A movement in transition.
Many people wants to spark a movement.
But what most leaders forget is this:
Movements don’t scale because of hype. They scale because of structure.
We recently advised a global organization wrestling with this exact tension. Their vision was bold. Their people were passionate. Their reach spanned continents. And yet — they were stuck.
Why?
Because the vision wasn’t rooted. There were no shared definitions of success. No clear ownership. No system to align the fire behind the scenes.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth:
Hype brings people in. But without structure, it also burns them out.
If you want to build something that grows without falling apart, start with these three foundations:
1. Define What Success Looks Like — Clearly and Collectively
“Changing the world” isn’t a strategy. Neither is “making an impact.”
Get specific.
- What change are you trying to make?
- Who will notice?
- What does victory look like in 3 years? In 5?
Ask your people these questions. Align on language. Document the answers. This becomes your shared compass.
Example: A nonprofit we worked with had a powerful mission — to inspire Jewish identity among young professionals. But every team had a different interpretation of what success looked like: one focused on event attendance, another on long-term engagement, and another on content creation. Once they defined three core metrics and timelines across departments, their teams could finally move in sync.
2. Assign Real Ownership with Real Authority
You can’t lead a movement on vibes. Every objective needs a clear owner — and that owner needs the authority to make decisions.
If every initiative requires a meeting with five other departments to move forward, you’re not leading. You’re managing gridlock.
Structure is not bureaucracy. It’s the opposite: it’s what clears the path.
Example: In one organization, the global director of outreach couldn’t launch a new program without approval from three separate VPs — all with conflicting opinions. We helped restructure their leadership model so each director owned a specific set of outcomes with sign-off authority. The result? Faster launches, less friction, and a clear sense of accountability.
3. Build Systems That Outlive the Inspiration
Inspiration is a spark. Systems are the engine.
Create repeatable, measurable processes:
- SOPs for outreach
- Weekly tracking of team objectives
- Clear onboarding for new team members
Ask yourself: If your top leader stepped away tomorrow, would anything fall apart?
If the answer is yes — you’ve got a hype problem, not a structure problem.
Example: A well-known movement collapsed when its founder stepped back due to health issues. No one knew how decisions were made, how success was tracked, or how volunteers were onboarded. We’ve since worked with similar orgs to implement knowledge-sharing systems, peer training, and leadership documentation — so the vision survives, even if the original visionary doesn’t.
Movements can absolutely scale.
But only if their vision is rooted in strategic clarity.
Start with structure.
Then light the fire.
