Why Real Strategy Matters: Lessons for Leadership from the Front Lines
Written by the Nexus Editorial Team
At Nexus Search Partners, we know that leadership is more than titles and goals — it’s about making clear, deliberate choices that drive sustainable success.
In Freek Vermeulen’s 2017 article in Harvard Business Review, he underscores a truth we see time and again with executive leadership teams: many strategies fail because they’re not truly strategies. They are lofty goals or disconnected priorities, not the cohesive, choice-driven frameworks organizations need to thrive.
This distinction matters, now more than ever. Whether you're a corporation seeking transformative leadership or a candidate navigating your career path, understanding what real strategy looks like is essential to long-term success.
Strategy Is About Clear Choices — Not Just Ambitions
Too often, organizations confuse goals with strategy. As Vermeulen explains, saying “We want to be #1 in our industry” isn’t a strategy — it’s an aspiration. Without clear decisions about what you will and won't do to reach that goal, it’s just noise.
At Nexus, we help organizations and leaders focus on the choices that matter. Our tailored, hands-on approach to executive search and advisory services is rooted in understanding your specific needs, challenges, and culture. We help you identify leaders who not only bring expertise but who align deeply with your strategic direction.
This philosophy is embedded in our core: fueling your future success through intentionality, expertise, and human-centric partnerships.
Why Clarity Drives Leadership Success
Real strategy simplifies execution. Vermeulen highlights how British toy company Hornby succeeded by making three simple, interconnected choices: focusing on adult collectors, creating perfect scale models, and appealing to nostalgia.
Similarly, successful leadership hires — and successful organizations — emerge from focused, aligned decisions, not sprawling lists of priorities. That’s why Nexus customizes every executive search engagement to your organization's unique goals — not to generic benchmarks. We build leadership pipelines and coach teams not just to fill roles, but to realize your broader organizational ambitions.
Building Strategies That Employees Believe In
One of Vermeulen’s key takeaways is that it's not enough to simply announce choices. Leaders must communicate the logic behind those choices.
At Nexus, we coach newly placed leaders and management teams on this very principle. Through post-placement executive coaching and leadership advisory services, we help executives articulate the "why" behind organizational changes — fostering stronger alignment, higher engagement, and ultimately, better outcomes.
Because employees — and candidates — don’t just want to know what the vision is. They want to believe in why it matters.
Strategy Execution Is a Two-Way Street
Another lesson Vermeulen shares is the power of top-down strategic intent combined with bottom-up initiative. At Nexus, we see this dynamic in the strongest organizations we support: executives set a clear course, but they empower their teams to innovate and adapt.
Our Nexus Advisory Practice, built around our proven Align, Assess, Analyze, Act framework, is designed to help leadership teams unlock this balance. Whether it's through executive coaching, employee engagement surveys, or talent development programs, we partner with organizations to create ecosystems where strategic clarity meets grassroots execution.
Change Is the New Default
Finally, Vermeulen reminds us that change must be the default setting, not the exception. That resonates deeply with the Nexus philosophy.
The future of leadership demands adaptability, inclusion, and strategic resilience. Our commitment to ongoing coaching, community-based support, and building diverse, future-ready talent pipelines reflects that understanding.
At Nexus Search Partners, we aren’t just helping you hire for today — we’re helping you lead with purpose for tomorrow.
Let’s Find the Right Leader for Your Organization
Are you ready to find leaders who will transform your organization? Contact Nexus Search Partners today to learn more about our unique approach to executive search and leadership advisory.