They devise new cost-cutting campaigns. They do so because there is little else they really can do. They don't design or produce products. They rarely sell directly to customers. And they are usually too far removed to demonstrate the connection between the strategies they devise and the work of people at the front line.
Executive leaders can develop guiding principles.
They can change their own ways of thinking and interacting, and thereby become a persuasive role model. They can and must develop strategies for building a sustainable competitive advantage, which means creating an environment in which people are open to new ideas, responsive to change, and eager to develop new skills and capabilities. The Context for Change Organizations work the way they do because of the way people work in those organizations. Deep organizational change requires a change in people. Redrawing the lines and boxes in your org chart without addressing the way people within the organization interact may be like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic .