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In my strategy consulting work, I often encounter clients whose organizations are not coherent. That sounds bad, and it is! co-her-ent adjective (of an argument, theory, or policy) logical and consistent. United as or forming a whole The incoherence I encounter in companies is a lack of consistency between the company’s strategy as compared to…
How to spot and stop the quiet exile of your most important leader “Some people are uncomfortable.” “They’re moving too fast. Too much change at once.” “They don’t quite fit our culture.” If you’re hearing these things about a new leader in your organization—someone brought in to drive change, or someone promoted to a position…
Most organizations don’t mean to bury themselves in process. It usually starts with good intentions: a deadline slips, a dependency gets missed, a customer commitment falls through. Leadership looks for a reliable fix—add a new process, revise the SOP, or bolt on a framework. At first, it feels like progress. Roles are clarified, steps are…
Why have so many Agile transformations failed altogether, or feigned success for a time, but failed to deliver measurable improvements in effectiveness? There are several common reasons (that are not mutually exclusive), and sometimes, organizations find unique and innovative failure patterns. Bain recently reported that 88% of Agile and Digital transformations fail. Paraphrasing Tolstoy: “Every…
The number of organizations implementing Agile processes like Scrum, Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), extreme programming (XP), kanban, Large Scale Scrum (LeSS), and others took off in the last decade and a half. Software companies adopted Agile early because they recognized that developing software with higher productivity and quality, and in particular, being more agile and…
Most behavior in companies isn’t shaped by official policies—it’s shaped by unwritten rules. These rules often create powerful illusions about what the organization truly values. One of the most damaging illusions I know of is the illusion of corporate courage. You may have seen it. Leaders proudly declare, “We value courage, transparency, and honesty,” while…
A look at why product execution might fail and how going backward to refocus and validate your strategy can propel you forward. We often work with product organizations that are attempting to refine or improve their value proposition for one of many potential goals: Often, they’re struggling to clarify or align internally on what the…
How a simple word can quietly undermine creativity, clarity, and contribution. Recently, I’ve been paying attention to a word that shows up a lot in conversations with clients and colleagues: Just. “You just need to realign the roadmap.” “Can’t we just roll out the new process?” “They just need to communicate better.” It’s everywhere. And…
For many B2B organizations, the path to sustainable growth begins with building tailored solutions for marquee customers. Yet, as the enterprise matures, the realization dawns that a product-led growth approach—one built on repeatable, scalable offerings—unlocks more predictable revenue and a clearer competitive edge. I saw this firsthand in the early days of an industrial AI…
Executive coaching has been gaining traction in leadership circles for years, yet it’s still often misunderstood. Is it mentoring? Is it therapy? Is it just another trendy workplace perk? To bring clarity to the topic, I sat down with seasoned professional coach Sandra Cain for an honest and thoughtful conversation about what executive coaching actually…
Many companies aspire to be product-led, but few integrate data, experimentation, and customer insights into their strategy as seamlessly as Rover. As the world’s largest network of pet care providers, Rover has built a product operating model that deeply integrates data, experimentation, and customer insights into decision-making and planning. Adaptivity’s Principal Consultant, Jeff Steinberg, recently…
In previous installments of this series, jointly produced by Adaptivity and WorkBoard, we discussed high-level strategy realization processes and how implementing them with OKRs can dramatically increase success. The last installment focused on optimizing the demand side of portfolio management structures and processes. In the sixth installment, we’ll discuss practices and principles for achieving high-performance…