L is a senior executive in a rapidly scaling technology and eCommerce business. As the organisation grew, so did the complexity of her role: people, operations, organisational change and strategic initiatives were all competing for attention at the same time.

The situation

L was operating across an increasingly demanding leadership environment, with ambiguity, internal politics, shifting priorities and significant decisions all landing at once.

Day-to-day issues were repeatedly drawing her into problem-solving, reducing the time and attention available for the strategic and commercial judgement her role required.

One example involved international expansion. The business was considering launching in Australia in early January, which would have required hiring approximately 15 people over the Christmas period while the US operation was also being built.

The question was not simply whether Australia represented a good opportunity. It was whether the organisation had the leadership capacity, management bandwidth and operational focus to build multiple markets at the same time without compromising execution.

The work

Rhian challenged assumptions, tested competing priorities and helped L examine the commercial and organisational consequences of the choices in front of her.

The international expansion decision was tested against hiring capacity, management bandwidth, time-zone coverage, sequencing and the opportunity cost of trying to build several markets simultaneously.

Across the wider relationship, they examined where L’s involvement added value, what other people needed to own and how she could respond to organisational complexity without becoming responsible for resolving every issue. This meant challenging established habits alongside the expectations and dynamics around her.

As the relationship developed, the work expanded into leadership workshops and facilitated team sessions focused on communication, decision-making, accountability and clearer ways of working.

The outcome

The business made a more disciplined expansion decision, prioritising the US build, removing the immediate Australia launch from the plan and deferring broader APAC expansion rather than stretching hiring and management capacity across several markets simultaneously.

L became more deliberate about prioritisation, clearer about where her attention added the greatest value and more confident making high-impact decisions with incomplete information.

The wider organisational work translated expectations around leadership into behaviours teams could use: ending meetings with named owners and deadlines, raising blockers earlier, communicating changes in priorities and involving affected teams before decisions were finalised.

The engagement influenced both where the business committed its resources and how people worked together to deliver. L strengthened her executive judgement while the wider teams gained clearer expectations around ownership, communication and accountability.

“Knowing I have you in my corner when I need a second brain is more valuable than I can ever put into words.”

— L · VP, Saas