“We’re so aligned you couldn’t slide a sheet of paper between us!”

The reality? There’s more like a football field between them.

“Everyone’s on board and knows precisely what they’re supposed to do.”

Are you sure? Have you asked them?

“The team are ready, able, and willing to crack on. They’ll find a way somehow to make this happen. And they know where to come if they want to flag anything!”

Wait a minute. Is your confidence justified?

When a team convinces themselves they are in sync, they’re usually not. There’s an illusion of alignment that is light years from reality.

Just like rowers in a boat who think they are pulling together, but aren’t really in sync, a few things can happen:

1. Going in circles: If one side are rowing harder – or at a different pace than the other – instead of moving forward, the boat just spins.

2. Slowing down: Misalignment means everyone’s efforts cancel each other out, making the journey longer and more exhausting.

3. Harder to steer: Without proper coordination, the boat needs constant correction, making it harder to stay on course.

4. Frustration and confusion: When the team’s efforts don’t pay off, it leads to confusion and frustration, lowering morale and creating pointless tension.

In any organisation where alignment is just a comforting illusion, you might see a lot of hard work, but not a lot of progress.

And when people doing the work raise concerns, leadership may choose to ignore the feedback they don’t want to hear.

Take NASA’s Challenger Disaster in 1986. Leadership thought they were aligned with the engineers about the launch’s safety. But serious concerns were brushed aside, leading to the tragic explosion shortly after take-off.

If you want real alignment, you need to go beyond appearances. Make sure your team is fully briefed, organised, and actually “working together” toward the same goal.

Confidence is great – but solid proof is better.

About the author

David Hilliard is Founder of Mentor, specialists in strategic program execution.