Why Only 8% of Business Leaders Master Strategic Thinking ...and how to join them
Have you ever noticed that even your company’s top executives often operate more tactically than strategically?
It’s a common pattern: leaders rise through the ranks by hitting operational targets, solving problems, and driving results. These are valuable skills, but they’re not the same as strategic thinking. And when a business faces disruption or needs to evolve, tactical leadership won’t be enough.
In fact, a Strategy+Business article from PwC spotlighted this challenge, and its message still resonates. The research, based on 6,000 senior executives and repeated a decade later, showed only a 1% improvement over time. The result? Just 8% of leaders were seen as true strategic thinkers. That means 92% of executives haven’t yet developed the core skill that distinguishes great leadership from good management.
What Sets the 8% Apart?
They understand that strategic thinking is not strategic planning. Instead, they demonstrate consistent behaviors and mindsets that elevate their leadership:
“These leaders challenge the status quo without creating cynicism, navigate both the big picture and the details, shift course when needed, and lead with a balance of inquiry and advocacy—all while staying grounded in humility and respect.”
One CEO’s Struggle and a Common Challenge
I recently began working with a CEO who genuinely wants to be great—but strategic thinking doesn’t come naturally to him. He’s not alone. Many leaders excel at execution but struggle to zoom out, reframe issues, and think long-term.
If that sounds familiar, here’s the good news: strategic thinking can be learned. Here are six practical ways leaders can build that muscle:
Block time for Strategy: Put mandatory 2-hour weekly blocks on your calendar labeled "strategic thinking.” No operations allowed. Protect that time like a board meeting.
Change the Inputs: Replace daily operational reports with competitor intelligence, industry forecasts, and customer trend data. What you consume shapes how you think.
Make strategic thinking mandatory: Help create a new requirement: every major decision requires a one-page strategic rationale before execution. No exceptions.
Create strategic pressure: Bring in board members or advisors who will ask tough strategic questions they can't answer operationally. Peer pressure from other strategic CEOs works too.
Teach simple frameworks: Give leaders 2-3 usable tools. Something like: Where will we compete? How will we win? What capabilities do we need?
Measure strategic outcomes: Reward progress on long-term goals: market share, innovation, customer loyalty – not just cost or efficiency.
Strategic leaders employ specific skills when leading their teams strategically. Once the basics are in place, help leaders focus on specific behaviors that drive strategic impact:
Ask Better Questions: shift from “How do we fix this?” to:
What assumptions are we making?
What might disrupt us?
What weak signals might become strong forces?
Build Scenarios: don't try to predict the future - prepare for multiple futures. Develop scenarios for how your industry might evolve over the next 18 months.
Block out Time for Strategic Thinking: not all decisions need fast answers. Learn to pause. Reflect. Then act.
Expand Your Network: the 8% actively cultivate relationships with people who see different aspects of the business environment—emerging customers, unique suppliers, and adjacent industry experts.
Practice Strategic Communication - Translate insights into action by explaining your thinking in terms of specific choices and trade-offs.
The Bottom Line
Strategic thinking isn’t a gift—it’s a skill. And the 8% who master it aren’t born different. They simply make different choices.
If you want to join them, start with one change this week. Block time. Ask a better question. Choose a new input.
In a world where strategic leadership is rare, developing this skill is your competitive edge.
Sources: Strategic Leadership Institute research study of 6,000 senior executives as quoted in Strategy+Business – 10 principle of strategic leadership