The 2026 Blueprint: Three Questions Every Leadership Team Must Answer Now
The clock is ticking toward 2026. The days of easy, five-year plans are gone. Today's business world—with fast-changing technology, global uncertainty, and new employee demands—means leaders need to stop planning alone and start questioning together.
The best companies in 2026 won't be those that just hit their targets today, but those that are already aligned with the right structure, skills, and mission for tomorrow. At Mike Preston Consultancy, we know great strategy starts with great questions. Here are the three essential questions your executive team must answer now to build your 2026 blueprint.
Question 1: How rapidly and ethically are we using AI to fundamentally change our value creation, not just cut our costs?
Artificial Intelligence is the engine for 2026, and the conversation must move past small pilot programs. The primary challenge is transitioning from using AI for basic automation (cost-cutting) to deploying it for innovation and achieving a competitive advantage (creating new value).
If your AI strategy is only focused on reducing headcount, you’re missing the revolution. Leaders must decide:
Prioritise Reinvention: Look beyond basic cost-cutting. Identify 2-3 new business models or product lines that AI makes possible.
Assess Leadership Skills: Evaluate if managers have the Digital Dexterity to lead human-AI teams, interpret data, and communicate the ethical "why" behind deployment. Implement targeted training now to close skill gaps.
Establish Clear Ethics: Create and communicate a governance framework that ensures all AI use is ethical, transparent, and compliant.
The leaders of 2026 will be defined by their ability to treat AI as a core strategic lever for growth, integrating it across all business functions.
Question 2: How are we actively building the organisational trust and leadership resilience needed to manage constant change and keep our best people?
Global disruption—whether economic or political—is the new normal. Leading through this volatility requires more than just tough operations; it demands a resilient, trusting, and deeply engaged workforce.
To ensure your team is ready to pivot and absorb constant change, executive teams must address the Trust Deficit and invest in the human side of agility:
Coach New Leadership: Train leaders to shift from commanding to coaching, empowering cross-functional teams and practising Collaborative Intelligence.
Measure Psychological Safety: Implement tools or surveys to measure employee safety in speaking up, challenging the status quo, and reporting errors, then act immediately on feedback.
Mandate Well-being Focus: Ensure managers are trained to spot and address Technostress and the 'Fear of Being Outsourced' (FOBO). Allocate resources for mental health and resilience programs.
The ability to move fast requires the team to trust the leadership and one another. That trust is earned through consistent, transparent, and empathetic leadership behaviour.
Question 3: Are our long-term goals rooted in a clear, sustainable purpose that actually inspires our workforce?
Employees—especially rising leaders—are increasingly drawn to organisations that stand for something beyond quarterly profit. The high bar for attracting and keeping talent means that Purpose is now a critical strategic asset.
If your mission statement is just a glossy line in an annual report, it is failing. Leaders need to answer:
Embed Purpose in Operations: Review if your mission is actually integrated into daily work, supply chain choices, and even executive compensation.
Personalise the Mission: Design clear, personalised growth paths that directly connect an employee's role and development to the company's long-term purpose.
Define Your Ecosystem: Clearly articulate your value creation for all stakeholders (customers, community, environment), not just shareholders, demanding a clear strategy around sustainability and social impact.
Leading with purpose is not just about attracting customers; it’s about inspiring the discretionary effort—the extra mile—that transforms a workforce from compliant to committed.
Your 2026 Blueprint Starts Now
The journey to 2026 is about making hard, forward-looking decisions today. These three questions force leadership teams out of their operational silos and into strategic alignment on the future of talent, technology, and trust.
If your team is struggling to achieve a unified answer to these critical challenges, you’re not alone. Mike Preston Consultancy specialises in facilitating these high-stakes strategic conversations and building the practical blueprints needed for decisive action.
Ready to move from debate to definition? Contact us today to schedule your 2026 Strategy Alignment Workshop.