Reclaim the Plot

Introduction: Why the Future of Leadership Speaks in Stories, Not Data xi
Prelude: The Urgent Meeting 1

ACT I The Drift 5
Scene 1: The Theory of Everyone Else 6
Commentary: What We Teach, We Become 10
The Research: Can We Trust People to Work? 12
Hot Take: When a Lack of Trust Moves Outside the Classroom 14
Reflective Exercise: The Beliefs Beneath Your Behavior 16
Scene 2: Blinded by the Stock 18
Commentary: But Leaders Do Care 24
Hot Take: It Is the Responsibility of Leaders to Care for Their People 26
The Research: What Is the Purpose of Business? 27
Measuring What Matters 29
Reflective Exercise: When Purpose Goes Missing 31
Scene 3: Startup Mode 33
Commentary: The Refounding Illusion 39
Hot Take: A Startup Mindset Is an Excuse for Chaos 41
The Research: What Causes the Drift from a Shared Reality? 42
The Mirror Problem 42
A Self-Serving Power Paradox 44
Reflective Exercise: Returning to Curiosity 47
Scene 4: The Strategic Reset 49
Commentary: RIFs Can Make You Delirious 53
Hot Take: HR Protects the Business 54
The Research: A Changing Social Contract 57
The Hidden Consequences of Layoffs 59
Make it Make Sense: Coaching Corner with Executive Coach Kim Fazio 60
Let's Break It Down Before It Breaks Us 60
Cupcakes in the Cafeteria 61
A Way Back: The Repair Pathway 62

ACT II The Delirium 65
Scene 5: Peak Delusion 67
Commentary: Crossing the AI Valuation Bridge into Delusion 73
Hot Take: My Own Delusion with AI 77
The Research: AI, Burnout, and the Productivity Paradox 79
Reflection: What Is AI Doing For You and To You? 82
Scene 6: Don't Worry, AI's Got This 84
Commentary: When We Delegate to the Machines 89
Hot Take: Help Me Get My Kid Out of My House 91
The Research: Gen Z at Work 94
Reflection: What Happens When the Bottom Rung Disappears 97
Scene 7: All-Star Culture 99
Commentary: When Technical Expertise Reigns 105
Hot Take: The High-Potential Trap 107
The Research: Manager as Pace-Setter 109
The Deloitte Experiment: When Managers Change Pace, Performance Changes 110
Scene 8: Power Transfer 113
Commentary: From Leadership Heroes to Teams of Teams 117
Make It Make Sense: Kim's Coaching Corner 120
When the Guardrails Come Off 120
When the Silence Does the Heavy Lifting 121
Who Do We Choose to Be? 122
Epilogue: One Year Later 124

ACT III The Dream: Reclaiming the Plot 129
Reclaim the Plot at Work 131
Power: When Uncertainty Rose, the System Defaulted to Narrow Access 132
Listening: When the System Optimizes for Momentum, Not Understanding 134
Ownership: When Leaders Stop Owning the Talent Agenda 136
Truth: When the System Filters Transparency in All Directions 138
Reclaim Your PLOT 139
Another Way 140
Scene 1: A Rewiring 141
Scene 2: Heeding the Warning 144
Scene 3: Pursuing Substance, Not Applause 150
Scene 4: Pace Is Political 156
Scene 5: Interdependence Hurts 160
Scene 6: AI as a Mirror 163
Scene 7: The Unsexy Win 167
Epilogue: Ten Years Later 170

Notes 175
About the Author 179
Acknowledgments 181
Index 184