Structural Misalignment – When Form Creates Resistance

Structure should serve strategy, not resist it. Yet many organisations outgrow their own design.

Structural Misalignment – the organisational equivalent of Form Drag – happens when structures, reporting lines, or decision rights no longer match the work that needs doing. The result is effort without traction.

This shows up as overlapping roles, unclear ownership, or priorities that conflict across departments. Teams might be high-performing individually but disconnected collectively.

In LIFT terms, this drag spans both Purpose and People Pillars.
• From Purpose, it touches Responsibilities (doing the right job) and Core Imperative (understanding the bigger picture).
• From People, it links to Capability (the right skillset) and Teamwork (working with others).

When structures drift from strategy, these Dynamics weaken. People spend more time clarifying work than delivering it. Decision-making escalates upwards. Collaboration becomes optional rather than embedded.

The fix isn’t just reorganisation – it’s alignment.

Clarify roles – refresh Role Profiles to make accountability visible.
Reinforce interfaces – make cross-team dependencies explicit.
Connect structure to purpose – design around how value is actually created.

Structural clarity creates lift by making responsibility visible and collaboration easier. Teams see how their work fits into the bigger picture, leaders spend less time firefighting, and strategy becomes actionable.

Ask yourself:

Does our structure reflect how value is really created – or how it used to be?

Call to action:

Through the LIFT Transformation Framework, Wingman helps organisations realign structure, purpose, and people. Let’s rebuild the shape of your business so it supports momentum, not resistance.