Internal & External Strategic "Fit"

Strategy Execution by Design Series

Lever 2: Strategic Clarity & Alignment
Element 2: Internal & External Strategic "Fit"

So, you've defined your Strategy, but how well is your organisation aligned to deliver it?

Execution depends not just on the quality of the strategy, but on whether your internally and externally 'fit' to deliver it.

Many years ago, I was consulting for a government agency. They'd moved from strategy development straight into delivery. The challenge: each leader interpreted the strategy differently, designing initiatives that conflicted and pulled in opposing directions. Staff were frustrated. What was missing was a bridge between ambition and action - what strategic management calls fit.

🔹 Internal fit is the degree of coherence inside the organisation. Do resources, structures, processes, and culture reinforce each other to support strategy? Without it, effort fragments, decisions slow, and teams lose focus.

🔹 External fit is alignment with the outside environment, customers, competitors, regulators, technology, risks, and opportunities. It keeps strategy relevant, adaptive, and competitive. Without it, organisations execute efficiently on the wrong things: projects get delivered, but strategy drifts out of step with reality.

Fit is the goal; the operating model is how it comes to life. It's the blueprint that turns strategic intent into how the organisation actually works, both internally and externally. Internally, it translates goals into processes, systems, and ways of working so people know what to do. Externally, it shapes how the organisation presents itself to the market and adapts to changing conditions.

Execution succeeds or fails on the strength of fit. McKinsey highlights that bridging the gap between strategy and operating model is essential to deliver at pace. Nicolaj Siggelkow introduced dynamic fit, recognising that alignment can't be static; it must evolve as markets shift. My research echoed these insights: executives were most frustrated when projects weren't aligned to the future state (internal misfit) or when strategy stayed static as the environment evolved. In contrast, organisations that invested in both saw execution accelerate.

The cost of misfit is real. Without internal fit, silos optimise for themselves and execution fragments. Without external fit, the organisation delivers efficiently on the wrong things. Without both, competitive advantage erodes.

So, what can organisations do differently?
- Define fit first: be explicit about what alignment means for your organisation, inside and out, before rushing into delivery.
- Review and adjust: check that internal coherence and external positioning still hold as conditions change.

With fit, the organisation is designed to deliver and positioned to adapt.
That's why Strategic Clarity & Alignment is a key element under Lever 2 in my Execution by Design model.

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