Alignment is a word that gets thrown around a lot, and as I have written before, it has many different meanings depending on the context. Over the last 18 months, I’ve spoken with more than 100 organisations about alignment, and most executives will tell you they believe they are aligned.
If, on the other hand, you ask where they are misaligned—a question best reserved for clients where trust exists—you tend to get very different answers. Misalignment feels more tangible because it’s anchored in issues and problems people have encountered.
The most common form is misalignment with key corporate strategies or business objectives. One senior Head of People who is on the board of a listed company, stated after completing an A2A strategy based on the organisations next 12 months, stated:
“This has made me realise that our People Department just do stuff—and it is NOT aligned to our key business goals.”
My following questions were:
What is the potential impact and cost of this misalignment?
What strategic value does the People Function provide without attributing to the business goals?
The Real Cost of Misalignment
As Brent Gleeson notes, “Misalignment isn’t just a business inefficiency—it’s a silent killer of growth and culture.” Misalignment can sneak in quietly, one small gap at a time, until the space between what leadership believes and what is happening becomes huge.
Shanna Apitz observes that while many leaders believe their organisations are about 80% aligned, alignment is often closer to 20%. According to McKinsey research, fewer than 25% of executives feel their organisations are effectively aligned on strategy and priorities. This is a significant difference between reality and beliefs.
That gap leads to wasted time, duplicated effort, increased costs, and missed opportunities.
Why Alignment Matters More Than Ever
When an organisation’s culture is misaligned, “people move in different directions and make it impossible to advance” (Caitlin MacGregor). Alignment transforms culture into a force multiplier—driving coordinated decisions, shared behaviours, and collective purpose. Without it, silos grow, morale dips, and agility suffers.
Gleeson warns that leaders who fail to address misalignment “stall growth” and erode trust. The most effective leaders actively create alignment between vision, strategy, and execution—not by accident, but by design.
A2A and the Cost of Misalignment
At A2A, we’ve tried to calculate the cost of misalignment, and it’s a fascinating exercise. While cost, scale, and complexity are key variables, even a conservative estimate reveals a significant financial and cultural drain. We’ve shared our approach here: Uncovering the Hidden Cost of Misalignment.
Refined Seven Common Areas of Misalignment
When calculating the cost of misalignment in organisations, seven recurring factors stand out. Each one highlights a different way strategy, people, and execution can drift apart:
- Strategy
Activities and decisions must be anchored to the organisation’s core vision and business direction. When strategy is unclear or fragmented, alignment unravels quickly. - Goals
Clear goals at every level translate strategy into actionable outcomes. Without alignment here, individuals and teams may be productive but not purposeful. - Communication
How strategy and goals are shared across the organisation determines whether people pull in the same direction. Communication gaps almost always create gaps in alignment. - Processes
Processes are the mechanisms through which strategy is executed. When they are inconsistent or siloed, effort is wasted and outcomes diverge from intent. - Culture
Culture shapes behaviours and engagement. A culture out of step with stated goals creates friction and slows momentum, even when the strategy looks good on paper. - Projects
Projects consume time, capital, and energy. They become expensive distractions if they aren’t directly tied to business priorities. - Execution Discipline
Ultimately, alignment shows up in what gets delivered. A low initiative completion rate often signals a deeper misalignment between goals, processes, and resources.
Next Steps
The impact of misalignment isn’t hypothetical — it’s measurable. At A2A, we’ve developed tools to help leaders identify where misalignment exists, quantify its cost, and chart a path back to alignment.
If you’d like to understand the degree of alignment (or misalignment) in your organisation, we’d be happy to share our approach. A short conversation could reveal where hidden gaps cost you time, money, and momentum.