Tools and Frameworks
Organizational Balance Sheet
What does your organization own that strengthens its ability to create value—and what is it carrying that could constrain it?
Also: People Decision Canvas →1Circle assets and liabilities that are materially true today.
2Star the 3 assets most important to your future strategy. (★ appears when you circle.)
3Mark the 3 liabilities most likely to constrain your strategy. (▲ appears when you circle.)
ORGANIZATIONAL ASSETS
WHAT STRENGTHENS OUR ABILITY TO EXECUTE, ADAPT, AND CREATE VALUE
LEADERSHIP
Leadership team suited to the strategy ahead
Leaders make high-quality decisions
Leaders build capability beyond themselves
Strong succession depth in critical roles
Leadership team works well as a unit
Ability to attract and retain strong leaders
CAPABILITIES & TALENT
Core capabilities critical to our strategy
Scarce expertise competitors struggle to replicate
High performers in roles that matter most
Talent that can grow with the business
Ability to develop needed capability internally
Ability to redeploy talent as priorities change
MANAGEMENT & EXECUTION
Managers who multiply team performance
Clear accountability
Clear decision rights
Ability to execute across functions
Operating rhythms that support execution
Ability to translate strategy into action
KNOWLEDGE & LEARNING
Deep customer knowledge
Institutional knowledge that is shared
Fast learning and adaptation
Ability to challenge outdated assumptions
Data that improves decisions
Ability to learn faster than conditions change
TRUST & RELATIONSHIPS
Trust that enables honest conversations and decisions
Strong relationships across functions
Credibility with employees
Strong customer relationships
Networks that provide access to opportunity
Ability to disagree productively
ADAPTABILITY & RESILIENCE
Ability to change without losing execution
Capacity to absorb disruption
Flexible roles and structures
Organizational slack where it matters
Ability to use technology and AI effectively
Resilience beyond individual heroes
ORGANIZATIONAL LIABILITIES
WHAT CREATES DRAG, RISK, DEPENDENCY, OR CONSTRAINS EXECUTION
LEADERSHIP CONSTRAINTS
Leadership team built for a past stage
Critical decisions bottlenecked in one leader
Leaders create dependency on themselves
No credible successor for critical roles
Persistent leadership misalignment
Tolerated leadership underperformance
CAPABILITY & TALENT GAPS
Capabilities the strategy requires—but we lack
Critical skill gaps
Strong people in roles that no longer fit
Key roles filled by people we've outgrown
Chronic dependence on external hiring
Talent trapped in legacy structures or priorities
EXECUTION DRAG
Managers who require excessive intervention
Unclear accountability
Decision bottlenecks
Silos and weak cross-functional execution
Meetings and processes that consume more than enable
Strategy that fails to translate into execution
KNOWLEDGE FRAGILITY
Critical knowledge concentrated in a few people
Institutional knowledge trapped in individuals
Repeated mistakes and weak learning
Reliance on past playbooks that no longer fit
Important decisions made without data
Slow adaptation to changing conditions
ORGANIZATIONAL FRICTION
Low trust that slows decisions or execution
Politics and unresolved conflict
Leadership credibility gaps
Overdependence on a few relationships
Relationships that prevent necessary decisions
Conflict avoidance
STRUCTURAL RIGIDITY & STRAIN
Change fatigue
Too many simultaneous changes
Roles designed around individuals, not needs
No capacity for unexpected demands
Legacy systems or workflows that constrain
Reliance on heroics to keep things going
WHICH 3 ASSETS MATTER MOST TO THE VALUE YOU ARE TRYING TO CREATE?
WHICH 3 LIABILITIES POSE THE GREATEST RISK TO THAT VALUE?
WHERE ARE YOU CURRENTLY INVESTING—OR FAILING TO INVEST—ACCORDINGLY?
WANT TO GO DEEPER?
Assess the assets and liabilities that matter most to your strategy. See where to Protect, Invest, Address, or Accept.
peoplemultiple.com/tools
CONTEXT MATTERS: An asset can become a liability. A liability can become an asset. Circle what is materially true for your strategy and stage ahead.