Operating Intel

Field Notes.

Unvarnished observations on transformation, AI, and the messy reality of scaling teams.

Leadership in 2026 means managing through uncertainty with fewer people and higher expectations. These posts cover the practical side of leading teams through change, including how to make decisions when you do not have clean data and the clock is running.

Two people in a focused leadership conversation at a glass-walled office meeting room

LeadershipJul 13, 2026

Managing Managers: The Leadership Skills That Actually Work

Most leadership advice is written for people managing individual contributors. Managing managers is a different job. The feedback loops are longer, the problems hide better, and the instincts that got you here start working against you. This is what actually changes when you add a management layer between you and the work.

Read Essay 13 MIN READ

Recent Essays

A cinematic shot of a modern executive boardroom where one person is leading the discussion from the side.

LeadershipJul 7, 2026

The Difference Between Someone Who Leads and Someone Who Just Has the Title

Most people have worked for both types and they know immediately which was which. The harder question is why organisations keep promoting the second type and what the difference actually looks like before someone proves it. Twenty-two years in, here is what I have actually seen.

6 MIN READ

A stark minimalist boardroom table with a single empty chair pulled out, dramatic lighting

Professional DevelopmentJul 6, 2026

When Your Boss Has Decided You're the Problem - Based on Nothing You Can Prove

There is a specific kind of professional difficulty that nobody prepares you for: the manager who has made up their mind about you based on something you cannot find, fix, or disprove. This is what that situation actually looks like - and the few things that give you any real options.

6 MIN READ

A sharp shadow of a manager looming over a modern corporate office desk seen from behind

LeadershipJul 6, 2026

What Micromanagers Are Actually Afraid Of (And Why That Explains Everything)

Most advice about micromanagers tells you how to survive them. Nobody asks why they do it. The answer is not about control - it is about fear. Understanding what a micromanager is actually protecting themselves from changes how you read the situation and what you do next.

6 MIN READ

A lone executive looking up a complex concrete staircase

Career GrowthJul 5, 2026

Why Smart People Get Stuck at Mid-Management (And What Finally Gets Them Out)

The people who get promoted into senior leadership are often not the sharpest technically. They are not even always the hardest workers. Something else is determining who breaks through mid-management and who stays there. This is what that thing actually is - and why so few career guides talk about it honestly.

5 MIN READ

Two professionals in a relaxed mentoring conversation at a coffee table

Career GrowthJul 3, 2026

The Difference Between a Mentor and a Sponsor (And Why Most People Only Have One)

A mentor gives you advice. A sponsor puts your name in a room when you are not there. Most professionals have plenty of the first and almost none of the second - and spend years wondering why their careers are not moving the way they expected.

5 MIN READ

Two professionals in a one-on-one conversation in a modern office setting

Career GrowthJun 29, 2026

How to Ask for a Promotion When Your Boss Has No Idea What You Do

Most promotion conversations fail before they start. Not because you are underqualified - because your manager cannot clearly explain what you actually contribute. This is a fixable problem. Here is how to have the conversation that changes that, without sounding arrogant.

5 MIN READ

Professional at a desk reviewing work on a laptop in a quiet modern office

Career GrowthJun 29, 2026

What Happens to Your Career When AI Makes You Look Less Busy

AI is compressing the time it takes to do good work. The problem is that most organisations measure effort, not outcome. When your three-week project takes four days, the question you get is not "great work" - it is "what are you doing with the rest of your time?"

5 MIN READ

Professional reviewing notes in an early customer onboarding meeting

Customer SuccessJun 18, 2026

Customer Churn Doesn't Happen at Renewal. It Happens in the First 30 Days.

Most churn prevention efforts focus on late-stage accounts. The actual decision happens months earlier - in the first weeks after signing. Here's what that means for how CS teams should allocate their time.

8 MIN READ

Two professionals in a candid conversation across a table - representing a genuine hiring interview beyond the CV

LeadershipJun 9, 2026

The One Thing I Look For When Hiring - That Nobody Puts on Their CV

I've interviewed hundreds of people across Adobe, Zendesk, and Intelegencia. The candidates who became exceptional had one thing in common that never showed up on a CV, a skills test, or a reference check. Here's what it is - and how to spot it in 20 minutes.

7 MIN READ

Team in a corporate meeting room looking at a laptop - representing the gap between executive AI strategy and organisational reality

AI StrategyJun 8, 2026

Your AI Budget Is Real. Your AI Strategy Is Performance Art.

75% of executives admit their company's AI strategy is more for show than actual guidance. 54% say AI is tearing their company apart. The technology is working. The organisation underneath it isn't. Here's why - and what the 29% actually getting ROI are doing differently.

8 MIN READ