“A CEO’s most important decisions fall into two categories:  big bets on people and big bets on strategy.  The people decisions are arguably more important because they heavily influence the strategy decisions.”  – David Nadler

When I read this quote, this chicken and egg thought hit me… Which comes first…a talented CEO and Executive Team that due to their individual and collective talent leads the creation (and execution) of a great, new strategy? Or is it that there is a right strategy that exists for a company in a particular time and space–that is then identified by a great CEO and Executive Team that attracts and focuses the team to execute it?

Then, I poured myself a drink.

Seriously, I know the answer is not an either/or proposition. But it does raise the question about the intersection of strategy and people/talent on the Executive Team and how this impacts the success of an organization.

If a CEO believes he/she does not have the right talent on their ELT, will it impact how effective a new or refreshed strategy will be? Of course it will. Yet, even if the talent is lacking on the ELT, the CEO cannot simply replace their entire ELT in one fell swoop, wait to recruit and onboard all the right people and THEN create/refresh the strategy. Well, a CEO COULD but I’d question the wisdom of that decision.

Conversely, some CEOs and ELTs are comprised of amazing individual and collective talent.  Yet, maybe they somehow miss that elusive strategy because they misread the tea leaves of customer wants, future needs, industry changes, and environmental predictions.

Before you feel the need to grab yourself a drink, you do not need to ponder these unanswerable questions all by yourself. The Bailey Group can help CEOs and their Executive Teams in the process of strategic planning to evaluate themselves and determine how well they individually and collectively can create and execute their strategy. We can help facilitate the honest dialog necessary to bring in extra resources and experts if necessary. We may not pour you a drink in our offices but we invite you just the same.