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Story by Bruce Eckfeldt

A strategy that remains clear only to leadership is a strategy that will fail in execution, no matter how brilliant it might be on paper.

In my work with scaling companies across various industries, I’ve consistently found that the difference between organizations that execute effectively and those that struggle isn’t the sophistication of their strategy—it’s the clarity and simplicity with which that strategy is understood throughout the organization.

Having facilitated hundreds of strategic planning sessions, I’ve seen firsthand how executives often mistake complexity for depth, creating strategies that sound impressive in the boardroom but collapse in implementation. The most successful companies invest as much in strategic clarity as they do in strategic development.

Democratize your strategy

A strategy that only your leadership team understands isn’t enough. For a company to execute effectively, everyone—from middle managers to frontline employees—needs to clearly understand what the business is focused on, whom it’s serving, and how it wins. When your strategy is too complex or your positioning is unclear, people waste time, duplicate efforts, and make decisions that pull the business in the wrong direction.

A simple, well-defined strategy benefits more than just your internal teams. It helps suppliers, partners, and vendors understand how to support your goals. It gives customers clarity about what you offer and what you don’t. It makes referrals easier because your network knows exactly whom you serve. And inside your business, it streamlines decision-making, capability-building, and long-term planning. Simplicity isn’t just a communication tool—it’s a strategic advantage.

The simplicity stress test

Most leadership teams overestimate how well their strategy is understood throughout the organization. To assess real strategic clarity, I often conduct a simple exercise with clients: Ask people at different levels of the company to write down in one or two sentences what the company does, whom it serves, and how it differentiates. The inconsistency of responses is typically eye-opening.

This exercise reveals not just communication gaps but strategy gaps. When frontline employees can’t articulate your core positioning, it’s not simply a messaging problem—it reflects fundamental uncertainty about where the business is heading and why. This uncertainty manifests in misaligned priorities, decision paralysis, and wasted resources.

The most effective companies I’ve worked with can pass this clarity test at every level. Their strategies aren’t necessarily simple in development, but they’re simple in articulation—clear enough that anyone can understand and apply them to daily decision-making. (more…)

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Story by Voyo Popovic

It ensures you’re staying close to the vision, identifying areas for improvement, and driving faster, more informed decisions.

When I started Piece of Cake Moving in 2018, we had three employees. As the founder, I was involved in building every department. Although we’ve grown significantly since then, I still believe in being across every part of the company. As a founder, staying involved ensures you’re staying true to the vision. It also builds a deeper understanding of how every department operates, helps identify areas for improvement, and leads to faster, more informed decisions.

Balancing micromanaging and managing by absence

Managing by absence leaves tremendous room for error. This happens because you’re setting a general direction then allowing the team to follow their own course. Working closely with your team can help employees in the early stages of a new role or project succeed. It ensures that your team will understand what needs to be done and will be better equipped to achieve it.

At Piece of Cake, when there’s a new manager, they submit a report at the end of each day. The report details what they worked on, what they accomplished, and their feedback and ideas. The manager can use the report to share their ideas daily. This tool also empowers founders to see how a senior team member is spending their time and how they think.

As they grow into that role, I slowly step away. However, I still check in with direct reports once a week. I always leave time for them to bring up ideas. The more open communication there is, the more likely the team is to share feedback and their thoughts on ways to improve the business.

Course correct and make improvements faster

When you’re not across every department, it makes it difficult to fix issues and make improvements. If you stay close to the product, customer service, and sales team, especially early on, then there’s a tremendous opportunity to identify issues as they arise. You are also able to make the experience better constantly. If you’re so far removed, it takes a significant amount of time to learn about issues and what caused them. It also delays the process of coming up with a solution. Moreover, the solution might be wrong because you don’t have proper context with your team. It almost makes things worse than being involved from the beginning.

For example, during our early years, the company had an issue with the call abandonment rate, which was increasing by 10 percent, and the customer wait time, which was increasing by 125 percent. I hadn’t checked in with the customer service team leaders for months because I had fully delegated the work.

Once the issue arose, I realized I needed to work with the team much more closely to find a solution. I decided we needed to hire more people. However, if I had been more involved with the team, I would have known the core of the issue was that client calls were being transferred between departments, causing inefficiency and extending the get-to-solution time. My team implemented a solution. The lesson was you can let your team do what they do best, but still be involved and act as a resource to troubleshoot when needed.

Staying true to the company’s vision

The founder knows the company’s vision best. After you set the vision, there’s accountability in ensuring the business and teams continue to be aligned with that vision. If you’re not involved in every department, it is very difficult to communicate it. It is also easy for team leaders to unintentionally move away from it. The vision is key to how the team engages with customers. So it’s critical to make sure it’s clear across the company.

Piece of Cake’s vision is to excel at customer service, build future leaders, and care for our employees’ well-being. During periods of rapid growth, the team unintentionally moved away from two of these pillars to keep the pace. When that happened, I realized I was not involved enough with certain departments or that I was unintentionally managing by absence. It’s a great reminder to never be too hands off. Every opportunity is a reminder of not only your company goals for growth and revenue, but of its core vision and principles.

This post originally appeared at inc.com.

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by Diego Pérez Morales

Integrating new employees into a company is a delicate process that requires careful planning and execution. A well-structured onboarding program can make a significant difference in how quickly and effectively new hires adapt to their roles. By implementing a comprehensive approach that includes checklists, the assignment of ‘buddies’, and clearly defined goals for the first 30, 60, and 90 days, companies can ensure a smooth transition that benefits both the employee and the organization.

Checklists are an essential tool in the onboarding process. They provide a clear roadmap for new employees, outlining the tasks and responsibilities they need to complete during their initial days. This not only helps them stay organized but also reduces the feeling of being overwhelmed. A well-crafted checklist should cover everything from administrative tasks to introductions with key team members, ensuring that no important step is overlooked.

Assigning a ‘buddy’ to new employees is another effective strategy. A buddy is an experienced colleague who can offer guidance, answer questions, and provide support during the initial phase of employment. This relationship helps new hires feel more comfortable and connected within the company, fostering a sense of belonging. The buddy system also encourages knowledge sharing and helps new employees understand the company culture more quickly.

Setting specific goals for the first 30, 60, and 90 days is crucial for measuring progress and ensuring alignment with company objectives. These goals should be realistic and achievable, providing new employees with a sense of accomplishment as they meet each milestone. Regular check-ins with managers can help track progress and address any challenges that may arise, ensuring that new hires remain on the right path.

Communication is key throughout the onboarding process. Regular feedback and open lines of communication help new employees feel valued and supported. Encouraging them to share their thoughts and experiences can provide valuable insights for improving the onboarding process. Additionally, celebrating small wins and acknowledging their contributions can boost morale and motivation.

Ultimately, a successful onboarding process is about creating a welcoming and supportive environment that empowers new employees to thrive. By focusing on clear communication, structured guidance, and achievable goals, companies can ensure that their new hires are well-equipped to contribute to the organization’s success. As the saying goes, “A good start is half the battle,” and a smart onboarding process is the first step towards building a strong and cohesive team.

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Story by Tammy Perkins

Navigating professional transitions can be a whirlwind of emotions for employees, whether starting a new job or leaving a company. Onboarding is essential for creating a sense of belonging and shared purpose that extends throughout a new hire’s tenure. And this vital initiative should be about more than following a checklist.

Onboarding provides an opportunity to make your newest colleagues feel genuinely connected to the team and confident in their contributions. This ensures they can thrive from day one until their final day with the company.

The importance of onboarding

The first 90 days are a crucial time for employees to establish themselves and for leadership to set the tone. It’s a great time to encourage new hires to envision their contributions to the business’s success. When leadership actively engages and guides new team members through this process, it fosters a sense of alignment with the organization’s goals. This transforms onboarding from a routine task into a long-term motivation, engagement, and loyalty initiative.

Yet too often, companies miss the mark. A recent Gallup poll found that only 12% of workers strongly agreed that their firm excelled in onboarding them, and just 29% said they felt supported and fully prepared to start their role. These numbers reveal a huge opportunity gap. When companies approach onboarding as a mere formality, new employees can feel disconnected and disengaged, which leads to costly turnover and lost potential.

Offboarding is another aspect of the employee experience that companies overlook. But it’s worth noting that how we support workers as they leave is just as important as onboarding them. A Gallup poll of 150 Fortune 500 CHROs found that just 10% considered their employer highly effective in managing departures.

Leaders play a vital role in connecting employees to their colleagues and organization, especially during transitional seasons. (more…)