How $H!T gets done!
- Lena Ross
- Mar 11
- 3 min read
Have you ever wondered why some people get things done and others…well…they languish or talk the talk, but there’s very little to show for it?
How things get done in organisations is not evenly distributed. There is great variation in capability and motivation to complete work, and…to avoid work. Here’s my observations on how it plays out:
The matrix
As a big fan of the 2x2 matrix to explain concepts, I created this diagram to sum up how $H!tT gets done with two axes:
Strategic capability: Ability to see the big picture, connect work to outcomes, prioritise value over activity.
Execution capability: Ability to turn intent into action, follow through, and deliver outcomes.
Let’s take a closer look at each quadrant:
1. High Strategic Capability / High Execution Capability
“Gets $h!t done”
These individuals understand why the work matters and reliably deliver what needs to happen.
Key characteristics
Sees the system, not just the task
Translates strategy into clear, actionable steps
Follows through and closes loops
Comfortable making trade-offs and saying no
Focused on outcomes, not just outputs
Builds momentum and confidence in others
Challenges for leaders managing them
Risk of over-reliance: they become the ‘go-to’ for everything
Burnout risk if consistently compensating for others
May unintentionally raise the performance bar without organisational support
Can become frustrated in low-accountability environments
Areas for development (optional / light-touch)
This quadrant doesn’t need development in the traditional sense. If anything:
Protect their time and energy
Use them to model behaviours, not to carry the system
Leverage them as multipliers, e.g. mentors, sponsors, change agents, not firefighters
The leadership task here is enable and amplify, not fix.
2. High Strategic Capability / Low Execution Capability
“Talks a lot of $h!t”
These individuals sound impressive, contribute big ideas, and speak fluently about strategy, but delivery rarely follows.
Key characteristics
Strong conceptual thinking
Articulate, persuasive, often influential
Enjoys planning, framing and vision-setting
Delegates execution heavily, or avoids it altogether
Measures success by ideas, not outcomes
Challenges for leaders managing them
Creates illusion of progress without real movement
Can demotivate executors who feel used or unsupported
Strategy becomes disconnected from reality
Areas for development
Build execution accountability with clear ownership, definition of done, deadlines, follow-up
Tie credibility to delivered outcomes, not ideas
Develop comfort with detail, constraints and trade-offs
Introduce feedback loops that expose impact, not intent
The development shift is from thinking is enough’ to ‘thinking only matters if it lands’
3. Low Strategic Capability / High Execution Capability
“Gets stuff done, but a lot of it is $h!t”
These individuals are busy, productive and dependable, but effort is often misdirected.
Key characteristics
Highly task-oriented
Strong work ethic and responsiveness
Likes being busy and useful
Focused on speed and completion
Often reactive rather than deliberate
Challenges for leaders managing them
High volume of low-value work
Activity mistaken for impact
Easily distracted by urgent but irrelevant tasks
Can clog systems with unnecessary outputs
Areas for development
Build strategic context: why this matters, why now
Improve prioritisation and value-based decision-making
Encourage pausing before acting
Shift language from ‘done’ to ‘useful / impactful’
This is not a motivation problem, it’s a direction problem.
4. Low Strategic Capability / Low Execution Capability
“Doesn’t give a $h!t”
These individuals contribute minimal value and show limited engagement with either thinking or doing.
Key characteristics
Low motivation and ownership
Minimal effort, compliance mindset
Little interest in outcomes or improvement
Work is transactional, not purposeful
Often disengaged or checked out
Challenges for leaders managing them
Drains time, energy and morale
Creates performance drag across teams
Can normalise low standards if tolerated
Difficult conversations often avoided too long
Areas for development
Clarify expectations and consequences
Explore role fit and motivation honestly
Set short, concrete performance goals
Make decisions quickly if improvement doesn’t follow
Leadership clarity matters here: not everyone should be carried.
Most organisations don’t suffer from a lack of strategy or effort. They suffer from misalignment between thinking and doing, and from leaders not calling out the difference.
Getting $H!T done isn’t about being busy or sounding smart.
It’s about connecting intent to action, and action to outcomes.
Remember…
Both are symptoms of how thinking and doing are distributed, and how they are led.
Disclaimer
No empirical study has been investigated to support the content in this post. It comes from a frustration with people who don’t get $H!T done in the workplace. It’s an unapologetic, sometimes whimsical view based on decades of observations at work.
If this doesn’t resonate with you – lucky you! You have not experienced the misfortune of working with people who don’t execute.
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