Align the drivers, align the outcomes

I can appreciate how, when things go awry, many leaders immediately start looking at behaviors. And I hear the same old problems time and time again. Resistance. Lack of buy in. Poor communication. Weak execution. And yes, these are all issues we deal with.  People will do people things, both good and bad. But sometimes the problem isn’t all with the behaviors of the other people.  Sometimes a lack of alignment starting at the top makes it almost impossible to get the result you want.

Think about a typical change initiative, for example. The organization wants adoption but may not know why beyond knowing it seems like a good idea.  (Hello, AI anyone)? The leader wants smooth execution, and honestly, probably doesn’t want to look bad to their VP. But the frontline employee? They want to survive the transition without being publicly humiliated while learning a new system in front of their peers, often the fifth initiative this year.  They’ve had no input and no one asked if it actually will make their jobs better/easier/clearer/more efficient, but that’s how it was for the other four initiatives as well. They want to keep some autonomy. They want to matter in this process, not just comply with it. It’s no wonder almost 80% of organizations that have instituted AI solutions are rolling them back and losing money and people in the process.

These aren’t the same goals, and they aren’t the same desired outcomes.  Not even close.

So the leader thinks, Why are they dragging their feet?

The employee thinks, Why are they forcing this so hard without acknowledging what it’s actually costing us?

And the organization says, Why is this taking so long?!

Three parties. Three different conversations. One project.  There’s no bad attitudes, no foot dragging, no people who don’t want to work. There’s only three groups who have no idea what the other two want. What a circus.

This is where empathy stops being a soft skill and starts being a leadership advantage. Not “be nicer to your team.” Not “validate everyone’s feelings.” But ask, BEFORE you start diagnosing attitude or assuming bad intent, what outcome is this person actually solving for?

This isn’t therapy. This is strategic empathy giving you efficiency, and saving months of banging your head against the wall and, ultimately, yet another failed change initiative.

Because once you can see the layered outcomes in the room, whether it’s the organizational one, the leader’s one, or the very human one each person is quietly managing, you can do real alignment work. Not “let’s get everyone on the same page” meeting theater. Actual strategic alignment.

If your team won’t move, stop starting with behavior. Start by naming their outcome. Because they may not be resisting the work. They may just be reacting to a goal underneath the goal the one nobody named but everybody in the room can already feel. And let’s be honest, everyone else in the room is doing the same thing, and that includes you.

Name their outcome. Once you can do that, aligning outcomes is a piece of cake.