WHERE LEADERS RETHINK HOW STRATEGY WORKS IN THE REAL WORLD
The traditional approach to strategy is broken.
In a world that won’t sit still, leaders can’t rely on outdated models built for stability and control.
Strategy Meets Reality is a podcast for leaders, strategists, and thinkers who want real insight—not theory. Hosted by organisational psychologist and systems thinker Mike Jones, each episode cuts through the noise with honest conversations from people who’ve lived the complexity, made the tough calls, and rethought what strategy means in practice.
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Latest Episode
Ep. 31 Reclaiming Strategy: Mike Jones on Perception, Structure, and the Return to Coherence
Host: Mike Jones
“Strategy doesn’t fail in the field—it fails in the boardroom.”
In this reflective solo episode, Mike Jones unpacks what 30 episodes of Strategy Meets Reality have revealed about the real challenges of strategy today. He explores why perception matters more than planning, how structural inertia undermines execution, and why we must stop treating strategy as performance.
From the OODA Loop to Viable System Models, this is a powerful call to rethink how organisations move, adapt, and survive.
All Episodes
Ep. 27 Beyond OKRs: Radhika Dutt on the Performance Trap and the Puzzle Mindset
OKRs and KPIs aren’t helping—they’re making organisations more fragile.
In this episode, Radhika Dutt joins Mike Jones to explore how performance metrics often become theatre, and why strategy needs a new logic. They unpack the puzzle mindset, the role of scaffolding, and how real leadership enables experimentation and learning—not just control. This is a bold conversation for anyone ready to move beyond metric chasing and build something resilient.
Ep. 26 The Illusion of Progress: Paul Sweeney on Magnetic Nonsense, Corporate Culture, and Critical Thinking
What if the problem isn’t resistance to change—but the nonsense surrounding it?
In this episode, Paul Sweeney—author of Magnetic Nonsense—joins Mike Jones to dissect the myths, buzzwords, and illusions that stop organisations from actually changing. They explore why hero-leader stories fail, how detachment breeds dysfunction, and what it means to lead with clarity and critical thinking.
This is a sharp conversation for leaders ready to challenge the status quo and cut through the noise.
Ep. 25 Antifragile by Design: Janka Krings-Klebe on Governance, Autonomy, and Building Ecosystem Organisations
Antifragile isn’t just a mindset—it’s a design choice.
In this episode, Janka Krings-Klebe—author of The Antifragile Organization—joins Mike Jones to explore what it means to build organisations that thrive through disruption. They discuss why most governance systems unintentionally block innovation, how to balance autonomy and accountability, and why culture and value streams are critical to adaptive performance. It’s a practical, grounded conversation on leading in complexity.
Ep. 24 When Strategy Meets Security: Glenn Wilson on Technical Debt, Developer Voice, and Defensive Thinking
Strategy and cybersecurity fail for the same reasons: complexity without clarity, tools without purpose, and teams without voice.
In this episode, Glenn Wilson—cybersecurity expert and founder of Dynaminet—joins Mike Jones to explore the shared challenges of executing strategy and securing organisations. From technical debt to commander's intent, they discuss how resilience comes not from control, but from adaptability and empowered learning at the edge.
This isn’t a tech talk—it’s a leadership conversation about what breaks in real organisations, and what to do instead.
Meet your Host:
Mike Jones
Mike Jones is a systems thinker, organisational psychologist, and former British Army soldier.
He’s worked as a strategy and execution advisor to senior executives across rail, tech, and government to rethink how strategy actually works in complexity.
He founded LBI Consulting and author of the upcoming book When Strategy Meets Reality.
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