Blue Dots Partners

Misalignment costs businesses over $1 trillion annually. This highlights the importance of collaboration, with 82% of respondents in a Forrester Consulting report agreeing it is essential for competitiveness and industry leadership. Highly aligned organizations grow revenues 58% faster and are 72% more profitable (LSA research). Unfortunately, misalignment is a widespread problem, hindering growth, profitability, and equity value. A recent survey revealed that 33% of decision-makers cite a lack of alignment as a major obstacle to change.

Just as a symphony orchestra harmonizes under the guidance of a conductor and Blue Angels pilots align perfectly within 18 inches when they perform, so should executives and middle managers. It’s easy to envision a collaborative alignment culture, where each participant complements and amplifies the other’s efforts toward a shared objective. That said, a myriad of factors can disrupt this harmony and cause significant misalignment, preventing any organization from realizing its full potential. Here are some examples.

Core Values: Seventy six percent of executives say their organization has a defined value system that is understood and well communicated, but only 31% of employees believe this to be true. Another study found that only 28% of executives and managers knew the company’s priorities; the percentage keeps decreasing further down the hierarchy chain. Values alignment is pivotal in harmonizing an organization’s purpose with its actions. It’s essential that the mission and its execution resonate deeply and consistently with the company’s core values.

Fuzzy Messaging: There is an art and science to crafting a compelling and unified purpose. Messaging often lacks clarity or lasting impact. Robert Woodruff’s Coca-Cola vision of accessibility succeeded: “Coco-Cola should always be within an arm’s reach.” Ritz Carlton achieved great success with their mission, “Make every customer’s experience memorable.”  Mission success requires a clear, compelling clarity to sustain alignment during goal execution.

Too much noise: Our world is flooded with communication, leading to distractions and mixed messages. Passive forms of communication to drive alignment won’t break through this kind of noise. A Gallup study highlights reduced cross-functional communication (cited by 23% of the participants) as a key hybrid work challenge versus long-standing silo structures under one roof. Sustaining alignment requires a continuous and clear approach to communicating among the collaborators.

Critical role of top leadership: Successful top leaders drive systemic alignment. They shape the vision and enforce unity across all levels. Failing this, siloed operations and personal agendas will eventually thwart the achievement of critical goals. Officevibe finds that 25% of employees are unsure of the company’s mission; 33% feel reminders are lacking. Senior leaders must consistently advance alignment; this is not a one-off task.

Losing the customer: When leadership is misaligned, it trickles down and adversely impacts frontline employees and eventually customers. Low-alignment companies reported a 30% increase in customer dissatisfaction because of a lack of collaboration and cohesion. Conversely, 96% of well-aligned groups enjoyed consistently satisfied customers (LSA).

Generational differences: Generational gaps in work styles and values lead to misalignment. Varied expectations, communication preferences, and leadership styles among Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z impede unity. Leaders who embrace these differences, create a sustainable culture for cross-generational success. Simon Sinek defines “true leadership” as enabling everyone to excel in their environment.

Competing compensation strategies: Compensation heavily influences behaviors. Divergent structures breed unhealthy competition, resentment, and disengagement. To reach audacious goals, align compensation among collaborating leaders to avoid unintended clashes that hinder progress.

Resistance to change: Change is inherently uncomfortable. Acknowledging this human response is vital to the change management processes focused on achieving strategic alignment. A recent study from Researchscape found that 47% of workers believe some projects fail to meet objectives due to alignment issues, and 46% express annoyance or frustration as a result of misalignment.

Operational challenges: Alignment falters when urgency overtakes importance. Operational challenges divert leadership’s focus on alignment. Forrester found that 79% struggle with cross-functional collaboration due to hyper focused siloed workflows. Collaborative alignment is the optimal approach to solving both the urgent and the important

What’s in it for me? Egos hinder alignment, causing internal strife. Alignment succeeds when egos are parked and collaboration takes the wheel. Hiring or promoting leaders with holistic views prevents misalignment. In a recent survey, 40% of project managers say that 70% to 100% of their projects require collaboration outside their immediate team.

Leadership turnover: Lately, leadership turnover has appeared to be systemic, too. It happens more often and for many reasons. High turnover thwarts sustainable alignment across all levels of leadership. Executives should weigh the impact on alignment before pursuing turnover decisions. Prioritize alignment objectives when firing or hiring people to minimize the impact on collaboration.

Reinforcing behaviors: Top leaders can turbocharge alignment by publicly recognizing individuals, teams, and departments. This links and reinforces behaviors that contribute to achieving alignment goals. On-going rewards and recognition reinforce collaboration in a powerful and effective way.

Alignment versus misalignment is the differentiator of an organization’s potential. Creating and sustaining a systemic approach to alignment takes work, and achieving a highly aligned organization is a heavy lift for even the most talented founder or experienced leader. Many leaders benefiting from successful alignment cultures relied on outside experts to create strategic alignment plans, change management processes and reinforcement tactics.

Considering the fact that highly aligned organizations grow revenues 58% faster and are 72% more profitable; achieving an optimal level of alignment is imperative – especially if you remember the significant costs of misalignment.