Strategy Meets Reality Podcast

Most organisations misuse the word risk, and the consequences can be severe.In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones sits down with Professor Denis Fischbacher Smith, Professor of Risk and Resilience at the University of Glasgow, to unpack decades of insight from analysing system failures, organisational breakdowns and multi fatality accidents.Denis explains why humans will never be perfectly rational, why managers exist to deal with uncertainty, and why risk frameworks often hide the very vulnerabilities leaders need to confront. From rule violations to bureaucracy, informal networks, degraded controls and the myths that mislead executives, this is a deep, practical exploration of organisational reality.🔍 In this episode:• Why rationality is a false construct• Human behaviour, bounded perspective and mental models• Why managers exist to manage uncertainty• The misuse of risk in organisations• Understanding threats, vulnerabilities and degraded controls• What rule violations really tell you• The myth of the all knowing board• How bureaucracy distorts work and decision making• Listening, engagement and the value of middle management• Learning from failures and why “it never happened before” is not a strategy• Strategic thinking in complex and uncertain environments🎧 Keywords: Risk, Resilience, Organisational Failure, Decision Making, Vulnerabilities, Threats, Human Factors, Systems Thinking, Leadership, Safety, Complexity, Strategy📘 Connect with Denis: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denis-fischbacher-smith-1aa6453/📬 Connect with Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones🌐 Full episodes: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategy-meets-reality

Most organisations overthink strategy and underdo it.In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones sits down with Alex Smith, author of No Bullsh**t Strategy, to explore why strategy has drifted into a thinking exercise instead of a doing discipline.Alex explains why the fundamentals of strategy are simple, why leaders obsess over the wrong things, and why the real work starts when you make a move your competitors cannot or will not copy. From diagnosing industry flaws to the value of sacrifice and contrarian thinking, this is a grounded conversation that cuts through jargon and brings strategy back to action.🔍 In this episode:• Only as better than best: why out-competing rarely works • Sacrifice as the engine of real innovation • Strategy as a doing discipline • The macro vs micro problem in organisations • Why language corrupts strategic thinking • Why customer obsession kills good strategy • Diagnosing industry problems, not customer problems • Simple execution that people can actually act on🎧 Keywords: Strategy, No Bulls**t Strategy, Competitive Advantage, Industry Diagnosis, Strategic Simplicity, Execution, Action, Contrarian Strategy, Leadership, Decision Making📘 Alex’s Work: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-m-h-smith/📬 Connect with Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones 🌐 Full episodes: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategy-meets-realitySend Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones is joined by Julian Chender—organisational design expert, strategy advisor, and founder of 11A Collaborative—to explore how to make strategy work in the messy reality of organisational life.Julian draws on years of experience helping purpose-driven organisations redesign themselves to stay viable. They unpack the challenges of structure, capabilities, and leadership transitions—revealing how real constraints can actually sharpen strategic execution when handled with clarity and care.From trust and convergence to feedback loops and freedom within constraints, this is a practical conversation for leaders navigating change, collaboration, and complexity.🔍 In this episode:What organisational design really means—and why it’s strategicAdapting capabilities when strategy shiftsFreedom within constraints: the paradox of effective deliveryBuilding trust, feedback, and convergence into your operating modelHow organisational structure shapes—and enables—impact🎧 Keywords: Strategy, Organisational Design, Operating Models, Structure, Capabilities, Leadership, Execution, Collaboration, Purpose-Driven, Julian Chender📘 Learn more about Julian’s work: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julianchender 🌐 11A Collaborative: https://www.linkedin.com/company/11a-collaborative/Send Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

What if the future of health isn’t just about fixing sickness—but creating value in how we live?In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones is joined by Andy Wilkins—founder of Future of Health, futures strategist, and author—to rethink what strategy means in health and care systems.They explore why efficiency often works against long-term health outcomes, how integrated care and lived experience must shape policy, and why the next generation of strategy must learn faster than the systems it’s trying to change. This is a forward-looking, systems-based conversation on rethinking health, leadership, and public value.🔍 In this episode:Why healthcare strategy must move beyond efficiencyFrom treating sickness to building resilienceUsing lived experience and Three Horizons thinkingRethinking leadership and the role of AIDesigning health systems that adapt and learn🎧 Keywords: Healthcare Strategy, Value in Health, Futures Thinking, Systems Change, Integrated Care, Three Horizons, Public Sector Leadership, AI in Health, Resilience, Andy Wilkins📘 Learn more about Andy’s work: https://www.vision4health.co.uk/ 📬 Connect with Andy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andywilkins/Send Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

Strategy isn’t a performance—it’s a practice.In this special solo episode, host Mike Jones reflects on what 30 episodes of Strategy Meets Reality have revealed about the state of modern strategy. He explores why strategy fails first in perception, not execution, and how organisations confuse alignment with coherence, performance with action, and control with orientation.Drawing on lessons from Boyd, Sun Tzu, and the 30+ guests who’ve shaped this journey, Mike challenges the branding-led view of strategy and calls for a return to strategy as movement—anchored in perceptual clarity, structural capability, and a shared sense of reality.🔍 In this episode:Why strategy fails in the boardroom, not the fieldThe perceptual complexity behind strategic failureHow structural inertia widens the decision-to-action gapWhy coherence beats alignment in turbulent environmentsThe role of freedom of action in resilient executionHow we lost the art of manoeuvre—and how to bring it backFollow Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/ Learn more: https://substack.com/@strategymeetsreality https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast🎧 Keywords: Strategy, Execution, Leadership, Coherence, Perception, Structure, OODA Loop, Viability, Emergence, Strategic Orientation, Adaptive Organisations, Boyd, Sun Tzu, Viable System ModelSend Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

In this engaging discussion, Dr. Delia McCabe, a neuroscientist and expert in nutritional neuroscience, reveals how stress, sleep, and nutrition influence leadership and creativity. She explains the detrimental effects of chronic stress on neuroplasticity and how poor sleep impairs cognitive function. Dr. McCabe shares insights on the 'additive problem' faced by leaders, the myth of productivity due to information overload, and strategies for building resilience to uncertainty. Don't miss her tips for enhancing decision-making and creativity in an AI-driven world!

Success can be blinding. Strategy is often where complacency hides best.In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones speaks with Saul Betmead de Chasteigner—strategic advisor and transformation leader—about the hidden traps in organisations that seem to be “winning.” They unpack how strategy becomes theatre, why organisations resist feedback when things are going well, and how real transformation depends on psychological safety, clarity, and structural intent.From autonomy and structure to feedback loops and values, this is a conversation about the inner work of organisational change—why it’s not just a structural fix, but a mindset shift.🔍 In this episode:Why strategy breaks when we confuse motion for progressHow “success syndrome” creates blind spotsAutonomy, structure, and the tension in betweenThe value of anti-complacency systems and lived feedbackWhy real transformation challenges power—not people🎧 Keywords: Strategy, organisational change, transformation, autonomy, structure, feedback, success syndrome, leadership, psychological safety, execution, decision-making📘 Learn more about Saul’s work: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saul-betmead/Send Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

Viability doesn’t come from vision. It comes from feedback, iteration, and the courage to learn.In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones is joined by Mick Brian—a consultant with a military background and a passion for learning systems—to unpack how organisations can survive and thrive in complex environments.They explore what bees can teach us about decentralised decision-making, how the OODA Loop supports learning under pressure, and why real-time feedback is the foundation of strategic adaptability. From AI adoption to after-action reviews, this conversation connects lived experience, strategic thinking, and practical tools for evolving organisations.🔍 In this episode:What organisations can learn from bee coloniesWhy after-action reviews matter more than performance reviewsHow the OODA Loop supports emergent learningThe role of AI, autonomy, and self-organisationWhy sensemaking starts with feedbackThe importance of collective purpose and decision-making at the edge🎧 Keywords: Strategy, Feedback, Viability, Emergent Learning, OODA Loop, After-Action Reviews, Complexity, Beekeeping, Leadership, AI Adoption, Organisational Learning📘 Learn more about Mick’s work: Agile on the Beach Sketch 📬 Connect with Mick: Mick Brian on LinkedInSend Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

Are your goals helping you adapt—or just perform?In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Radhika Dutt joins Mike Jones to expose the hidden trap of OKRs and KPI-led management. Drawing on her latest work and the OHL Toolkit, Radhika introduces a radical shift: move from setting performance targets to setting puzzles.They explore how metrics create fragility, why freedom of action matters, and how to scaffold real learning without losing direction. From military concepts to corporate leadership, this is a sharp critique of goal setting gone wrong—and a practical alternative for those ready to rethink success.📥 Download the OHL Toolkit 🌐 Visit Radhika’s Website 🔗 Connect with Radhika on LinkedIn🔍 In this episode:Why OKRs often create performance theatrePuzzle setting vs puzzle solvingHow scaffolding enables experimentationFreedom of action without losing controlRethinking what good leadership looks likeThe danger of mistaking metrics for outcomes🎧 Keywords: OKRs, KPIs, leadership, complexity, adaptability, performance theatre, puzzle mindset, experimentation, scaffolding, radical product thinking, Radhika DuttSend Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

Most nonsense in organisations isn’t malicious—it’s magnetic.In this episode of Strategy Meets Reality, Mike Jones is joined by Paul Sweeney—author of Magnetic Nonsense: A Short History of Bullshit at Work—to unpack the rituals, myths, and illusions that derail progress inside organisations.They dive into the dangers of detached leadership, the myth of heroic CEOs, and why so many change programmes fail before they begin. From performance theatre and wellbeing platitudes to the real impact of meetings, Paul exposes how nonsense embeds itself in culture—and what it takes to replace it with something better.🔍 In this episode:Why magnetic nonsense is so attractive—and so hard to spotThe gap between executive fantasy and frontline realityHow buzzwords and best practices become blockersThe illusion of change and the truth about transformationWhat critical thinking really looks like in leadershipThe importance of autonomy and design that fits reality🎧 Keywords: Critical Thinking, Leadership, Culture, Organisational Nonsense, Change, Strategy Execution, Transformation, Autonomy, Corporate Myths📘 Learn more about Paul’s book: Magnetic Nonsense 📬 Connect with Paul: Paul Sweeney on LinkedInSend Mike a Message👂 Enjoying the show? Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast. 🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast 📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality 🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout 💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/