Dealing with the Ants

Are your leaders focused on strategic work—or are they too busy dealing with ants in the hallway? 🐜 🐜 🐜 🐜 🐜

I recently spoke with an executive who’s frustrated that her leaders aren’t operating at a strategic level. Until now, their leadership culture has been all about execution, with only the most senior leaders expected to think strategically. But as the company evolves to meet industry changes, how their leaders work needs to evolve too.

By “strategic,” I mean:

• Focusing on the biggest priorities that drive the business forward
• Thinking systemically about upstream and downstream impacts
• Putting plans in place and delegating execution

Here’s a perfect example of the challenge:

When this executive asked a leader for an update on a key strategic initiative, the response was, “I haven’t gotten to that yet—we have ants in the hallway, and I need to take care of that first.”

Yes, the ants matter. But why didn’t the leader delegate that work?

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It would be easy to suggest a leadership development program on strategic thinking or delegation. But in my experience, that won’t solve the root problem. And if you don’t solve the right problem, you waste time and resources.

So, how do you get to the root? You ask better questions:

1. How clear are the leaders on these new expectations?
2. What will this change mean for them? And what identity, certainty, or expertise might they feel they’re losing?
3. How have leaders been rewarded in the past? If handling the “ants” earned praise two years ago, we can’t ignore that we’ve moved their cheese.

Here’s the approach I proposed:

1. Clarify the expectations. We’ll define what “being strategic” actually looks like in observable behaviors.
2. Get curious about the current reality. We’ll engage leaders to understand their perspective, what barriers they face, and where they need support.
3. Co-create the solution. Instead of prescribing a generic program, we’ll involve the leaders in designing solutions that work for their reality. This creates ownership, engagement, and real change.

And only then will we put a development solution in place.

Will this approach take longer? Yep. Will it cost more than a quick training? Sure.

But will it actually solve the problem? Absolutely.

Telling a leader, “Just delegate the ants and think strategically,” won’t cut it.

But getting clear on expectations, identifying the real barriers, and solving those? That’s how you make lasting change.

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