Abstract Book of the 2nd Global Conference on Management and Economics
Year: 2025
[PDF]
Where Numbers Meet People: Defining and Leading the Strategyexecution-Execution Interface
Natalie Runoff
ABSTRACT:
The global cost of the strategy-execution gap is estimated at US$9.6 trillion annually (Gallup, 2025), yet leadership studies continue to treat strategy and execution as separate domains. The space between them, where strategic intent meets operational delivery, remains undefined, unowned, and unmeasured. This presentation formalizes that blind spot as the Strategy-Execution Interface (SEI): the dynamic domain where structural (“hard”) and relational (“soft”) capabilities intersect to produce results, and where the strategy-execution gap silently consumes resources. The contribution is threefold. First, the SEI is defined as a distinct construct requiring visibility, ownership, and accountability. Second, the presentation introduces three sustaining pillars that stabilize the interface: accountability centres (Runoff, 2025), communication loops that maintain alignment and trust, and diagnostic-plus-measurement systems that make performance visible and actionable. Third, the session explores a typology of drift dynamics: structural vs relational, functional vs dysfunctional, and demonstrates how unmanaged drift widens the gap, while managed drift can be harnessed as a contextual strength. Building on this foundation, the presentation proposes an emerging set of SEI metrics and ratios designed to assess alignment, decision latency, feedback closure, and execution reliability. By making the SEI visible, structured, and measurable, this work reframes the strategy-execution gap from an inevitable failure point into a system that can be structured, measured, and led effectively. Attendees will leave with a new conceptual lens for leadership studies and practical diagnostic tools relevant to executives, HR leaders, boards, and investors.
Keywords: Layered Leadership; Leadership Measurement Systems; Accountability Centers; Communication Loops; Organizational Drift Dynamics