Summary

As organisations grow, design drifts and decisions slow. What was clear fragments and becomes hard to scale. Brand strategy restores focus by setting the non‑negotiables and simple rules that shape execution. Then cycles shorten, journeys cohere, and design proves the strategy—lifting preference and commercial performance.

→ Watch more videos in this playlist on YouTube

Our Perspective

What this means for leaders navigating growth, change or transformation in their organisation.

The Real Link

The common trap is to treat design as a downstream service: a brief goes in, assets come out. That mindset severs the thread between intent and impact. When strategy and design aren’t stitched together, you see slower cycles, creeping costs, and a brand that feels different at every touch. The fix is not more design; it’s a different operating logic where design choices become evidence of strategic choices in the real world.

McKinsey notes that faster‑growth organisations attribute around 40% more revenue to personalisation than their peers, which only happens when strategy and design are tightly joined. Personalisation is not a tactic; it’s the visible proof of a coherent value proposition executed consistently across the journey.

From Choices To Outcomes

Think of three linked layers. At the top, set non‑negotiables that express how you’ll win and how you’ll measure it — margin, customer lifetime value, market entry bets. Beneath that, translate the story into rules for words, visuals, and interactions that anyone can apply. Finally, signal the same promise across the journey so customers experience one story, many moments.

McKinsey also reports that moving customer‑journey satisfaction by just one point on a ten‑point scale is associated with at least a three‑point lift in revenue growth. That link is the point: when design execution raises journey coherence, strategy stops living in decks and starts compounding in the market.

Operating Guardrails

You don’t need more guidelines; you need sharper ones that drive decisions at speed. Most organisations we work with discover that design becomes faster once strategy is expressed as a few practical rules.

• Non‑negotiables: A short list that ties positioning to commercial measures (e.g., price protection, attach rate, expansion paths).
• Simple rules: Clear do/don’t for language, layout, and interaction patterns; include examples so teams move with confidence.
• Ownership: Define who can decide, adjust, or escalate when trade‑offs appear; timebox decisions so momentum holds.
• Proof library: A single source of claims, evidence, and cues so promises are specific and reusable.

Leadership Implications

At leadership level, the task is to hardwire this link so it survives pressure, pace, and scale. Three moves help:

• Briefs that name the metric: Tie design work to a commercial intent, then review against that measure of return on investment.
• Fund systems, not bursts: Invest in reusable patterns and tools that improve cycle time and reduce rework.
• Govern the journey: Measure coherence across moments, not campaigns; remove friction where the story breaks.

The organisations that pull ahead make design the place where strategy proves itself daily — reducing debate, speeding choices, and turning a single brand story into cumulative advantage.

Sources:

• The value of getting personalization right—or wrong—is multiplying — McKinsey
• From touchpoints to journeys: Seeing the world as customers do — McKinsey

Further Resources

1. Brand Playbooks: Aligning Strategy with Consistent Execution
2. Aligning Brand and Strategy to Overcome Misalignment
3. Uncovering the Hidden Costs of Brand–Strategy Misalignment

If today’s topic resonates, we invite you to continue the dialogue — sometimes one conversation reframes the challenge. Start the conversation.

Back to top