Leadership Alignment: Navigating an Era of Relentless Change
We are operating in a business environment defined by relentless change. New technologies, regulatory shifts, competitive pressures, and evolving employee expectations are reshaping organizations faster than leaders can process and respond.
As Joe Perricone, a VP of Global Clients at Ariel, put it, “The pace of change isn’t slowing down. It’s accelerating, and leaders are feeling that pressure everywhere.” That pressure shows up in decision bottlenecks, misaligned priorities, and leadership teams struggling to execute together as conditions keep shifting.
The cost of failing to keep up is significant. Organizations lose 5 to 10 percent of annual revenue due to missed handoffs, duplicated work, and wasted resources caused by poor alignment. For a $100 million organization, this results in $5 to $10 million lost every year.
In this article, we unpack the cost of fragmented leadership and how intentional internal alignment helps organizations keep pace with constant change.
The High Cost of Misalignment and External Hiring
When disruption strikes, many organizations look outward for answers. They bring in external leaders, expecting fresh perspectives to drive rapid change. Too often, this approach creates friction, not progress.
For example, a medical device company we partnered with repeatedly hired strong external leaders who struggled to integrate and eventually left. These leaders had the right capabilities, but they lacked alignment with how the organization operated. They spoke a ‘different language’, held different expectations about how decisions were made, and relied on leadership frameworks that did not match the company’s culture.
The costs mounted quickly:
- Teams received mixed signals about priorities and direction
- Strategy became diluted in execution
- Time and money were lost as turnover increased
Leadership fragments when change outpaces alignment.
The solution is intentional action towards a shared language, unified frameworks, and aligned decision-making processes. This foundation of leadership alignment allows them to drive change together, as a whole organization or team.
Why Promoting From Within Is Not Enough
In response to rising costs caused by poor organizational alignment, many organizations turn inward. These newly promoted leaders bring real advantages. As former individual contributors and managers inside the organization, they understand how work actually gets done. They have credibility, institutional knowledge, and established relationships that external hires cannot quickly build.
But internal promotion alone does not solve the problem of alignment.
These newly promoted Directors and VPs step into roles that are far more complex than their previous positions. They may know the culture well, but familiarity does not create strategic alignment. Without a shared framework and leadership development to help new leaders in decision making and execution, organizations do not fix misalignment. They reinforce it into the leadership structure.
Alignment Is Not About Speed. It’s About Coherence.
Change management often focuses on keeping up with external forces. The real challenge is not the speed of change. The question is whether leaders align on how to interpret and respond to that change.
Leadership alignment creates a measurable competitive advantage. Organizations with aligned leadership teams grow revenue 58% faster and achieve 72% higher profitability.
Organizations cannot control external pressures such as new regulations, emerging competitors, or disruptive technologies. However, they can control how leaders define priorities, make decisions, and enable teams to act together in response.
When leaders align their teams and organization towards shared goals, they show a clear understanding of what is changing, why it matters, and how the organization will move forward. They operate within shared frameworks, language, and priorities.
Building the Capabilities That Enable Alignment
Alignment can’t be achieved with one-off training sessions or isolated plans. It is built through shared experiences that help leaders think beyond their individual functions and see the enterprise as a whole.
Effective leadership development focuses on building capabilities such as:
- Navigating ambiguity and uncertainty with confidence
- Leading alignment conversations across functions
- Translating strategy into coordinated action
- Influencing without authority
- Thinking systemically rather than reactively
These capabilities allow leaders not only to align themselves but to guide their teams and influence the broader organization.
Leadership capability drives organizations to move forward in the face of disruption.
The 2026 Reset for Change Management
As we begin a new year, organizations naturally revisit strategy and budgets. That reset creates a critical moment to address a harder question: Are leaders aligned to execute what comes next?
Change will continue. Alignment requires deliberate effort.
Organizations that invest in executive presence and strategic alignment at the leadership level move faster, execute better, and lead through disruption.
About Joe Perricone
Joe Perricone is the Vice President of Global Clients at Ariel Group, bringing over 20 years of experience in driving growth, developing talent, and building lasting relationships across diverse industries. At Ariel, he collaborates with senior leaders at Fortune 500 companies and global organizations to elevate leadership communication, executive presence, and team effectiveness through strategic insight and a consultative approach.
Known for his curiosity and commitment to client success, Joe is passionate about empowering leaders to strengthen their influence and authenticity via executive coaching and instructor-led programs. After returning to Ariel in 2025 with renewed energy, he continues to shape impactful client partnerships. Outside of work, Joe enjoys family life in suburban Philadelphia, loves the beach, and thrives on great conversation.
