Causing true executive alignment can be elusive.

It looks like alignment comes from collectively understanding the strategy, knowing the plan, the market, the customers, accounting for the constraints.

In our experience, what actually aligns executives is executives aligning with each other. It’s not just connecting everyone to the initiatives, processes, organizational structures. It’s aligning together first, so the team can go after any strategy, with a built-in capacity to shift and adjust as necessary.

Failures to align are failures in conversation, in particular when it’s impossible to work through the concerns inherent with pursuing ambitious performance goals. Executives must drive for real, honest conversation with peers, teams, and leadership.

The most common blocker we’ve found regarding alignment is people can’t say no. The “going along with” factor is strong. Much of the time the world pushes leaders to say yes because they have to, but too often their heart says no and they have no way to talk about it.

It happens at all levels of organizations.

If leaders are ever to deliver their biggest ambitions—in a changing, uncertain, often unknown market—executives must surface and work through issues differently, truly dedicated to becoming one team and one voice. Executives must drive for the real conversation, the honest conversation, with peers, teams, and leadership.

True executive alignment leads to brilliant execution.