A lot of “strategy” talk is smoke and mirrors.

Vague words like “synergy,” “agility,” or “innovation” often replace real direction.

Why? Because ambiguity protects people from accountability. If no one really understands what the strategy is, then no one can say it failed—or call it out as incoherent.

🗺️ Roadmaps Without a Destination

When teams are asked to create roadmaps without a clear strategy, it’s like building maps without knowing the destination.

Multiply this by 5 departments, and you end up with fragmented, conflicting plans, each optimized for their own guess of the strategy.

Then we wonder why initiatives don’t align or deliver value.

🧭What Is Strategy, Really?

Forget the buzzwords. At its core, strategy should be simple:

Where are we going (end goal)?

Why are we going there (problem/opportunity)?

How will we get there (key decisions + constraints)?

And that “how” should come with clear boundaries:

• Budget
• Timeframe
• Resource levels
• Risks we’re willing to accept
• Stuff we’re not going to do

It’s not that people don’t want to follow. It’s that they can’t follow what they don’t understand.

🧠 Honesty and Humility Are Rare (and Critical)

You’re spot on: real alignment requires people at the top to admit:

• “I don’t know.”
• “This part is unclear, and we’re working it out.”
• “Let’s define this together.”

But unfortunately, pretending to know often feels safer than admitting uncertainty. That’s a leadership culture problem.

⚠️ Waste Is the Byproduct of Misalignment

Wasted:

• Time, from duplicated efforts or wrong priorities.
• Resources, from building the wrong thing.
• Talent, from demotivating good people.
• Trust, from people realizing the emperor has no clothes.

🛠️ What Can Be Done? (Even If You’re Not the CEO)

If you’re somewhere in the middle or trying to lead change, a few things help:

• Ask the real questions: “What’s the actual outcome we’re driving toward?”
• Call out ambiguity: “What does success look like, specifically?”
• Propose clarity when it’s lacking: “Can we define the strategic frame before we roadmap?”

And if you’re ever leading a team, be the kind of leader who sets clear goals and boundaries. Say “I don’t know” when needed. It’s powerful.