Most leadership teams respond to stubborn problems the same way. They sharpen the strategy, clarify accountabilities, add metrics, and launch another initiative. When that fails, they work harder.
But some problems do not fail because strategy is weak. They fail because strategy is no longer sufficient.
These challenges live between organizations, professions, incentives, and identities. No single leader can command them into alignment. No internal reorg can resolve them. Yet leaders keep trying, and the cost shows up as fatigue, cynicism, and stalled momentum among their best people.
Over the years, I have seen five signals that a problem has crossed this threshold.
First, it reappears in multiple strategic plans under different names, but never resolves.
Second, meaningful progress depends on actors you do not control and cannot compel.
Third, ownership is fragmented. Many groups care deeply, but none can legitimately lead alone.
Fourth, the issue generates political heat and executive attention without producing durable results.
Fifth, money is being spent. Pilots launch, reports circulate, consultants rotate through. Still, nothing scales.
When three or more of these are present, leaders are no longer facing a strategy challenge. They are facing an ecosystem challenge.
This is the moment when doing more of the same becomes destructive. People lose faith. Stakeholders disengage. The organization absorbs the blame for something it cannot solve alone.
The leadership task shifts. The question is no longer, “What is our strategy?” It becomes, “Who must move together for this to change, and what would make that possible?”
Not every challenge should become an ecosystem initiative. In fact, many should not. Knowing the difference is a core act of leadership.
Strategy remains essential. But when it is no longer sufficient, it is time to give serious consideration to an ecosystem solution.
If you are wrestling with whether a challenge has reached that point and want a sounding board, or are not sure how to start, feel free to write me. You do not need a contract to have a conversation.
