What if your firm’s vision actually moved people?
Not just in the strategy retreat. Not just in a slide deck. We mean the kind of vision that shows up in hallway conversations, kickoff meetings, and those “what are we even doing here?” moments.
“We’re not forecasting 2035 anymore. We’re asking how this year can actually feel better.”
A LeadForward 2025 participant.
Here’s what we’re noticing: AEC firms are starting to say the quiet part out loud—traditional strategic planning isn’t working the way we need it to. It’s heavy. It’s full of corporate buzzwords. And it doesn’t feel like us.
So what do we do instead? We simplify. We ground strategy in who we actually are. We bring vision down from the clouds and into the daily rhythm of our teams.
This isn’t just theory. It’s exactly what we’re hearing in the room with our LeadForward strategy group, and it’s why we’re starting to call this shift Lean Vision.
Why traditional vision falls flat
Let’s be honest: how many people at your firm can recite the vision statement? Worse yet, how many people believe it?
The way we’ve done vision in the past—presenting a single bold sentence, framed in a hallway—isn’t connecting. It’s often too polished, too long-term, or just too vague. And if it doesn’t feel relevant to the people doing the work, it’s not going to shape decisions or behaviors.
Vision should provide people with a language for what matters. When it doesn’t, we tune it out.
What the LeadForward group told us
This whole blog started because someone in the LeadForward group said, “We’re overmeasuring vision.”
It stopped us in our tracks.
Because we see it too: Vision tied up in numbers. Growth defined by headcount. Strategy that reads more like a financial report than a call to action.
And it’s no wonder people aren’t inspired. Most people aren’t moved by a revenue target. They want to feel part of something that matters.
What happens when strategy gets human
Lean Vision is about stripping away the extra and getting back to what actually resonates.
It asks different questions: – What’s the energy we want people to feel here? – What’s the behavior we want to see? – What’s getting in the way?
This is the stuff that sticks. One leader described it as “more conversation, less calendar.” Another said, “We’re not doing five-year plans anymore. We’re focusing on how this year can actually feel better.
Sound familiar?
Rethinking growth: It's not just more. It's better.
This is the heart of it: growth isn’t just getting bigger. It’s getting clearer. More intentional. More you. The best thing we’ve heard in months? “Growth is a feeling.”
We’re seeing firms:
- Trim bloated ‘Values’ lists from six to three.
- Replace vision statements with “what we’re moving toward” language.
- Ask simple but powerful questions like, “What do we want to keep, let go of, or try?”
It’s not fluffy. It’s focused. And it makes a whole lot more sense to the people doing the work.
What Lean Vision looks like on the ground
Here’s what we mean when we say Lean Vision:
- Less forecasting, more feeling – We’re not fortune tellers. We’re culture shapers.
- Values as filters – If it doesn’t align with who we say we are, we let it go.
- Planning as participation – Strategy shouldn’t be handed down. It should be built as a community.
It’s not perfect. But it’s real. And real gets results.
How the Flamingo Project can help
This is what we do. We help firms simplify the strategy conversation. We design planning experiences that bring people together and create clarity. We translate all the swirling thoughts and post-its into something that actually feels actionable.
Whether it’s reworking your values, hosting a strategy session that doesn’t feel like a slog, or helping your team name what growth actually means—you don’t have to do it alone.
VISION SHOULD BE FELT, NOT JUST FRAMED
If people aren’t repeating your vision in the hallway—or better yet, living it—you probably don’t have a vision problem. You have a connection problem. Lean Vision is about reconnecting. With your people. With your purpose. With the kind of growth that means something.
Let’s stop overcomplicating. Let’s make it matter