About this episode

Tara McDonagh discusses why communications strategies often fail to be operationalized and how to make them effective within organizations.

In this third episode of the strategy series, Tara McDonagh tackles one of the most frustrating realities for communications leaders: you built the communications strategic plan … and it still isn't working. The issue isn't always the communications strategy itself. More often, it's what happens after it's built. This episode breaks down why strategies fail to take hold and what it actually takes to make them operational, adopted, and effective. In this episode, Tara explores: The difference between building a strategy and making it real Four common ways strong strategies fail Why lack of alignment, ownership, and cadence derail execution The concept of strategy as change, not a deliverable What operationalizing a strategy actually requires How to keep a strategy alive inside a fast-moving organization What shifts when strategy truly works A communications strategic plan doesn't fail because it's wrong. It fails when it never becomes how the organization actually operates. When the communications strategy becomes real, everything changes: resources grow, influence expands, and communications is pulled in earlier where decisions are shaped. Keep advising. Always keep advising…

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