Leading Strategic Initiatives

LEADERS MUST REACT | As military and civilian leaders, we face high-stakes situations where quick and informed decisions are vital. Our ability to adapt and guide our teams through uncertainty is essential. The OODA loop—Observe, Orient, Decide, Act—helps us stay ahead and manage complex operations. Reactive leadership is not impulsive. It’s about adapting plans as new information comes in. Mission command helps us rely on experience, training, and teamwork to navigate challenges. We need a culture of continuous learning and empowerment at all levels. This makes our Joint Force resilient and adaptive. Improving reactive capabilities is essential for effective leadership in an unpredictable world.

Leading in uncertain times is a hot topic today in business as we face a compounding set of unknowns: tariffs, inflation, volatility in our financial markets, the ongoing climate crisis, supply chain disruptions, global conflicts, and the advent of AI to name just a few. Whether you are an operator, investor or board member, I wanted to share a few of my approaches to dealing with the reality we are facing, and I would love your thoughts in response: 1. First, for me, is to remain consistent and committed to our company values. At PSP Partners, we express ours as IDEALS--Integrity, Diversity, Excellence, Alignment, Leadership and Service. Your teams want to know that during uncertainty you will make hard decisions that are grounded in your core values. 2. Radical honesty is critical. Bringing your leadership team to a point of embracing the reality of the landscape that your organization is facing is an essential foundation to then figuring out the vulnerabilities. 3. Ensuring that your balance sheet is strong to weather the difficult periods as well as to have the opportunity to play offense is more essential than ever. 4. Regular scenario planning and pressure testing various outcomes is essential to manage and mitigate risk; it is all the more important right now. This is also known as “red teaming” and it’s a critical thing to do. 5. Being curious about your blind spots and institutional biases will help create an environment where you and your team can safely challenge assumptions. 6. Overcommunicating with your management team and to your company as a whole have never been more needed. Remember it takes about 7 times for a message to break through. Don’t be afraid to repeat it over and over. 7. Embracing the idea that challenges also create unique and unexpected opportunities is so important. During uncertainty the best companies create extraordinary opportunity and returns for the long term. 8. A strong, innovative and resilient culture is always foundational and especially essential to navigating the current challenges. The CEO and your leadership team have to set the example.  

Strategy used to be about the long game. We’d step back, zoom out, and ask: What does impact look like in 3-5 years? But the world changed—and fast. Now, many leaders are facing the “right now” world. Agility isn’t a luxury; it’s survival. ☑ Post-COVID business model pivots ☑ Global unrest, inflation, and political instability ☑ Tech clients demanding speed and adaptability So how do strategy and measurement professionals stay relevant? Here’s what we’re seeing work: ☑ Culturally: treat strategy as a skill, not a schedule. ↳ Strategy isn’t an annual retreat—it’s daily thinking. ↳ Align short-term sprints with long-term outcomes. ☑ Structurally: empower teams, not just execs, with measurement. ↳ Teach every manager how to track and adapt. ↳ Reporting shouldn’t be locked in a quarterly PowerPoint. ☑ Process-wise: iterate, review, adapt. ↳ The Balanced Scorecard Institute MPRA model (Measure-Perform-Review-Adapt) was built for this. ↳ Don’t set KPI targets and forget them. Review. Learn. Reforecast. Key mindset shifts: ↳Strategy ≠ static plan. It’s a continuous practice. ↳Measurement ≠ report card. It’s a steering wheel. ↳Adaptation ≠ failure. It’s proof your system is working. The best organisations are learning faster than their environment is changing. That’s the real edge. Is your team still measuring like it’s 2015? P.S. If you like content like this, please follow me.

Want better strategy? Have a strategy for your strategy. Here's a quick guide for strategic leaders: 🔄 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐭) Use entrepreneurial thinking when innovative ideas must be tested against reality. It’s a loop of hypothesizing, testing, learning, and iterating. This approach is ideal when the context calls for experimentation, and learning from failure is as valuable as succeeding. 💡 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐄𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧) Use visionary thinking when the path forward needs to be imagined. It’s about setting a compelling future state that motivates and inspires. This mode fits contexts that require a bold, transformative direction and when people have the freedom to dream big. 🧭 𝐀𝐝𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐀𝐝𝐚𝐩𝐭) Use adaptive thinking when certainty is low and control over outcomes is limited. This mode is about staying agile, pivoting in response to unanticipated changes, and evolving through small, incremental steps. It’s the art of survival and growth in unpredictable environments. Use this when the context is volatile and demands resilience. 📈 𝐂𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧) Use causal thinking in situations where the future can be predicted with some degree of confidence, causal thinking provides structure. It’s the traditional mode of strategic thinking—plan the work and work the plan. Use this when the context allows for clear cause-and-effect understanding and control over outcomes is possible. Strategic agility—the ability to switch between these modes as contexts change—is a powerful advantage in a complex and ever-changing world. Which mode do you use most of the time? ♻ Repost to help your network in 2025. --------- I'm Alex Nesbitt. I help CEOs build more effective companies.

How can you effectively navigate change so that you and your team not only survive but thrive? How can you cultivate resilience in the face of uncertainty? Here are a few key points to keep in mind: 1️⃣ Embrace change as a constant Change has become the new norm in today's fast-paced business landscape. Rather than resisting it, successful leaders embrace change as an opportunity for growth and innovation. Reframing your mindset and encouraging your team to do the same can transform challenges into stepping stones toward success. 2️⃣ Foster open communication. During times of change, clear and transparent communication is paramount. Ensure that your team is well-informed and aligned with organizational goals. Encourage open dialogue and actively listen to the concerns and ideas of your employees. Creating a safe and supportive environment empowers your team to navigate uncertainty collaboratively. 3️⃣ Adaptability is key. As a leader, it's crucial to be adaptable and agile in the face of change. Encourage your team to embrace a growth mindset, challenging them to continuously learn and develop new skills. Fostering a culture of adaptability will create an environment that thrives despite unexpected challenges. 4️ Build resilience. Resilience is the ability to bounce back from adversity. As a leader, it's essential to model resilience for your team. Encourage self-care, provide resources for mental and emotional well-being, and emphasize the importance of work-life balance. Prioritizing resilience will strengthen your team's ability to handle change and uncertainty with grace and tenacity. 5️⃣ Authentic Self-Leadership. As leaders, it's easy to prioritize the business and forget about ourselves. Yet, leading through change starts from within. Explore the concept of authentic self-leadership and how it fuels your capacity to lead others through dynamic shifts. Leading through change is not about eliminating uncertainty; it's about empowering your team to successfully navigate it. #LeadingThroughChange #ChangeManagement #Resilience #Leadership #Uncertainty #Adaptability #GrowthMindset #Collaboration #Humanresources ***************************** 👉 Follow me for more leadership and practical insights on building high-performing teams. 👉 Ring the 🔔 for notifications.

Most GenAI rollouts don’t fail because of the technology. They stall because no one owns them, the pilot never scales, or the initiative gets framed as a “tech experiment” instead of a core capability. In my latest article for Deep Finance Dispatch (Pro), I dig into the hidden blockers (the things that never make it into the slide decks), and how leading teams are overcoming them. This is the unfiltered version of the rollout playbook: • Why early wins fade out • How to structure the second sprint • What real ownership looks like • How storytelling and visibility drive adoption • And why rollout maturity (not AI maturity!) is the real differentiator The article includes a toolkit with a prioritization rubric, governance framework, and pre-deployment checklist for finance teams serious about execution. If your GenAI initiative is stuck in “pilot purgatory,” this one’s for you. https://lnkd.in/evE3iXzx

Want to thrive in uncertainty? Stop planning for every scenario and start rehearsing for the unexpected. GE's former CEO Jack Welch once gave the highest bonus to a leader whose division fell short of targets, even as other GE divisions had exceeded theirs. Why? The division had outperformed its competition in the face of extremely tough external challenges. In your rehearsal scenarios, practice which KPIs need to swing and consider setting a range within which they can do so. 🤔 Reflect on this: 1️⃣ What are the most critical skills and mindsets you need to develop to navigate ambiguity? 2️⃣ How can you create a "rehearsal" space to experiment and learn from failure? 3️⃣ What are the biggest obstacles to your ability to adapt, and how can you overcome them? 💡 Tips for leaders: 👉 Practice "improvisational thinking" to build your ability to respond to unexpected challenges: Develop the ability to think on your feet by engaging in activities that require creative problem-solving, such as brainstorming, role-playing, or even improvisational theater. 👉 Engage in "pre-mortem" exercises to anticipate and prepare for potential failures: Conduct hypothetical failure analyses to identify potential risks and develop contingency plans, allowing you to prepare for and mitigate potential setbacks. 👉 Focus on building your "change muscle" through regular experimentation and learning: Regularly challenge yourself to try new approaches, learn from failures, and adapt to new information, building your ability to navigate and thrive in uncertain environments. The key to surviving sustained change isn't anticipating every possibility - it's developing the skills and mindset to adapt and thrive in the face of uncertainty. #leadership #resilience #coachingtips #lifecoaching

Why do some system rollouts succeed while others become expensive failures? Your team isn't being difficult. They're being smart. When they're excluded from tech decisions, pushback is predictable. When they risk looking incompetent during the learning curve, hesitation is human. When the last few "improvements" made their jobs harder, skepticism is totally logical. Most rollouts follow the same failing playbook: → Leadership picks the system → Big announcement to the team → Training sessions on comprehensive features → "Any questions? Great, let's go live next month" Then everyone acts surprised when adoption is slow. The successful implementations I've observed do this instead: → Start with people who get excited about new tools → Focus training on immediate pain points → Keep workflows familiar where they actually work → Treat concerns as valuable feedback instead of obstacles The question we should be asking is, "how do we make people feel confident about the change?" The psychology really does matter more than the features. What's been your experience?

Have you noticed that there’s no shortage of ideas for improvement in organizations yet change is slow. The real challenge is that many ideas get swallowed up—lost in the noise. ⚠️ Without a clear process to prioritize, test, and follow through, people's ideas never see the light of day. They become casualties of poor communication, unclear ownership, or a lack of structure to move them forward. 💣 And of course...this leads to frustration among employees who feel their contributions aren’t valued. So- here's some tips for setting up the right environment for #innovation. ✔️ Be curious and ask people for ideas ✔️ Invite creativity by giving people time to think ✔️ Provide structures and systems for processing ideas ✔️ Use structures and systems to plan for implementation ✔️ Encourage bold moves and resilience (risk assessed of course) ✔️ Be decisive around actions, responsibilities and timeframes ✔️ Continually learn, refine and improve based on feedback AND Build innovation into the day-to-day and week-to-week rhythm of work through intentional routines and habits. Do this through: ✔️ Daily Innovation Standups or Huddles for a quick overview ✔️ Encouraging Gemba Walks to spark improvement discussions ✔️ Weekly Innovation Meetings to get into more detail ✔️ Monthly Review Meetings for assessing progress, and approving new initiatives. ✔️ Quarterly Planning to align the review of ideas with strategy ✔️ Including in 1:1s and asking about ideas for improvement and updates in regular check-ins How does innovation happen in your organization? Leave your tips below 🙏 ________________________________________ I'm Catherine McDonald- Lean Business and Leadership Coach. Follow me for insights on lean, leadership, coaching strategy and organizational behaviour.

You don’t lead strategy by presenting slides. You lead it by making it real. In conversations, decisions, priorities, and actions. If presenting the strategy were enough, execution efforts wouldn’t fail so often. Because if your team doesn’t understand and internalize your strategy with a shared understanding they won’t be able to execute it. I see this happen too often. Here are 5 practices that show what it really takes to lead beyond the slide deck: 1. 🗣️ Alignment is about the conversation, not a presentation. Strategy comes alive when people talk about it, connect it to their role and get clear about what it means for their daily decisions. As a leader, your job is to create the form and forum-where people can ask, “What does this mean for me?” and “How do I connect this in my role?” 2. 🎯 Align every meeting to the strategy. Every meeting you attend should tie directly to advancing your strategy. Stretching to make the connection? Maybe you shouldn’t be in that meeting. Or maybe the meeting shouldn’t be happening at all. As David Packard, co-founder of Hewlett-Packard once said, “More companies die of indigestion than starvation.” Strategy requires focus. 3. 🛑 Ruthlessly cut or minimize non-strategic work. This one’s personally hard. Smart, creative people are great at justifying why their project or idea is critical to the company success. But clever doesn’t  equal strategic. Pet projects, zombie initiatives, legacy efforts? If it doesn’t clearly move the strategy forward, cut it. Edinger’s rule: 5 (±2). Big initiatives. That’s your strategic load limit. Focus your resources on advancing the efforts that make the greatest impact. 4. 🗓️ Do a weekly strategy audit for your calendar. Tom Peters said it best: “The calendar never lies.” Look at how you actually spent your time this week. Was the majority of your focused attention on moving strategic priorities forward? Or did you spend too much energy and time on tactical or less valuable activities? Be honest. Where does your time go? Evaluate and adjust. 5. 🤝 Contact one prospect or customer each day. Some may want to start with one per week. No matter your role, stay close to the market. Strategy is useless if you can’t connect it to your prospects and customers. One of the most strategic leaders I ever worked with, Bob Dutkowsky started nearly every day with a customer call. During his time as a CEO of Tech Data, the business grew from $20B to $37B. Pro tip: Don’t just talk to customers who already like you, make sure you engage with prospects who have made the choice to work with competitors. Even one conversation per week can surface insights no dashboard will. Which of these 5 shifts will you focus on this month? Drop your pick in the comments or share how you’re already putting it into practice. 👇 #LIPostingDayJune #TheGrowthLeader #Leadership #StrategyExecution