Russell Reynolds Associates Introduces Strategy Decode and Activation to Address the Leadership Gap in Business Transformation

NEW YORK – June. 17, 2025 – Russell Reynolds Associates (RRA), the leading global leadership advisory firm, today announced the launch of Strategy Decode and Activation, a distinctive advisory capability that positions CEO and C-suite leadership as the central driver of successful business transformation.

The new capability addresses a critical market need, as research shows 75% of business transformation efforts fail, primarily due to leadership execution gaps rather than strategic design flaws. This launch comes at a time of unprecedented urgency, as organizations grapple with rapid technological shifts, evolving market dynamics and the imperative to transform faster than ever before.

"RRA has been at the forefront of helping the world's largest organizations solve their most pressing leadership issues for decades," said Constantine Alexandrakis, CEO of RRA. "Today, transformation is at the forefront of those challenges. Strategy Decode and Activation is our direct response, providing the hands-on, leadership-centric guidance our clients need to navigate and succeed in this era of constant change."

The strategy execution divide

Organizations consistently face the same fundamental dilemma: understanding the "why" and "what" of strategic change while struggling with the "how" and "who" of implementation. Below are five key challenges identified in detail by RRA’s H1 2025 Global Leadership Monitor:

1. Adapting to continuous change: Only 47% of CEOs proactively anticipate change and strategically plan transformation with long-term outcomes
2. Strategy and strategic leadership disconnect: Organizations separate strategy-making from strategy-doing
3. Evolution of leadership practice: Traditional command-and-control leadership no longer works in today's pace of change
4. Gen AI readiness: While 82% of leaders agree Gen AI skills are essential for C-suite success, only 41% feel confident implementing it effectively
5. Shifting to enterprise leadership: Moving beyond hub-and-spoke systems to collaborative, cross-functional leadership models

RRA's Strategy Decode and Activation approach recognizes that even the most comprehensive transformation vision fails without leaders who can decode complex change, align teams around new directions, and sustain momentum through inevitable resistance.

“Great strategy requires clear choices that realistically connect enterprise aspirations and capabilities,” said Bob Marcus, a transformation advisor at RRA. “We work alongside executive teams to transform and expand the leadership and organizational capabilities required for their strategy to produce the intended results.”x|

RRA helps organizations develop the leadership capabilities needed to drive successful transformation and answer critical questions that determine transformation success, including:

• Which leaders have the transformation capabilities needed, and where are the critical gaps?
• How do leaders ensure their teams can navigate significant change?
• What leadership behaviors and decision-making processes accelerate transformation progress?
• How do organizations create alignment around their transformation vision without losing momentum?

Expert leadership team

The Strategy Decode and Activation is led by eight key transformation advisors with decades of combined experience in developing efficient change strategies for leading global organizations:

• David Lange, Global Development Capability Lead, Chicago: Brings 25+ years of experience in global executive development and culture transformation 
• Bob Marcus, Managing Director, New York: Specializes in working with first-time CEOs and emerging leaders on change strategies and culture evolution
• David Mills, Managing Director, London: Focuses on leadership transformation for communications and technology companies
• Hetty Pye, Managing Director, London: Advises multi-national clients through leadership-led transformation and co-leads RRA Artemis, a CEO leadership accelerator program
• Sean Dineen, Managing Director, Boston: Partners with organizations to increase executive team potential and performance, with particular focus on financial services
• Alain Ishak, Managing Director, Montreal: Leads transformation advisory projects for multi-nationals across the globe
• Marie-Osmonde de Lanauze, Managing Director, Paris: Develops leadership-led transformation initiatives for clients with a focus on CEO leadership development.
• Nicholas Anderson, Managing Director, Hong Kong: Partners with CEO’s globally to accelerate strategy execution and transformation leveraging leadership, teams and culture.

Market impact and availability

The Strategy Decode and Activation capability is available immediately to organizations across all industries and geographies. RRA's collaborative approach ensures transformations succeed because leaders truly own and can execute them, creating lasting change that becomes part of organizational DNA. RRA equips leaders to drive the urgent, impactful transformations essential for thriving in today's dynamic landscape.

Click here for more information about Strategy Decode and Activation