Wocktail #15: The Mid-Flight Manhattan 🍸
Building and Flying the Plane Part 2
In ‘Building and Flying the Plane’ Part 1, we explored what it means to build a plane that is ready for takeoff: delivering value from the outset while evolving in parallel, with discipline and structure.
At the organizational level, the context shifts. The runway is behind. Commitments are underway, value is flowing, and decisions have been made under a previous strategy. The question becomes more nuanced: how does a new strategic direction take hold while everything is already in flight?
Concurrency often falters when new priorities are introduced without fully reconciling what is already in motion. The result is not acceleration, it is accumulation.
✈️ A grounded way to frame it: a new strategy is not a new plane. It is a shift in flight path which carries consequences across the system.
When approached deliberately, several elements are essential:
✅ Set the Flight Plan: Clear and actionable plans and priorities involve assessing initiatives in flight: what propels the organization forward, and what no longer aligns with the intended course?
✅ Map the Airspace: Ongoing work must be calibrated against the new strategy. Some efforts align naturally; others require adjustment; a few may need to sunset entirely to maintain focus.
✅ Clear the Runway: New priorities need space to take hold; creating this space is strategic, not operational. If resources remain fully tied to the old direction, the new course cannot gain traction.
✅ Sequence the Flights: Not everything can take off or adjust simultaneously. Concurrency is about sequencing with precision, progressing priorities while protecting system stability.
✅ Steer Continuously: Ongoing navigation, guided by feedback and emerging conditions, allows for value creation and stability mid-flight.
💡 Key Insight: A new strategy doesn’t struggle to start, it struggles to redirect what’s already moving. Without that redirection, the organization drifts instead of turning.
And if the strategy represents a 180-degree pivot, the implications are transformational. Stay tuned for this in the next Wocktail!