPS-style dashboard to stay on course
Core Concepts Covered
- Two major types of risk: Commercial risk and Commitment risk
- Borrowed brilliance: Insights from change leadership, science, project management, and KAM
- Risk–Commitment Matrix: Four zones to track your plan’s position
- Four phases of implementation: Plan → Pilot → Rollout → Refine
- Marketing Dashboard: Live scoring system for risks, commitments, actions, and timing
- Simulator testing: A method to stress-test plans before full rollout
- Leadership Triangle: Planning, Business, and Marketing leadership roles in success
Insight
“Stormy conditions lie ahead. Great marketing leaders will need reliable navigational aids to ensure the success of their plans.” – Ed Bradford
Download the Marketing Navigation Guide
This summary outlines the methodology, but the full deck includes matrix models, dashboards, and risk scoring templates.