Leadership Paradox #2: Strategic vs. Tactical

Vision gets you moving. Execution gets you there.

A few years ago, I was working with the GM of a manufacturing operation who was laser-focused on transforming the company. He had a bold five-year plan. Big ideas. New markets. New tech. All the right buzzwords.

But when I walked the floor with him, I noticed a different story—production delays, confused team leads, and a backlog of maintenance requests that no one had flagged up.

When I asked him about it, he waved it off: “That’s not where my time is best spent.”

I get it. Strategy matters. But here’s the paradox: you can’t lead from 30,000 feet forever. If you never check the landing gear, you’ll crash.

Once he started meeting weekly with supervisors and shadowing shifts, the change was immediate. Morale improved. Communication clicked. And that grand strategy? It actually started working.

The best leaders zoom in and out. Big picture thinking is powerful—but so is walking the floor.

#Leadership #Manufacturing #Mining #HR #Construction