Post by Net-News (@Dionysus)

FRIDAY CONUNDRUM

_*Who Really Owns Strategy?*_

Picture this scenarios: After months of iteration and refinement, a groundbreaking product is finally ready for launch.

A Vice President walks confidently into the boardroom, presents a bold strategy, inspires the executives, and hands execution to middle management. Everyone leaves convinced success is inevitable.

But somewhere between the glass-walled boardroom and the people doing the actual work, something changes.

The strategy is interpreted… then reinterpreted.

Each manager adds their own understanding, assumptions, and priorities. Like a game of telephone, the original vision becomes progressively distorted.

Six months later, the product launches behind schedule. Costs have ballooned. Targets are missed. Meetings become blame sessions.

The executives insist, “The strategy was sound.”

Middle managers reply, “We implemented what we were told.”

Frontline teams say, “We only followed instructions.”

The original vision has vanished—and no one can pinpoint where.

So here is today’s conundrum:

Who truly owns strategy in an organization?

* Is it the leaders who conceive the vision?
* The middle managers who translate vision into action?
* The frontline teams who ultimately bring it to life?
* Or does ownership remain with everyone until the desired outcome is achieved?

If strategy fails despite flawless execution, who bears responsibility?

If execution fails despite brilliant strategy, was the strategy ever truly brilliant?

Your Turn:

At what point should ownership of a strategy transfer or should it never transfer at all?

Can a strategy be called successful if everyone followed the plan but the intended outcome was never achieved?

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