Leading with Strategic Thinking: Four Ways Effective Leaders Gain Insight, Drive Change, and Get Results

Foreword

Disruptive change requires a new type of strategic leadership. While it is hard to define, we know what it looks like when we see it and when we don't. This book creates a new lexicon for this critical skill set and actionable ideas on how to develop a strategic perspective, apply adaptive thinking, and demonstrate courageous leadership.

A good example of the complex challenges we face is health care. It's clear that the traditional way of delivering health benefits—and health care—is broken. Costs continue to rise unabated, and the health of the population continues to decline. Nowhere is this more acute than in the United States. For the first time in decades, key stakeholders from employers, to insurance carriers, to health care providers, to government are all working on ways to fix a system that is ripe for fundamental change. In my recent discussions with literally hundreds of government leaders, CEOs in the health care industry, and senior executives at some of the world's largest employers, they are all trying to make sense of their role in an evolving health environment. They must rethink their definition of health and performance, reexamine the strength of the implied contract for health between employers and employees, and reconsider their role in transforming the health ecosystem in ways that align risk and consequences and drive healthy behaviors and outcomes.

This is just one example of a new breed of disruptive forces that are fueling upstarts and challenging ...