Strategy Meets Reality Podcast (Mike Jones)

Most organisations focus on structure when they talk about change—but structure isn’t what makes an organisation adaptive.

In this opening episode, Mike Burrows joins host Mike Jones to explore what it really means to build deliberately adaptive organisations. Drawing on his work with Agendashift, Mike challenges the assumption that hierarchy or agile-by-the-book can handle complexity—and offers a practical, purpose-driven alternative.

We explore:

• Why designing for participation matters more than structure
• The trap of importing organisational models out of context
• Why clarity of purpose is key in uncertain environments
• What leaders need to unlearn to support real adaptability

If you’re wrestling with how to make your organisation more responsive, this conversation will help you rethink the basics.

Guest Bio:
Mike Burrows is the founder of Agendashift and author of Right to Left and Agendashift. He works globally with organisations building outcome-oriented, participatory approaches to change.

📘 Pre-order his new book Wholehearted: Engaging with Complexity the Deliberately Adaptive Organisation → https://amzn.eu/d/5ezZG1t

🎧 Keywords: strategy, organisational design, adaptability, Mike Burrows, deliberately adaptive organisations, Agendashift, leadership, systems thinking, complexity, participation, organisational change

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Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast.

🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast

📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality
🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout

💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

What does the OODA loop really mean—and why do most leaders get it wrong?

In this episode, Chet Richards—military strategist, Boyd collaborator, and author of Certain to Win—joins host Mike Jones to dive into the deeper layers of John Boyd’s thinking. We go beyond the buzzwords to explore how orientation drives every aspect of decision-making, tempo, and strategic agility.

You’ll learn why mental models—not just data—shape how organisations perceive, decide, and act in complexity.

🔍 In this episode:

• What orientation really means in the OODA loop
• Why decision-making is more than speed—it’s about fit
• The role of decentralisation and trust in military and business leadership
• How culture and power dynamics shape your ability to adapt
• What business can and can’t learn from military doctrine

Guest Bio:
Chet Richards is a retired USAF Colonel and a leading interpreter of John Boyd’s work. He is the author of Certain to Win: The Strategy of John Boyd, Applied to Business, and has worked with military, government, and corporate leaders on applying Boyd’s ideas to organisational life.

📘 Buy the book: https://a.co/d/9ZR4Pvp

🔗 Learn more: https://slightlyeastofnew.com

🎧 Keywords: Strategy, OODA loop, Decision Making, Chet Richards, John Boyd, Orientation, Decentralisation, Leadership, Military Strategy, Business Agility, Organisational Behaviour, Systems Thinking

Send Mike a Message

👂 Enjoying the show?
Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast.

🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast

📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality
🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout

💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

Strategy isn’t a plan—it’s a pattern.

In this episode, systems thinker and strategy expert Patrick Hoverstadt joins host Mike Jones to explore what strategy looks like in real life: dynamic, context-driven, and shaped by power, fit, and timing.

Patrick introduces the Patterns of Strategy approach, offering a powerful lens to understand the relational, political, and temporal dimensions of strategic positioning—far beyond alignment or linear models.

If you're tired of empty strategy decks and want to understand how strategy really unfolds in complexity, this one’s for you.

🔍 In this episode:

• Why strategy is a pattern of positioning over time
• Understanding power and fit as core to strategic dynamics
• Why “alignment” is often a trap
• How to navigate ecosystems and competing players
• Using patterns, not plans, to steer in uncertainty

Guest Bio:
Patrick Hoverstadt is the author of Patterns of Strategy and The Grammar of Systems. He works with senior leadership teams on strategic direction and organisational viability in complex systems.

📘 Learn more about Patterns of Strategy: https://amzn.eu/d/5ieaTGz

🎧 Keywords: strategy, systems thinking, Patrick Hoverstadt, organisational design, complexity, leadership, decision-making

Send Mike a Message

👂 Enjoying the show?
Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast.

🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast

📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality
🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout

💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/

What future do you want—and why don’t most organisations stop to ask?

In this episode, Eva Tomas—a futurist by nature, engineer by training, and philosopher at heart—joins host Mike Jones to explore how futures thinking can help leaders act with more clarity in a world of complexity. They unpack why linear strategy falls short, how uncertainty is often misunderstood, and why leaders must look beyond the immediate to open up new choices.

You’ll learn how Eva’s Banyan model reconnects past, present, and futures—offering a practical way to rethink strategy as collective sensemaking rather than prediction.

🔍 In this episode:

• Why “the future” is a myth—and why we must think in futures
• How certainty is an illusion that limits decision-making
• What can leaders do to find directionality without fixed goals
• Why diversity of perspective expands strategic insight
• The role of participation in organisational foresight
• How to spot positive signals in a sea of noise
• A simple exercise to surface hidden narratives and beliefs

Guest Bio:
Eva Tomas is a futurist and founder of Simple Thinking, working with organisations, educators, and youth to rethink strategy, direction, and agency in complex systems. Her work blends foresight, philosophy, and systems thinking to help leaders move from passive prediction to active participation in shaping the future.

🔗 Learn more: Eva LinkedIn
📘 Explore the Banyan Model

🎧 Keywords: Futurist, Strategy, Complexity, Futures Thinking, Leadership, Decision Making, Banyan Model, Systems Thinking, Positive Signals, Organisational Change, Uncertainty

Send Mike a Message

👂 Enjoying the show?
Subscribe and leave a review on your favourite platform — it helps more people find the podcast.

🔗 Full episodes, show notes, and resources: https://www.lbiconsulting.com/strategymeetsreality-podcast

📺 Watch on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@StrategyMeetsReality
🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Buzzsprout

💬 Connect with host Mike Jones → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-h-jones/