Everyone talks about AI in terms of efficiency, and sometimes productivity – but what does that really mean in terms of client value? To me, that’s about knowing the value you were already creating for clients before AI entered the picture – and how AI is able to amplify that now. What’s changed for me is how much more of my hard-won expertise, unique thinking and approach I can now bring to each client relationship, because AI has freed up time to apply more of what I already do well, and to keep improving on it. Here’s what that has looked like over the past year.

More time in my network, and using it with intent

I love to meet people, and I love to connect people – it brings me real joy.

So often I hear people say, “I know I need to make more of my networks, but it’s hard to find the time!”…and I can certainly relate. Now, I use AI to help me quickly create a targeted networking plan as I jump on a plane for short work trip, going beyond ‘Who should I reconnect with?’ or ‘What events should I catch?’ to ‘What strategic connection points can I look for in this list of coffee meetings?’

Even better, AI helps me make more of my network in service of clients, by intentionally connecting people. While AI is helping me with repeatable project management tasks, I now spend real time looking across my networks for the connections that will genuinely help a client with the problem they’re working on – a simple but meaningful way of creating extra value. That kind of matchmaking used to happen by accident, relying on my already overloaded brain to remember just the right referral at just the right time. Now I can build value-adding like this into projects on purpose.

Space to think, and the time to actually build what I think of

Creative ideas are constantly popping into my head, competing for attention with everything else in the week. Some of these are great ideas to help clients achieve even more of what they want and to gain a genuine competitive edge (for example, right now it’s helping them understand how to structure guidelines and processes for their teams to use AI in communications in a way that protects and builds their brand, rather than the brand drift and reputational faux pas we are seeing everywhere).

What’s changed is that there’s now room for me to sit with a business or client problem longer, work through something genuinely different and high-impact, and build it quickly enough to reach clients and audiences in a short amount of time, rather than leaving a great idea on a shelf for a year because the calendar never opened up.

Capturing the words, so I can focus on what’s between the lines

I often use AI to capture the fine detail of a client conversation, in a way both of us are comfortable with, so I’m not half listening while I try to take notes. That frees me to do the part clients actually pay me for, which is thinking properly about who they are, their specific context, and what they need next. I use it to interrogate my own thinking too: what haven’t I considered here, and what else should I be asking? It’s the same judgement I’ve always relied on, just tested from more angles – which provides the client with the advantage of fewer stones left unturned – fewer gaps and blind spots, more opportunities.

More time with the people who need it

There’s more time on the phone when someone needs it, an extra meeting booked in without a fight with my diary, and check-ins beyond the normal program allocation – a closer eye kept on clients, and a closer connection. I get to listen a little longer, pick up more detail in their journey, and provide extra resources and guidance.

New ways to help more people

I’ve conceived, built and launched new tools this year for measuring and planning professional confidence in the age of AI and organisational maturity levels in leadership brand development, the kind of idea that would have stayed in a notebook a few years ago. I’ve also launched and filled new public workshops on professional confidence, leadership branding and AI in communications for leadership audiences around the country, reaching and supporting far more people in a few months than I expected to.

AI has freed up time to apply more of what I already do well, and to keep improving on it.

Every one of these examples comes back to the same thing: what clients get from me is bigger and more useful than it was a year ago. The extra attention and thinking time that AI frees me to do is what make that possible. It’s also given me room to keep sharpening my own thinking on positioning in the AI era, so what I bring clients on that front keeps getting better too.

Want to know how we use AI in our work with clients? It’s in our FAQs.

Further reading

Confidence, Trust and Stronger Human Identity in an AI World

How’s your Professional Confidence in the Age of AI?

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Individuals   /   Organisations, boards & teams

I recently posed the question: Is your mission-critical team being seen?

In 2024, our clients in professional services, resources and infrastructure took a much more strategic approach to team and leadership branding for the people who engage with stakeholders to drive outcomes for the business – and enquiries for 2025 indicate this focus will increase.  

WHY THIS FOCUS on team and leadership brand strategy for professional organisations in the current market?

 Accelerating competition through challenging market conditions and increased AI productivity and communication tools, combined with an increasingly risk-filled, litigious environment where businesses are held accountable to much more, mean that organisations are seeking:

1. A more pro-active approach to reputation value-building and risk mitigation – before a crisis hits.
2. Beyond relying on your track record: The need to stand out, not just for expertise but for the way leaders present themselves and build their ‘voice’.
3. The need to align siloed teams and empower different groups of people to talk about the organisation with confidence.
4. The need to provide cutting-edge, high-engagement and high-impact learning and development experiences to grow leaders and retain the best people.

Find out more about this approach here.

In 2025, I will be facilitating a series of complimentary leader roundtables around the country, to unpack what we’re seeing companies focus in on for brand growth, reputation risk management and culture strategy. In these sessions we will invite key leaders to bring their own insights and share their ideas and challenges with peers.

If you’re interested in co-hosting one of our leaders’ roundtables, either in your city or virtually, get in touch.

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What has changed in how organisations approach trust and reputation management

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In this series, I have been sharing some key take-aways from a recent roundtable presentation for the Australian Institute of Company Directors on the board’s role in leading organisational culture.

In this fourth and final instalment, I share my suggested starting points to go to your board with, to begin your review and planning of culture governance.

Starting points for good Culture Governance with your Board

1. Ask the Right Questions of the Board

Initiate meaningful discussions by posing fundamental questions:

• “What is culture?”: Establish a shared understanding of the term to ensure alignment.
• “What is our culture?”: Reflect on the organisation’s current cultural identity.
• “How connected are people to that culture?”: Evaluate employee engagement with organisational values.
• “How do we know that?”: Emphasise the importance of data and evidence to assess cultural alignment effectively.

2. Get Board Buy-In

Build awareness of gaps, risks and opportunities in the current cultural state. Present examples or scenarios you’ve seen that present potential blind spots for the organisation, and invite the board to do the same.

3. Know the Landscape

Equip the board with a comprehensive understanding of the ‘culture landscape’:

• Board Training: Provide targeted training to ensure board members are informed about critical cultural issues and trends.
• Internal Insights: Develop a clear picture of how the organisation currently approaches culture management.
• Competitor Awareness: Stay informed on how peers and competitors are embedding culture in their governance, using this insight to refine your approach.

4. Demand Key Data in Board Papers

Ensure the board receives meaningful, actionable data on culture by asking for what you want to see. Your requirements should be informed by your understanding from the above action points, to focus the board’s attention in a limited amount of time. Insist on reports that provide clear analysis, rather than pages and pages of data for board members to wade through!

5. Assess the Fit and Effectiveness of Purpose and Values

Emphasise the critical task of evaluating whether the organisation’s stated purpose and values resonate with employees and drive desired behaviours. If they lack clarity, relevance, or alignment, work with management to create a plan to refine these foundational elements, to better support the organisation’s cultural goals. While this is an in-depth undertaking, the organisation’s Purpose and Values are fundamental to a healthy, aligned and future-fit culture.

6. Choose a Comprehensive Culture Framework to connect everything and everyone

Select a culture framework that connects all aspects of the organisation – such as strategy, governance, leadership, employees, systems and practices. A cohesive framework ensures that culture becomes an integral part of decision-making, accountability, and day-to-day operations across the organisation. It connects everything and everyone.

In the AICD boardroom discussion, I shared NWC’s Culture Governance Planner for board directors – a way of bringing all the key puzzle pieces of culture on one page, including considering risk factors, key metrics and blind spots in your organisation. This was a starting point inviting discussion on which elements were front-of-mind for directors and which might be currently being missed. For board directors and senior management interested in understanding this planner, get in touch.

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Ways of examining and leading Culture (and the best ones)

In this series, I have been sharing some key take-aways from a recent roundtable presentation for the Australian Institute of Company Directors on the board’s role in leading organisational culture.

In the boardroom session, we covered:

• What is Culture “Strategy”
• Guidelines and important questions from AICD and other governance resources to guide directors

(The above is covered in the first post of this series.)

We also looked at:

• Why culture is so hard to pin down and the challenges for today’s boards
• The modern director’s checklist of culture governance responsibilities

(See this post for more.)

In this issue, we review the discussion on:

• Best practice in culture direction supporting business success
• A range of frameworks for thinking about culture / how we do it at NWC

And the final post in the series will cover:

• Starting points for you and your board

In the last issue of How To Talk About The Business, I shared my observations of board directors and leaders lacking a whole-landscape view of culture because of the myriad of ways to think about it – the different approaches and disciplines, the different ‘windows’ into culture that can be helpful but don’t provide the whole picture.

There are a range of frameworks for examining and directing culture. Here are just a few:

• Typical Culture Framework elements e.g. Purpose, Values, Goals, Rules
• Organisational Culture Profiles. Innovative, Outcome-Oriented, Team-Oriented
• Defining Culture by emotional intelligence & engagement levels – C.  Ellis
• Patrick Lencioni’s 4 Disciplines of a Healthy Organisation
• Forbes 18 Factors for Measuring Culture
• Humanmetrics Jung Typology, Briggs Myers, DISC Profiling, Clifton Strengthsfinder…

From my research and experience, here are some of the best approaches I’ve seen in culture strategy that consider a broad sweep of the landscape of culture, rather than a narrow ‘window’:

1. Value through Social Purpose & Stakeholder Collaboration

• As ESG, Sustainability, Climate and Social Purpose are now becoming central to Organisational Strategy & Value Creation,Culture and Brand are key enablers. In Canada and the UK, Junxion are a consulting firm contributing great thought leadership in this space. This article contains a discussion on the role of business connected to social purpose, and the role of community/cross-collaboration.
• B Corp: Many organisations are choosing B Corp certification to demonstrate a dedication to a broader purpose and making a positive impact on society. B Corp certification offers credible assurance to stakeholders — customers, investors, employees and others — that a company’s commitment to sustainability and ethical practices is genuine and backed by measurable results.

2.  Strategy and Culture hand-in-hand

It’s not often we see strategy and culture truly working as close partners! Here are some excellent approaches I’ve done a deep-dive on this year.

• The 4 Disciplines of Execution (Sean Covey et al; FranklinCovey 2021) demonstrates how creating a culture around strategy success through core disciplines results in massive success, problem-solving and competitiveness. The approach emphasises simplicity and transparency from leadership through to whole-team involvement in strategic execution, thereby making it a culture: “People want to win. They want to contribute in a way that matters.” (p.24)
• In Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works, the authors (AG Lafley, former Chair & CEO of Procter & Gamble and Roger L Martin, Dean at Rotman School of Management) ask key questions like: What’s our winning aspiration? / Where will we play? / How will we win? While culture isn’t specifically addressed, it is easy to see how culture becomes a key factor for strategy success. The authors talk about making the strategy framework central to the board and leadership culture and cascading down (P&G culture of assertive enquiry p.138).

3. Scalability, People Engagement, Tangible Expression of Culture

To truly build a trustworthy, lasting culture, your ‘insides’ should match your ‘outsides’. That’s why a culture-brand alignment method is by far my favourite strategy. 

• The most exciting strategic approach to Culture in my opinion is connecting it to the aspirational brand (or the target messaging about ‘Who we are, what we do and why that matters’. This approach is significant because it focuses on crystal-clear communication and practical, tangible, authentic engagement at every level and through every experience inside and outside the organisation.
• In the U.S., Denise Lee Yohn leads in this space – this article beautifully balances the role of leading Culture and the role of company-wide involvement. She talks about leaders and managers being ‘culture-carriers’ and ‘culture coaches’, while also setting up expectations that everyone has a responsibility to build and protect the Culture. Her research-heavy, excellent book Fusion: How integrating brand and culture powers the world’s greatest companies outlines a comprehensive approach.
• At NWC, we work with our own brand-culture connection planning and assessment framework which quickly reveals red flags and opportunities in how the organisation is experienced and represented at each level of the organisation and to important audiences. This series is a good introduction to understand the level of brand-culture alignment and its implications for trust-building and risk at your organisation.
• In Australia, Shane Michael Hatton’s research and teaching offers a practical, people-centred approach to cascading culture through manager-led development and important conversations.

Where does this leave board directors?

What is needed is a way of seeing ‘all the puzzle pieces’ at once – a clear, foundational roadmap for culture analysis and strategy – in order to know that your culture governance is across everything vital.

In the AICD boardroom discussion, I shared NWC’s Culture Governance Planner for board directors – a way of bringing all the key puzzle pieces of culture on one page, including considering risk factors, key metrics and blind spots in your organisation. This was a starting point inviting discussion on which elements were front-of-mind for directors, which might be currently being missed and what else might be a factor at a particular organisation that doesn’t neatly fit a category, perhaps specific to ‘right now’.

Stay tuned for the final post of this series, where I offer some starting points for reflection on culture governance effectiveness and planning with your board.

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How boards need to see culture

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In this series, I am sharing some key take-aways from a recent roundtable presentation for the Australian Institute of Company Directors on the board’s role in leading organisational culture.

In the first post of the series, I outlined the discussion we had at AICD at a roundtable of 20+ directors and senior executives, some of whom are experts in People and Culture leadership of very large organisations. I dove into what the research says directors should know and do when it comes to the governance of culture. I also shared links to guidelines from AICD and The Governance Institute.

Here, we go further into the challenge that governing culture represents… and the risks of not wrapping your arms around all that culture is.

Why Culture should matter to boards more than ever

ESG, Climate Change, AI, innovation, geopolitical and economic uncertainty… with this rate of change, “change management” is every organisation’s challenge now – and that means culture is central to strategy.

When it comes to risk, culture is at the centre too… Your employee, customer and stakeholder expectations have changed and are demanding more of organisations and their leaders. At AICD’s recent panel discussion on Stakeholder & Shareholder Activism, it was clear that boards and their organisations can’t afford to wait for a crisis to ‘do’ culture – the people, reputational, legal and financial risks are too great to not have a proactive approach in place.

We have seen this most recently with the ‘Right to Disconnect’ – changes in legislation that reflect the contemporary world of work, put in place precisely because the already existing psychosocial safeguarding guidelines were not being adequately enforced in organisations.

Remember too that ‘Your culture is visible… and it’s online’ (the title of a Director Download that I presented for AICD way back in 2018, when directors were still getting their heads around Facebook’s impact!). Social media, Google reviews and sites like Glassdoor give us stark insights into exactly what customers and employees think about brands and their connected organisation cultures.

Of particular interest to the guests at the AICD Culture Governance roundtable was a study in the Sloan Review that rated the top 5 elements of a toxic culture as seen by employees leaving reviews on Glassdoor: DISRESPECTFUL, NON-INCLUSIVE, UNETHICAL, CUTTHROAT, ABUSIVE (in that order of frequency).

The Challenge of culture governance

“By nature, culture is complex and organisations are dynamic and this makes the practice of governing organisational culture too complicated for simple prescription.”

– AICD’s guidelines for Governing Organisational Culture (2020)

Modern board directors know that steering a strong culture is fundamental to business success and therefore to their role as stewards. Yet, in my experience, a great many directors struggle to wrap their arms around this big thing we call organisational culture.

Boards still struggle with an organised approach to culture:

• Directors are unclear on how culture connects to the rest of the organisation (e.g. how does culture work with strategy, brand and value-building for customers).
• Lack of culture expertise on the board, through committees, or lack of a strong strategic capability among ‘Culture’ staff informing the board (e.g. HR is focused on one or two key areas, like recruitment and employee engagement, and are not across the business, its strategic priorities, and where culture fits with that).
• Data in board packs are long and hard to make sense of, or not adequate.
• Culture is not prioritized on the board agenda, but glanced over – unless there’s a problem or major change with high stakes. It’s often not about building and achieving or even preventing, but reacting.

Why Culture is so hard to pin down

There are the approaches… Rules of power, rules of belonging, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, values-centred, leadership styles…

There are the elements or ‘windows’ into culture… Employee engagement, recruitment & onboarding, employee lifecycle, management 360s, team dynamics, personality psychology, ethics…

There are the culture ‘types’… high-performing, competitive, collaborative, purpose-driven…

Then there are the questions… What even is culture? Can it be changed? Who changes it? Top-down or bottom-up? (P.S. While you, board director, might have very clear views on the right answers to these questions, let me tell you that other directors, and your organisation’s leaders and managers, will differ greatly in their views! It’s what the research shows and certainly what I have seen reflected in my work across all the levels of organisations.)

With so many definitions, so many approaches, so many ways to measure and to lead (or not lead) culture… it’s no wonder this always-shifting, never ‘done’, living thing made up of complex interactions is so hard to wrap your arms around, in order to be its steward!

Your role: The modern director’s checklist

This is not the 1950s… not the 20^th century at all… gone are the days of directors sitting around making decisions without consulting the people they affect.

Nowadays, initiatives such as the ‘Youth Collective’ at The Body Shop are cropping up to bring stakeholders (in this case, young people’s) voices into boardroom! While that might seem like an extreme approach, directors are now more likely to be actively involved in listening to, engaging with and representing stakeholders.

In last week’s post I offered a range of resource links to help directors think about their role in governing culture. Roundtable participants also received a take-away sheet of PRO-ACTIVE and RE-ACTIVE tasks the director should undertake to uphold this responsibility – happy to share with interested readers.

In the next instalment of the series, I will discuss what it takes to ‘see the whole puzzle’ of culture as a board director, rather than take the classic narrow-discipline or single-assessment approach. I will share some of the top ways of examining and leading culture, including what I believe are the most effective approaches.

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The Board’s Role in Leading Organisational Culture – Series Intro

In this series, I will share some key take-aways from my recent roundtable presentation for the Australian Institute of Company Directors on the board’s role in leading organisational culture.

Now more than ever, culture needs to be on the board agenda at every meeting – and must be addressed through rigorous analysis and strategic planning. In the rapidly-changing and increasingly public and litigious business environment companies operate in – along with higher expectations from internal and external stakeholders – it is no longer enough to treat culture as a topic only to be addressed when there is already a problem! To stay competitive and to succeed in business, directors and leaders must make decisions with culture considerations at the centre.

In this issue, I’ll highlight what culture should be to boards, some of the challenges I see in culture in the work I do with medium and large organisations that should be of concern to boards, and I’ll share AICD’s key resources on governing culture.

How Boards need to see Culture

In the words of Commissioner Hayne during the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry, companies and boards that are not planning to assess and manage culture are ‘foolish and ignorant’! Yet so many see culture as ‘warm and fuzzy’ and not as the ‘key driver of marketplace success’ that the research shows it to be. In addition, many companies think they are measuring culture, but are instead purely measuring talent and/or engagement, seeing culture as primarily a concern of HR, and maybe, management. (Source: The role of boards in measuring and managing the culture of their organisation, Governance Institute of Australia)

What is needed is a culture ‘strategy’, and a culture strategy that is interwoven with the foundational building blocks of purpose, values, vision and organisational strategy. Then, it is possible for the board to govern culture as a whole, rather than only seeing a slice of culture or only responding to culture in crisis.

Challenges I see in Culture (that should concern boards!)

In my work with boards and leadership teams on clarifying and integrating ‘Who we are’, ‘How we do things’ and ‘Why that matters’ – I have learned that people almost always are proud of their work and want to represent their organisation well… but don’t know how to do that.

Some examples I have seen:

• A CEO says that a successful culture will determine the company’s ability to succeed in the strategy – but staff surveyed reveal 80% are ‘less than clear’ on the organisation’s values and what they mean for the individual or team.
• Different versions of values inductions are conducted in different areas of the business – and while the managers in charge demonstrate passion for certain company values, the experience is inconsistent across the organisation.
• Employees in focus groups say that leaders don’t walk the talk, or they question stated values against current processes and practices on the ground – for example, the value of ‘safety’ versus the felt pressure of fast-paced production.
• In a conference of senior managers in a social services organisation, a board director in her address challenges the audience to name the company values. Most cannot – despite it being a group of very passionate and caring employees, there is no cohesion on ‘what we stand for’ or ‘what defines us’.

AICD’s guidelines on governing culture

AICD states that the director’s responsibility in governing culture includes: 

• Setting the tone
• Identifying Culture as a value lever
• Providing effective stewardship & oversight, taking pro-active steps to understand and assess the informal and formal systems of culture and work with management to leverage

AICD’s guidelines for Governing Organisational Culture (2019, Judith S. MacCormick FAICD) provide a good foundation for understanding the role of the director.

In addition, 5 Key Questions for Boards, AICD provides great questions to assess the effectiveness of the board in governing culture (2018, Gabrielle Schroder FAICD).

In this series:

In the next article, I will discuss the challenge of culture governance: 

• Why Culture should matter to boards more than ever
• Why Culture is hard to pin down
• Challenges in governing culture
• The modern director’s checklist for culture governance

In subsequent posts, I’ll share more from my AICD roundtable presentation, including ways of examining and leading culture (including the best ones!), and starting points and questions for your board.

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Too often, as an advisor and facilitator, I’ve seen extraordinary amounts of money and value left behind, because of a lack of strategic thinking.

Leaders – are your teams leaving money and value on the table… or even wasting money, because of where they are spending their attention and time?

Here are some examples I see on the regular!

1. The up-and-coming department coordinator who isn’t yet across the whole business, or how leaders think.

Example: This go-getter has recently been promoted to, or come in at, a senior role that is quite new to them. Sure, they have acquired a qualification in the field and maybe a few runs on the board, but they are still learning the depths of complexity and strategic thinking required to understand how what they focus on affects the whole business. Moreover, they are proud of achieving their recent status and top of mind for them is proving themselves  – which often translates to proving ‘I don’t need any help’.

Consequence: Unfortunately, their excitement can look like overconfidence and decision-making that is not based on the full picture; their insecurity can make them a roadblock for getting important information to senior leaders who need to make informed strategic decisions. Insightful strategic reports from the outside consultant, who has been engaged to provide expertise, are not passed on to leadership by the account manager, forcing the consultant to choose between going over their head or surprising the exec team when they reference the report in a leadership meeting! Not an efficient use of the consultant’s OR the leadership team’s time… and worse, important insights and recommendations fall through the gaps.

2. The senior program manager with a technical background, who doesn’t get the BD.

Example: A brilliant senior project or program manager who truly understands the industry, making them a great asset to the organisation. They can really get into the ‘head’ of the target market. However, they do not wear a BD or marketing ‘hat’ when developing or promoting their programs – they are not naturally oriented towards this way of thinking, they are not trained in this space and not held accountable to client acquisition or revenue goals. Typically, they manage an education or networking event program that is central to the organisation’s brand-building and growth goals – yet the program manager may not even be aware this is the ultimate purpose of the program.

Consequence: The turnout and turnover are not what they could have been / Game-changing educational content that would make the organisation more competitive doesn’t reach enough of the staff or the learning isn’t embedded well  / Networking and value-add opportunities among the clients and business community are not leveraged / The program fails to achieve its brand-building and/or BD objectives.

3. The relatively junior event planner who has been (wrongly) tasked with running your marketing and stakeholder communications, too.

Example: I’m booked to give a keynote or run a workshop for a networking/professional development event. I provide promotional ideas and value-adds around the presentation. These are often free, low-cost, or a money-making opportunity for the client, such as a ticketed Masterclass or content for their blog/podcast/social media. However – these suggestions are forgotten/ignored by the junior team responsible for putting the event together (even when prompted during pre-meetings) – because they’re not across marketing strategy.

Consequence: See #2 above. Also, essential strategic links between event programs and core marketing objectives and target audiences are not achieved.

Solutions

Leaders – don’t forget that most of your staff don’t think like you! They come from a different area of expertise or experience, and most likely a different motivation.

That means you must lead a coordinated, cross-functional approach to strategy, brand, sales/BD, marketing, stakeholder communication, networking, and learning and development.

You must make strategic objectives and expectations of teamwork clearly known to department and team leaders.

You must ensure your line managers are equipped to make strategic decisions and that they bring their teams along to achieve goals, holding them accountable for results. And you must give them the space, support and time in their roles to achieve this.

Make this a part of the culture right through the organisation, requiring an aligned, clarified, goal-oriented approach.

Then equip your people to spot and respond to opportunities, through people development that stretches them to think strategically and problem-solve across the business… not operate in little siloes focused on protecting their domain!

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“The power of language and the need to – with great intention – articulate what you believe, what your non-negotiables are, what your core values are… (you need to) come up with these short, succinct little ways to articulate what you’re trying to achieve. It’s important for everyone in the company to be rowing in the same direction.”

– Will Guidara, former GM & Co-Owner of Eleven Madison Park, named #1 on the world’s top restaurants list 2017; Author of Unreasonable Hospitality

In this episode of The Entrepreneur’s Studio podcast, well-known hospitality and business leader Will Guidara powerfully describes the crucial role of the leader in setting the ‘why’ and the ‘what’ of the business vision, then intentionally handing the ownership over to the team to decide on the ‘how’. He famously created the team function of ‘Dreamweaver’ and held strategy days involving the entire team, no matter what their role – in fact, he felt the individual on the ground, who sees all, has the most to give to strategic planning to make the vision work.

Today in a workshop on leading Brand and Culture, I asked leaders, “What is always front of mind for you, when leading your team?”

I wanted to know:

• Have they developed an overt approach to how they lead?
• Do they have a saying, motto or other touchstone that they use to guide and inspire their teams?
• Have they chosen specific language to powerfully engage team members on purpose, vision and values?
• Do teams have a daily felt sense of ‘where we are going’, and their meaningful contribution to that?

A leader’s job in figuring all this out is certainly not easy. While leaders usually have a strong sense of what they are trying to achieve, the problem I sometimes see is that leaders don’t have clarity on how to tell that story, or – more often – how to unite as a group of leaders in telling that story.

“Change happens in a team huddle.” – Will Guidara

Whether you work with a strongly resourced internal or external communications team to create collective and individual leader communication plans, or you huddle together as a group of leaders to figure out where you align on the important stuff to get across (and how you will do that)… joining forces to speak the same language and walk the same talk creates powerful change energy!

When it comes to leading Brand and Culture – including Purpose, Vision, Values and Strategy – it’s not a binary ‘Top-down’ v ‘Bottom-up’ approach. As Guidara suggests, lead your WHY and WHAT (your Purpose and Vision) from the top, but involve everyone in the HOW (your Values and your Strategy in particular, but also in creating Team Identities around how each team contributes… here’s how to do that). This will mean your ‘Where we are going’ is not just yours, but ours.

But first… huddle and work out what you will communicate as a leadership team to intentionally lead in the same direction.

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