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Build momentum for Q2 FY27

Build momentum for Q2 FY27

by | Sep 28, 2026 | Business Tips

Strategy & execution / Q2 FY27

Build momentum
for Q2 FY27.

Why your next 90-day plan starts now.

By Russell Cummings28 September 20268 minute read
From direction to daily action.A rhythm that keeps your priorities moving.
3-5 YEARSStrategy
FY27Annual plan
Q2 FY2790-day plan
MONTHLYMilestones
WEEKLYCommitments
DAILYAction

As September draws to a close, now is the time to prepare your 90-day plan for Q2 FY27: October to December 2026.

This quarter takes your business to the halfway point of the financial year. The priorities you choose now will influence both your December position and the platform you take into January.

There is also a practical reality. Customer deadlines, Christmas trading, staff leave and shutdown periods can compress the time available. Waiting until October is well underway makes it easier for immediate demands to take control.

But completing the plan is only the beginning.

The real value of 90-day planning is the momentum it creates through consistent action.

That momentum comes from connecting your longer-term direction to clear quarterly outcomes, then keeping those outcomes alive through monthly reviews, weekly commitments and daily priorities.

Start with the bigger picture

Your quarterly plan should sit within a clear planning structure.

Ideally, you already have a strategic plan that sets your direction for the next three to five years. You should also have an Annual Operating Plan for FY27 that translates that direction into the outcomes required by 30 June 2027.

The connection is straightforward:

  • Strategic plan: Where do we want the business to be in three to five years?
  • Annual Operating Plan: What must we achieve this financial year to move towards that future?
  • 90-day plan: What must we achieve this quarter to keep the annual plan moving?

Each level makes the next one more focused.

Suppose your three-year ambition is to build a business that operates successfully without your involvement in every decision. Your annual plan might include developing managers, clarifying responsibilities and improving operating systems.

Your Q2 plan then identifies the next practical steps: delegate specific decisions, introduce a management reporting rhythm and document two critical processes.

Now the quarter has a purpose that everyone can understand.

If your annual plan needs attention, address that first. Our Annual Operating Planning video and template provide a practical starting point.

Use Q1 to make better Q2 decisions

Before deciding what comes next, take an honest look at the quarter just completed.

Where have you made progress? Which commitments remain unfinished? What have you learnt about your customers, your team and your own capacity?

Look beyond whether tasks were completed. Consider whether the work produced the intended result.

You might have launched a marketing campaign without generating enough qualified enquiries. You might have recruited a manager while still retaining every important decision yourself.

Activity and outcomes need separate attention.

Ask your team:

  • What moved our annual priorities forward?
  • What stalled and why?
  • Which assumptions proved inaccurate?
  • What should we continue, change or stop?
  • What unfinished work still deserves a place in Q2?

Avoid automatically carrying every incomplete action into the next quarter. Some work needs renewed commitment. Other work needs redesigning or removing.

An effective review improves the quality of your next decisions. It also gives the team an opportunity to recognise progress before moving on.

Choose a few outcomes that matter

A useful 90-day plan gives people a manageable set of priorities.

For many businesses, three major priorities are a sensible starting point. The right number depends on the scope of the work and the capacity available alongside normal operations.

These priorities are your Big Rocks: the outcomes that deserve protected attention because they materially advance the annual plan.

Be specific about what success means.

“Improve sales” gives the team little direction. “Introduce a consistent enquiry follow-up process and lift quote conversion from 25% to 30% by quarter end” creates a clearer target.

“Develop the team” is broad. “Train two supervisors to run weekly production meetings independently by 30 November” makes the expected change visible.

For each priority, define:

  • The outcome required.
  • How you will measure success.
  • One person accountable for delivery.
  • The key milestones and deadlines.
  • The time, support and resources needed.

Our 90-day planning video and instructions and editable 90-day plan template can help you structure this work.

SHIFFT 90-day plan template with goals, key measures, Big Rocks, actions, owners and deadlines
A clear plan on one page. Connect your quarterly goals with actions, owners and deadlines.
Download the editable 90-day planning template ↗

Plan for the quarter you actually have

October to December deserves a realistic capacity check.

A project that appears achievable across three months may become difficult once you account for leave, customer commitments, peak trading and supplier availability.

Put those constraints into the calendar before committing to deadlines.

If a key manager is away in December, their major implementation work may need to finish in November. If your business faces a Christmas rush, improvements intended to support that rush need to be operating beforehand.

Also consider dependencies. A new reporting process may require better data first. Delegating decisions may require training before responsibility can transfer.

Sequence the work so each step prepares the next.

Leave room for normal business demands and unexpected issues. A plan that consumes every available hour becomes fragile as soon as circumstances change.

Credible commitments help build trust. Repeated overcommitment makes planning feel disconnected from reality.

Build momentum through a regular cadence

Once the plan is agreed, establish the rhythm that will keep it moving.

Cadence is the regular pattern of planning, action and review that builds momentum.

It gives people repeated opportunities to make progress, see results and adjust their approach.

When a priority comes up every week, obstacles become visible sooner. When someone completes a milestone, the team sees evidence that the plan is working. When circumstances change, you can respond while there is still time to influence the result.

Over time, those small cycles strengthen confidence and follow-through.

The 90-day plan provides the overall framework. Monthly, weekly and daily routines turn it into a working system.

Monthly: check progress towards the outcome

At the start of each month, identify what needs to be achieved by month end to keep the quarter on track.

Review results against the quarterly measures. Check milestones, resources and emerging problems.

Ask: “Given where we are today, what needs our attention this month?”

For example, a Q2 priority to improve customer retention might involve reviewing lost accounts in October, testing a follow-up process in November and evaluating the results in December.

Each month advances the same outcome.

Weekly: turn priorities into commitments

Your weekly review connects the plan to immediate action.

Keep the conversation focused:

  • What did we commit to last week?
  • What was completed?
  • What is getting in the way?
  • What must happen this week?
  • Who needs help or a decision?

Be clear about the next deliverable and its owner.

“Work on the customer process” is difficult to assess. “Complete the draft follow-up checklist and test it with three accounts by Friday” creates a useful commitment.

Use the meeting to resolve obstacles as well as report progress.

Daily: protect time for important work

Daily planning is where personal productivity supports business execution.

Before opening your inbox and responding to everyone else’s priorities, identify the work that will advance your weekly commitments.

Choose a small number of must-do actions. Allocate time for them in your calendar.

You still need to handle customers, operational issues and unexpected demands. However, important work needs a deliberate place in the day.

A protected hour spent improving a critical process can create more lasting value than a day filled entirely with reactive tasks.

Connect your business plan to your personal productivity

Every business priority eventually becomes someone’s responsibility.

For owners and leaders, this creates a practical challenge: how do you keep strategic commitments visible while managing a busy working day?

The connection needs to run all the way through:

Annual priorities → quarterly outcomes → monthly milestones → weekly commitments → daily actions.

Our Focused Execution 90-Day Productivity and Planning Journal supports this process by connecting your 90-day plan with monthly, weekly and daily priorities.

90-Day Productivity Planner by Russell Cummings, October to December 2026, with a navy and purple cover
Your next quarter.
One practical daily companion.The October to December 2026 journal connects your 90-day priorities with monthly, weekly and daily action.
Explore the 90-Day Productivity Planner ↗

Use it as part of your working routine. Keep your priorities visible, schedule the next actions and review what you actually completed.

The journal provides structure. Consistent use turns that structure into a habit.

You can also use our planning and productivity videos for guidance on cascading plans, weekly planning, daily planning and time blocking.

Put the rhythm in place now

Before Q2 begins, book the planning session and schedule the reviews that will support delivery.

Bring your strategic direction, FY27 Annual Operating Plan and Q1 results into the discussion. Agree on the few outcomes that matter most by December. Assign ownership and check that the commitments fit your available capacity.

Then make sure everyone knows what happens in the first week.

Momentum starts with a clear next action. It grows when that action is completed, reviewed and followed by another.

By December, you want to see meaningful progress on the priorities that will shape your business. That requires attention throughout the quarter.

Build your Q2 plan now. Give it a place in your monthly conversations, weekly commitments and daily decisions.

The plan sets the direction.
The cadence builds the momentum.
What are you tolerating? The leadership question that changes everything.

What are you tolerating? The leadership question that changes everything.

by | Sep 28, 2026 | Business Tips

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Leadership

What are you
tolerating?

The leadership question that changes everything.

SHIFFT6 minute read

Every business has frustrations. Missed deadlines. Unclear communication. Recurring customer complaints. Processes that require more effort than they should.

Most leaders can identify these problems quickly. The harder question is why they keep happening.

Sometimes the answer is uncomfortable: we have become used to them.

We work around the issue, explain it away or promise to address it when things settle down. Gradually, something that once frustrated us becomes an accepted part of running the business.

That is why one simple question deserves a place in every leader’s thinking:

Pause and consider

What am I tolerating today that I shouldn’t be accepting tomorrow?

It shifts attention towards the standards we set, the systems we maintain and the problems we allow to continue.

What you accept becomes the standard

Your team learns what matters by watching what happens each day.

If deadlines regularly slip without discussion, people may begin to treat them as optional. If recurring quality issues attract little attention, fixing them becomes less urgent. If meetings consistently start late, punctuality loses its value.

Written expectations still matter. Their credibility depends on what leaders consistently model and reinforce.

This applies to your own behaviour too. Are you clear about priorities? Do you follow through on commitments? Do you address difficult issues promptly?

The standard you demonstrate gives weight to the standard you expect.

Raising that standard starts with noticing where your actions and expectations have drifted apart.

How small frustrations become normal

Listen to the language people use around recurring problems:

  • “That’s just the way it works.”
  • “We’ve always done it like that.”
  • “It’s only a small issue.”
  • “We’ll fix it when we have time.”

These phrases can signal that a problem has become familiar enough to escape attention.

People are often very good at keeping work moving despite a poor process. They create another spreadsheet, add an extra check or develop a personal shortcut.

Those workarounds may help today. Over time, they can make the underlying problem harder to see.

Consider an illustrative example: a sales team regularly chases missing information before preparing quotes. Each person develops a way to fill the gaps. The quotes eventually go out, so the process appears to work.

Yet customers wait longer, staff repeat work and managers handle avoidable escalations. The team’s resourcefulness is keeping an inefficient system alive.

The leadership opportunity is to make the work easier to complete correctly.

The hidden cost of leaving things alone

Some problems are too small to appear as a separate line in your financial reports. Their combined effect can still be substantial.

Think about the time your business spends:

  • Searching for information that should be easy to find.
  • Entering the same details into different systems.
  • Chasing decisions without a clear decision-maker.
  • Repeating work because expectations were unclear.
  • Attending meetings without a defined purpose.

For illustration, ten people each losing ten minutes a working day adds up to more than eight hours a week.

There is also a cost to motivation. When employees repeatedly raise an issue and nothing changes, they may stop suggesting improvements.

A recurring frustration can become a message: this is something the business is prepared to accept.

When firefighting becomes the routine

Many leaders want to improve their business. Finding time is the challenge.

A customer escalation needs attention. A staff member is away. A supplier misses a delivery. Another deadline approaches.

The immediate problem gets resolved, but its cause remains. Next week, the same issue returns in a slightly different form.

Responding well under pressure is valuable. It also helps to ask whether the pressure was preventable.

After a recurring problem, pause long enough to ask:

What needs to change so we are less likely to deal with this again?

That question connects day-to-day problem solving with longer-term improvement. It creates a reason to examine the process, clarify ownership or remove an unnecessary step.

Raise standards while making problems safe to discuss

Higher standards work best when people feel able to explain what is getting in their way.

If raising a problem leads to blame, useful information may stay hidden. Leaders then see the consequences without understanding the conditions that created them.

Start with curiosity:

  • What happened?
  • What made the task difficult to complete correctly?
  • Were the expectations and responsibilities clear?
  • What would help prevent a repeat?

This approach still leaves room for accountability. People need clear expectations and responsibility for their commitments. They also need workable processes, appropriate support and timely decisions.

Lean leadership encourages leaders to observe how work happens and involve the people doing it in improvement.

A practical starting point is to ask your team: “Where are we making good work unnecessarily difficult?”

Then listen carefully to the answer.

Five places to look in your business

You do not need to review everything at once. Start with a familiar source of frustration.

  1. Unclear communicationLook for tasks that require repeated clarification or rework. Are the expected outcome, owner and deadline clear?
  2. Inconsistent processesFind work where variation creates errors or delays. What needs a simple, agreed way of working?
  3. Delayed decisionsNotice where work waits for approval. Is it clear who can decide and when a decision is needed?
  4. Low-value meetingsReview meetings that continue out of habit. What decision, outcome or coordination do they support?
  5. Recurring problemsIdentify issues that return despite repeated fixes. Have you addressed the cause or only dealt with the immediate effect?

Choose one thing to improve this week

Set aside 15 minutes and consider three questions:

  1. What problem have I accepted because it has become familiar?
  2. Where is my team working around a process that needs fixing?
  3. If I joined this business today, what would I question first?

Choose one issue where a practical change could make a useful difference.

Discuss it with the people involved. Agree on what better looks like, assign an owner and set a review date. Check whether the change reduces the problem.

Three key takeaways

  • What leaders consistently accept helps shape everyday standards.
  • Small recurring frustrations can consume time and weaken motivation.
  • Improvement starts by addressing one issue with clear ownership and follow-through.
Why the Same Business Problems Keep Coming Back (And How to Fix Them Permanently)

Why the Same Business Problems Keep Coming Back (And How to Fix Them Permanently)

by | Aug 25, 2026 | Business Tips

If the same problem keeps returning, you’re probably solving the symptom instead of the cause.

Every business experiences problems. Customers complain. Cashflow tightens. Staff leave. Projects run late. Margins shrink. Most leadership teams respond exactly as you would expect. They identify the issue, implement a solution and move on to the next challenge. For a while everything appears to improve. Then, a few months later, the same problem returns. It might have a slightly different appearance but it is fundamentally the same issue.
That is rarely bad luck.
It is usually a sign that the business has treated the symptom rather than addressed the underlying cause.
One of the most valuable questions any business owner can ask is not, “How do we solve this problem?” but, “What problem are we actually trying to solve?” It is a subtle change in language but it fundamentally changes the quality of the discussion. Instead of reacting to the issue in front of you, it forces you to understand why it exists in the first place. That is where meaningful improvement begins.

Most Business Problems Are Only Signals

One of the biggest misconceptions in business is that the visible problem is the real problem. In reality, most business issues are simply signals that something deeper within the organisation needs attention.
Take cashflow as an example. When cash becomes tight, many businesses immediately focus on collecting overdue invoices, extending supplier terms or increasing their overdraft. Those actions may relieve the immediate pressure but they rarely solve the underlying issue. The real cause may be poor pricing, declining margins, inefficient production, excessive inventory, weak project management or an overloaded operation that delays invoicing. Cashflow is simply where the problem eventually becomes visible.
The same pattern appears throughout almost every business. High staff turnover is often blamed on recruitment when the real issue is inconsistent leadership or a poor workplace culture. Declining sales are frequently attributed to the sales team when the real problem is an unclear value proposition or an undifferentiated offering. Customer complaints may seem to indicate poor service when they actually reveal broken internal systems, inconsistent processes or unrealistic expectations.
Symptoms are important because they tell us that something is wrong. They are rarely useful because they tell us what is wrong.

Why Intelligent Leaders Still Treat Symptoms

If identifying root causes is so important, why do so many capable business owners continue treating symptoms?
The answer is surprisingly simple. Leadership operates under pressure. Customers expect immediate answers. Employees need decisions. Suppliers want payment. Problems arrive faster than time allows for careful analysis. In that environment, taking action feels productive while investigation can feel like a luxury.
Unfortunately, speed and effectiveness are not always the same thing. A quick solution often provides immediate relief, which reinforces the belief that the problem has been solved. In reality, the underlying system remains unchanged. Eventually the symptom returns and the organisation finds itself investing more time, more money and more energy solving exactly the same issue again.
Over time this creates a culture of firefighting. Leaders become exceptionally good at responding to problems but make very little progress eliminating them. Meetings become dominated by operational issues. Teams become frustrated because familiar challenges keep resurfacing. Improvement slows because attention is continually drawn back to yesterday’s problems instead of tomorrow’s opportunities.

Think Like a Doctor, Not a Firefighter

Imagine visiting your doctor with recurring headaches.
A good doctor does not simply prescribe painkillers every time you walk through the door. They ask questions. They examine your lifestyle, medical history, stress levels and other possible contributing factors before recommending treatment. Their objective is not simply to remove the pain. Their objective is to understand why the pain exists.
Business leaders should approach problems with exactly the same discipline.
When a recurring issue appears, resist the temptation to immediately search for a solution. Instead, become curious. Ask what changed. Look for patterns. Examine the processes surrounding the issue. Challenge long-held assumptions. Sometimes the first explanation is correct. More often, it is only the beginning of the investigation.
Businesses improve far more quickly when leaders become skilled diagnosticians rather than highly efficient firefighters.

A Simple Tool That Reveals the Real Problem

One of the simplest techniques for uncovering root causes is the Five Whys. Popularised through the Toyota Production System, the technique is exactly what its name suggests. Rather than accepting the first explanation, you continue asking “Why?” until you uncover the underlying issue.
Imagine a business that regularly misses customer delivery dates.
The initial conclusion might be that production scheduling is poor. Asking why reveals that production is constantly falling behind. Asking why again shows that equipment is frequently unavailable. Another why reveals that preventative maintenance is continually postponed. Digging further uncovers that maintenance is postponed because the factory has no spare capacity to stop production. Finally, the business recognises that its real constraint is insufficient production capacity rather than poor scheduling.
Without this disciplined questioning, management might invest months refining production schedules while the underlying capacity constraint continues creating delays. The symptom changes very little because the system producing it has never been improved. This principle sits at the heart of Chapter 2, which encourages leaders to move beyond obvious explanations and identify the true source of recurring business problems.

Sustainable Improvement Comes from Better Systems

One of the defining characteristics of high-performing businesses is that they spend less time solving individual problems and more time improving the systems that create results.
Rather than continually responding to customer complaints, they redesign the customer experience. Rather than repeatedly replacing employees, they improve recruitment, onboarding and leadership capability. Rather than chasing cash every month, they strengthen pricing, forecasting and operational efficiency. Rather than blaming individuals, they examine whether the existing processes make success easy or difficult.
This approach requires patience because improving systems usually takes longer than implementing quick fixes. It also produces significantly better outcomes because well-designed systems continue delivering results long after the original problem has disappeared.
As the saying goes, every system is perfectly designed to produce the results it currently delivers. If the results are disappointing, the first place to look is the system itself.

Five Questions Worth Asking

The next time a recurring issue appears in your business, pause before discussing solutions and ask a different set of questions.
1. What problem are we actually trying to solve?
2. Have we experienced this issue before?
3. What evidence suggests this is a symptom rather than the underlying cause?
4. Which business system allowed this issue to occur?
5. If we solved the underlying cause, would this problem disappear permanently?
Those questions may take longer to answer than implementing another quick fix but they often prevent years of repeated frustration.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a root cause?
A root cause is the underlying reason a problem exists. Removing the root cause reduces the likelihood of the problem recurring because it addresses the source rather than the symptom.
What are the Five Whys?
The Five Whys is a structured questioning technique that repeatedly asks “Why?” until the underlying cause of a problem becomes clear. It is a simple but highly effective way of improving business problem solving and is discussed in Chapter 2 of The Questions You’re Not Asking.
Why do the same business problems keep returning?
Recurring problems usually indicate that the underlying process, system or behaviour has not changed. Temporary solutions may remove the immediate symptom but they rarely prevent it from returning.
Can every business problem be traced to a single cause?
Not always. Many business issues have several contributing factors. The objective is not to find one perfect answer but to identify the few underlying causes that will have the greatest impact if addressed.

The Better Question

Business owners are paid to make decisions but great leaders know that good decisions begin with good questions.
The next time your leadership team encounters a recurring challenge, resist the temptation to jump straight to solutions. Slow the conversation down. Challenge the obvious explanation. Keep asking why until the discussion shifts from symptoms to systems.
The quality of your business will rarely exceed the quality of the questions your leadership team is prepared to ask.

Ready to Solve Problems Permanently?

Chapter 2 of The Questions You’re Not Asking explores practical techniques for identifying root causes, improving decision making and solving problems that matter rather than simply treating the symptoms. If your leadership team feels like it is having the same conversations every quarter, the answer may not be better solutions. It may be better questions.
Explore The Questions You’re Not Asking About Your Business → https://amzn.asia/d/0a8fUXkU
Most business problems don’t appear suddenly.They build quietly while leaders stay busy reacting. In this practical and thought-provoking book, business coach Russell Cummings reveals the hidden questions many business owners avoid until it’s too late.
Drawing on four decades of experience across hundreds of businesses, Russell explores the real issues behind growth, leadership, culture, profitability, productivity, strategy, and resilience.
AI Habit: How to Use ChatGPT Voice Recording to Capture Ideas, Explore Opportunities and Think More Clearly

AI Habit: How to Use ChatGPT Voice Recording to Capture Ideas, Explore Opportunities and Think More Clearly

by | Aug 10, 2026 | Business Tips

VUCA Isn’t Enough Anymore: Welcome to the VUCA-S World

VUCA Isn’t Enough Anymore: Welcome to the VUCA-S World

by | Aug 10, 2026 | Business Tips

If you’ve been in business for a while, you’ll probably remember the term VUCA. It became popular after the Global Financial Crisis and quickly found its way into boardrooms, strategic planning workshops and leadership discussions. Originally developed by the US military following the end of the Cold War, it described a world that had become Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous. At the time it was a useful way of explaining why traditional planning was becoming more difficult and why leaders needed to think differently.
I believe the term is still relevant today, but it no longer tells the whole story.
Over the past few years we’ve watched geopolitical conflict disrupt global supply chains, governments introduce sweeping regulatory and taxation changes, tariffs reshape international trade and inflation, interest rates and labour shortages place pressure on businesses across almost every sector. Add to that the rapid emergence of Artificial Intelligence and widespread digital transformation, and it’s easy to see why many business owners feel they’re operating in a completely different environment.
The difference isn’t simply that the world has become more volatile. The difference is that everything is happening faster. Before we’ve adjusted to one major event, another has arrived. Information moves instantly, customer expectations continue to rise and technology evolves faster than most organisations can comfortably absorb. That’s why I believe VUCA needs another letter.

S for Speed.

Not because speed is another business challenge, but because it amplifies every one of the others. We are no longer operating in a VUCA world. We are operating in a VUCA-S world, where volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity are all accelerated by the increasing speed of business.

Speed Changes Everything

Volatility isn’t new. Markets have always risen and fallen, governments have always changed policy and competitors have always emerged. Uncertainty has always been part of running a business, and every experienced owner knows that perfect information rarely exists when important decisions need to be made.
What has changed is the pace at which these forces now move.
Volatility arrives faster. Uncertainty spreads globally within hours. Complexity increases as businesses become more connected through technology, regulation and global supply chains. Ambiguity lasts longer because information now travels faster than facts, making it increasingly difficult to separate informed opinion from speculation.
For business owners and managers, that creates a very different leadership challenge. The issue is no longer simply understanding change. It’s understanding change quickly enough to make good decisions before circumstances shift again.

Speed Doesn’t Reward Panic

One of the biggest mistakes I see is businesses confusing speed with urgency. They aren’t the same thing.
Urgency often creates reactive behaviour. Every new headline demands attention. Every customer request becomes an emergency. Every new technology suddenly appears to require immediate investment. Before long, leadership teams spend their days responding to whatever seems most pressing rather than concentrating on what is most important.
The businesses that perform well in uncertain environments don’t necessarily move faster than everyone else. They make better decisions sooner because they’ve already invested time thinking about possible futures. They have clearer priorities, stronger systems and more disciplined decision-making processes. When disruption occurs, they don’t have to start thinking from scratch because they’ve already considered many of the possibilities.
That’s one of the reasons I’ve become such a strong advocate for scenario planning. As I discuss in The Questions You’re Not Asking About Your Business, the purpose of planning isn’t to predict the future. It’s to prepare for several possible futures so you’re ready to adapt as events unfold.

AI Is Accelerating the Speed of Business

Artificial Intelligence hasn’t created this new environment, but it has certainly accelerated it.
Tasks that previously took hours now take minutes. Marketing content can be produced almost instantly. Reports can be analysed in seconds. Customer enquiries are answered around the clock. Software development, research, forecasting and administration are all becoming significantly faster.
That’s an extraordinary opportunity, but it also creates a trap.
When information becomes instant, leaders can begin believing that every decision should also be instant. Yet judgement still takes time. Experience still matters. Reflection still matters. AI can process information at incredible speed, but it cannot replace the commercial judgement that comes from understanding your customers, your people and your business.
Technology should help us make better decisions, not simply faster ones.

Annual Planning Is No Longer Enough

None of this means strategic planning has become less important. If anything, it’s become more important than ever. What has changed is the rhythm of planning.
There was a time when many businesses developed an annual plan, reviewed it periodically and expected it to remain largely relevant for twelve months. In today’s environment that’s becoming increasingly unrealistic. Your long-term direction may remain unchanged, but the path you take to get there will almost certainly require regular adjustment.
That’s why I continue to encourage clients to think in multiple time horizons. Have a clear long-term strategy. Translate that into annual priorities. Then execute in focused 90-day cycles, reviewing assumptions and making adjustments as new information becomes available. Businesses that shorten their learning cycles will almost always outperform those that simply produce longer plans.

Resilience Has Become a Competitive Advantage

For years, businesses were encouraged to focus on efficiency. Reduce inventory. Minimise costs. Remove spare capacity. Optimise every process. Those disciplines remain important, but recent events have reminded us that efficiency without resilience can leave a business surprisingly vulnerable.
The organisations that have navigated uncertainty most successfully have generally shared a number of common characteristics. They have built financial buffers, developed stronger leadership capability, diversified key risks and created systems that allow them to respond calmly rather than react emotionally. They understand that resilience isn’t wasted capacity – it’s strategic flexibility.
As I explore throughout the book, resilience isn’t something you build during a crisis. It’s something you build before the crisis arrives. Cash reserves, capable people, documented systems and thoughtful planning all buy something incredibly valuable when uncertainty strikes: time. And time allows leaders to make better decisions.
260613 Questions A5 softcover – FINAL.pdf

Simplicity Is Becoming More Valuable

There’s another lesson hidden inside the VUCA-S world. As the speed of business increases, unnecessary complexity becomes a significant competitive disadvantage.
Every additional approval slows decision-making. Every unnecessary meeting consumes leadership capacity. Every extra system creates friction. Every poorly designed process delays execution. Complexity doesn’t simply reduce productivity; it reduces agility.
That’s why one of the simplest disciplines I encourage businesses to adopt is continually asking three questions:
Can we eliminate it?
Can we automate it?
Can we delegate it?
The goal isn’t simply to become more efficient. It’s to create a business that can respond quickly without becoming chaotic. In a world where change is accelerating, simplicity becomes a strategic advantage.

The Real Leadership Challenge

We can’t control geopolitical conflict, government policy, global markets or technological disruption. We can’t eliminate uncertainty, and we certainly can’t predict every change that’s coming next.
What we can do is build businesses that are capable of adapting without losing focus.
That means strengthening resilience before it’s needed, simplifying operations before complexity becomes overwhelming and reviewing strategy often enough to respond intelligently as circumstances evolve. It also means resisting the temptation to react to every new development and instead maintaining the discipline to focus on what matters most.
That’s what Focused Execution has always been about. It has never been about producing the perfect plan. It’s about creating the discipline to review, adjust and execute consistently as the world changes around you.
In a VUCA-S world, that discipline may become one of the few sustainable competitive advantages left.

Three Key Takeaways

VUCA still describes today’s business environment, but speed now amplifies every element of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.
Competitive advantage is increasingly determined by how quickly a business can adapt without losing strategic focus.
Focused Execution, Scenario Planning and regular 90-day reviews provide a practical framework for leading confidently in an increasingly unpredictable world.

Want to Think More Strategically in a VUCA-S World?

In a VUCA-S world, the goal isn’t to predict exactly what happens next. It’s to ask better questions, challenge your assumptions and build a business that is prepared to adapt as circumstances change.
That’s one of the central ideas behind my book, The Questions You’re Not Asking About Your Business. Several chapters are particularly relevant to leaders navigating today’s volatile, uncertain and fast-moving environment:
Chapter 13 – Are you planning for One Future or preparing for many?
Why single path planning limits agility and increases risk.
Chapter 19 – When did you last test your assumptions?
Why strong businesses invite pressure before the market applies it.
Chapter 24 – What is Your Strategy?
Why activity without clear choices is not strategy.
Chapter 25 – Are you reinventing without the panic?
Why delayed adaptation increases risks and limits opportunity.
Chapter 26 – Would your business withstand a shock tomorrow?
Why resilience is designed before it is needed.
Together, these chapters explore many of the capabilities that matter most in a VUCA-S world: scenario planning, strategic clarity, challenging assumptions, adaptability and resilience.
You can’t eliminate volatility, uncertainty, complexity or ambiguity and you certainly can’t slow the world down. But you can build a business that is better prepared to respond to them.
Explore The Questions You’re Not Asking About Your Business → https://amzn.asia/d/0a8fUXkU
Most business problems don’t appear suddenly.They build quietly while leaders stay busy reacting. In this practical and thought-provoking book, business coach Russell Cummings reveals the hidden questions many business owners avoid until it’s too late.
Drawing on four decades of experience across hundreds of businesses, Russell explores the real issues behind growth, leadership, culture, profitability, productivity, strategy, and resilience.
5S Isn’t About Tidiness. It’s About Productivity

5S Isn’t About Tidiness. It’s About Productivity

by | Aug 10, 2026 | Business Tips

Mention 5S to many business leaders and you’ll often get the same response.
“Isn’t that just about keeping the workplace tidy?”
It’s an understandable misconception.
Photos of neatly organised workshops, labelled shelves and colour-coded tool boards have become synonymous with 5S. While these are visible outcomes, they aren’t the purpose of the methodology.
5S was never designed to create tidy workplaces. It was designed to create productive workplaces. The difference matters. Because clutter isn’t simply untidy. It’s expensive.
Every minute spent searching for information, looking for equipment, correcting mistakes or working around disorganisation is time that adds no value for the customer.
5S eliminates that waste.
That’s why it remains one of the most powerful Lean practices – whether you operate a factory, an office, a construction business or a professional services firm.

What Is 5S?

5S is a structured approach to organising work so that people can perform their jobs safely, consistently and efficiently.
The five Japanese terms are:
● Sort – Remove what isn’t needed.
● Set in Order – Organise what remains so it is easy to find and use.
● Shine – Clean and inspect the workplace regularly.
● Standardise – Create consistent ways of maintaining the improvements.
● Sustain – Build habits that make the improvements permanent.
Although simple, these five steps fundamentally change how work is performed.
They reduce friction. They reduce errors. They reduce wasted time. Most importantly, they make problems visible.

Productivity Is Lost in Small Moments

Many organisations search for major productivity breakthroughs.
New technology. Large restructuring programs. Significant capital investment.
Meanwhile, they overlook the hundreds of small interruptions that quietly consume every working day.
Employees searching for files. Looking for tools. Checking which document is the latest version.
Walking across the office to collect information. Recreating work that already exists. Waiting because something couldn’t be found.
Each interruption lasts only a few minutes. Across an organisation, those minutes become hundreds of lost hours every month. 5S attacks these hidden losses.

Sort: Remove What Doesn’t Add Value

Most workplaces accumulate unnecessary items over time.
● Old files.
● Obsolete equipment.
● Duplicate forms.
● Unused software.
● Broken tools.
● Outdated templates.
The more unnecessary items that exist, the harder it becomes to find what really matters.
Sorting asks one simple question: “Do we actually need this?”
If the answer is no, remove it.
Less clutter means faster decisions, easier navigation and fewer distractions.
The goal isn’t minimalism. The goal is focus.

Set in Order: Make Work Easy

Once unnecessary items have been removed, everything else should have a logical place.
Think about your kitchen. You don’t spend time searching for cutlery because every item has a designated location.
Business should work the same way.
Frequently used items should be immediately accessible. Documents should follow consistent naming conventions.
Digital folders should be organised logically. Equipment should be stored where it is used. Information should be easy to locate.
The objective is simple. People should spend their time working – not searching.

Shine: Cleaning Reveals Problems

Cleaning is often misunderstood as a cosmetic exercise.
Lean sees it differently. Cleaning is inspection.
When equipment is cleaned regularly, wear becomes visible. Leaks are detected earlier. Loose fittings are identified. Damage is noticed before breakdowns occur.
The same principle applies in offices.
Reviewing documents uncovers outdated information. Cleaning shared drives exposes duplicate files. Tidying workflows reveals unnecessary complexity.
Clean workplaces expose problems that clutter hides.

Standardise: Create Consistency

One organised desk achieves very little.
An organised organisation creates sustainable performance.
Standardisation ensures improvements don’t depend on individual preferences.
Everyone understands:
● where information belongs
● how documents are stored
● how equipment is maintained
● how workspaces are organised
● how routine tasks are completed
Consistency reduces confusion. It simplifies training. It improves quality. Most importantly, it creates stability – the foundation of every successful Lean organisation.

Sustain: Build Habits, Not Events

This is where many organisations struggle.
They conduct a successful 5S activity. The workplace looks excellent.
Three months later, everything has returned to its previous state.
Why? Because behaviour didn’t change.
Sustaining 5S requires leadership.
Regular reviews. Clear expectations. Visible standards. Positive reinforcement. Daily discipline.
The goal isn’t to maintain tidiness. The goal is to maintain productivity. That requires habits.

5S in the Office

Many people assume 5S belongs on the factory floor. In reality, office environments often contain just as much waste.
Consider the average working day.
How much time is spent:
● searching for emails?
● locating the latest document?
● checking which spreadsheet is correct?
● waiting for information?
● recreating work because nobody can find it?
Digital clutter is still clutter.
Applying 5S to office environments might include:
● standard folder structures
● consistent document naming
● removing duplicate files
● organising shared drives
● simplifying templates
● reducing unnecessary paperwork
The result isn’t simply a tidier computer. It’s faster, more reliable work.

5S in Professional Services

Professional services firms can benefit enormously from 5S.
Imagine:
● A standard proposal template.
● Consistent client onboarding.
● Clearly organised project files.
● Shared knowledge libraries.
● Simple meeting agendas.
● Repeatable review processes.
Every improvement reduces time spent searching, clarifying and correcting. Clients experience faster service. Employees experience less frustration.
The business becomes easier to scale because good systems replace individual memory.

5S Improves More Than Productivity

Although productivity is the primary objective, organisations often experience additional benefits.
Higher quality. Fewer mistakes. Improved safety. Shorter training times. Greater employee engagement. Better customer experiences. Reduced stress.
People enjoy working in environments that make success easier.
Well-organised workplaces communicate professionalism, discipline and respect for both employees and customers.

Leaders Must Model the Standard

One of the quickest ways to undermine 5S is inconsistent leadership. If leaders ignore agreed standards, everyone else soon follows.
Successful organisations treat 5S as a leadership discipline.
Managers organise their own work. Digital files follow the same standards. Meeting agendas remain consistent. Improvement becomes visible at every level.
Culture is reinforced through example, not instruction.

Five Questions Every Leader Should Ask

Take a moment to reflect on your own organisation.
How much time do our people spend searching instead of working?
What unnecessary items create confusion every day?
Would a new employee know where to find everything they need?
Are our digital systems as organised as our physical workspace?
What daily habits ensure good organisation is maintained?
The answers often reveal opportunities hiding in plain sight.

Small Improvements, Big Results

Many leaders underestimate 5S because each improvement appears small.
One organised drawer. One simplified template. One clearly labelled shelf. One standard folder structure. One cleaner workspace.
Yet these small changes compound. Five minutes saved each day becomes hours every month.
Across an entire organisation, those hours become significant productivity gains. This is the real power of Lean.
Small improvements applied consistently, delivering extraordinary results over time.

Final Thoughts

5S has never been about cleanliness for its own sake.
It’s about removing the friction that prevents people from doing their best work.
When workplaces are organised, information is easy to find and processes are consistent, productivity naturally improves.
Employees spend less time searching. Customers receive better service. Leaders spend less time solving avoidable problems.
Improvement becomes easier because the workplace itself supports high performance.
That’s why 5S has remained a cornerstone of Lean for decades. Not because tidy workplaces look impressive. Because organised workplaces perform better.

Ready to Improve Productivity Without Working Harder?

Join our upcoming Lean Bootcamp Training Course and discover how practical Lean tools like 5S can eliminate wasted time, improve team performance and create the stable systems every growing business needs.
Whether you lead a manufacturing business, office, construction company or professional
services firm, you’ll leave with practical ideas you can implement immediately.
Because productivity isn’t created through harder work. It’s created through better systems.
Register here: https://leanbootcamp.shifft.com.au/