Before becoming CEO, I had contributed to strategy from a functional seat. But now the responsibility was mine: not just to shape the strategy, but to lead it, sell it, and ensure it got executed.
I quickly learned that strategy isn’t a one-time decision. It’s a cycle: imagine, align, act, adapt. Over and over.
From Insight to Action
As CFO, I had watched us grow revenue 4x in a few short years. But profits barely moved. Why?
Because we took low-margin work to gain volume, betting we’d later win higher-margin business. That bet didn’t pay off. When the economy turned, we were left with bloated operations, thin margins, and little leverage.
So we made a strategic shift:
- Short-term: Make the unprofitable business profitable or walk away.
- Long-term: Focus on higher-margin, complex engineering work that matched our capabilities.
We knew it would mean less revenue for a while. But better profitability. More focus. And a clearer value proposition.
The Hardest Part Isn’t the Plan. It’s the Conviction.
We raised prices. We exited unprofitable accounts. We laid off good people to right-size the business. We entered new markets that took time to build.
Every move felt risky. But every move was rooted in a clear strategic lens: Who are we uniquely built to serve? And what must be true to serve them well?
Following the Golden Rule, we communicated openly—with employees, customers, suppliers, and shareholders. We didn’t sugarcoat. We explained. We listened. And we kept going.
Strategy Has a Shelf Life
We also learned this: strategy has an expiration date. The window to shift is often shorter than you think. Especially in a downturn. Especially when you’re relying on hope instead of alignment.
We acted just in time.
Margins recovered. Morale stabilized. And we began to build momentum in the right direction.
Reflection Questions
- Are your current growth strategies aligned with your long-term profitability goals?
- What bets are you making—and are they still the right ones?
- How quickly can you pivot when the signals say it’s time?
In the next post, I’ll explore how we built a sustainable transformation engine—one that could survive leadership changes and keep evolving long after the first wave of progress.