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Your Organisation says it's aligned. It probably isn't.
And the problem starts at the top.
Zora Artis and Wayne Aspland have spent 7 years studying the gap between what leadership teams say they're doing and what's actually happening inside organizations. And their findings are uncomfortable.
In their latest global study, drawing on interviews with 55 CEOs and senior executives across five continents, they found that leaders routinely leave strategy meetings carrying completely different understandings of the direction they just agreed on.
Nobody admits it. And communications professionals get handed the impossible job of aligning everyone else around a strategy the leadership team hasn't genuinely aligned on themselves.
In this episode, we break down why the gap has barely moved in seven years, what's actually driving it, and what communications professionals are uniquely positioned to do about it.
The full findings are being presented IABC World Conference 2026 in Toronto this June.
Download the full Report and Infographic Summary here.
Listen For
4:11 What does true organizational alignment actually mean beyond agreement?
7:44 Why do leaders think they’re aligned but act differently after meetings?
9:09 How do fear and ego silently destroy alignment in executive teams?
12:18 What is “glass head syndrome” and why does it derail strategy execution?
17:18 Is AI making organizational alignment better or worse?
Guests:
Zora Artis
Website Artis Advisory | Website Clear Leaders | Email | LinkedIn
Wayne Aspland
Website Clear Leaders | Email | LinkedIn
Doug
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Stories and Strategies is the Official Podcast Sponsor of IABC World Conference in Toronto June 14-16, 2026
Click here to check it out https://wc.iabc.com
