Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Education”
Establishing a meaningful way of measuring, tracking, governing, and reporting provides necessary discipline to stay the course and make adjustments for successful execution. This is the fourth area of the Middle Ground®. And the pattern should be clear by now: you cannot establish meaningful measurement beyond the usual lag indicators without first having built out the plan that preserves your …
Truly understanding the magnitude and nature of change is core to successful strategy. Change is implicit in the execution of every strategy and could encompass structural, operational, behavioral, and cultural change. This is the third area of the Middle Ground®. And here’s the reality: you cannot diagnose the true extent of change without first having built out the plan. Why …
Engaging hearts, minds, and hands across the organization is more complex than scheduling quarterly town halls. This is the second area of the Middle Ground®. But here’s what’s critical: you cannot effectively engage people without first having built out the plan that preserves your competitive strategy. Why Engagement Depends on the Plan Most organizations default to a presentation, tell-style format. …
It’s critical that the competitive strategy doesn’t get lost or diluted in the rush to identify action. This is the first and most foundational area of the Middle Ground®. Without this step done well, everything else—engagement, change management, measurement, capability building—becomes guesswork. Why the Plan Is THE Foundation Building out the plan to preserve the strategy’s winning edge is the …
Why do circa 70% of projects and initiatives fail to deliver on their promises? This statistic has persisted for decades across Harvard, McKinsey, and BCG research. Companies are getting pretty good at strategy. Leadership teams craft compelling visions and articulate strategic pillars. And companies have always been good at being busy and getting stuff done—tasks completed, projects underway, boxes checked. …
The biggest barrier to organizational agility isn’t systems or processes—it’s the super-doer syndrome. Every growing organization starts with super-doers who can handle anything. But what enables early growth eventually blocks scale. Strategic planning in an agile method means evolving from control to capability building. The Super-Doer Evolution Every team begins with a super-doer, and then they get some other super-doers. …
Do you understand competitive strategy? Do you have one? Is it optimized—can it drive your growth trajectory? If you’re making money, there’s a competitive strategy at play. The real question is how well is it articulated so others can embrace it and align their efforts and if you know what it is, is it optimized and truly driving where you …
Which comes first: strategy, target, or plan? Here’s the thing—if you’re making money, there’s a competitive strategy at play. The question is: do you understand what it is? Do you have one that’s optimized? Can it drive your growth trajectory? The Rudder and North Star Framework You need both, and they serve different purposes. Your competitive strategy is your rudder—it’s …
The fact is, one of the biggest things is to not set it up—not warm people’s thinking up effectively. Your annual planning session reveals everything about your organization’s strategic maturity. Done well, it becomes a catalyst for breakthrough thinking and accelerated execution. Done poorly, it’s an expensive way to demotivate your best people. The Neurology Trap You don’t want people …
There seems to be this desire to separate the human side from the financials and even the plan, even the competitive strategy. And my answer is: why would you? The Entrepreneurial Model Gets It Right Think of Richard Branson. He would see a space, an opportunity, where he’d go, “There should be a better service, cheaper and easier for clients …
