The Strategy-Execution Gap: Why 2026 Must Be the Year of the "How," Not Just the "What"

As we step into the new year, the boardroom conversation around Data and AI has shifted. As many of us know, 2025 was the “Year of Exploration,” and I believe 2026 will be billed as the “Year of Accountability.”

Side note: accountability is a tough word to deal with, specifically when it’s not your money you are dealing with. I’ve seen many teams over the last 3-5 years take very little accountability. This needs to change this year; otherwise, your CEOs are going to get extremely frustrated!

Over the last 25 years, I’ve sat with leaders across industries such as Retail, Banking, Insurance, Private Equity, and many others. Now the question is no longer “What can AI do?” The question is: “Why hasn’t our data & AI strategy moved the needle on our P&L yet?”

The reality is that most AI initiatives fail not because the technology is flawed, but because the strategy is disconnected from operational reality.

We’ve been building high-performance engines (the analytics and now AI bit) on top of cracked foundations (data debt and fragmented governance).

So, why did I build the Data & AI Strategy Canvas?

I created, then developed, and eventually wrote the book about the Data & AI Strategy Canvas because I saw brilliant teams spinning their wheels. They had the talent and the budget, but they lacked a shared “map.”

A canvas isn’t just a document; it’s a forcing function. It forces executives and their teams to align on:

• Value Creation: stop funding “data science projects” and start mapping data & AI initiatives to revenue or efficiency
• The Operating Model: defining how we adopt new ways of working and change the flow of our business to match how we go to market and make money, or what outcome we are looking for
• Governance as an Enabler: moving away from “policing” data or finding the unicorn data owner, and instead working toward “enabling” it as an accelerator of value creation

Here is my belief and the mandate for executives for 2026.

For executives, this year is about de-risking and for their teams a year of adding more clarity.

The Canvas is designed to give you both. It provides a visual, one-page truth that bridges the gap between a 50-page slide deck and a Jira ticket. It ensures that when you invest a pound into your data & AI initiatives, you know exactly where it surfaces as value.

How do we build this foundation?

I didn’t just want to write a book that sits on a shelf; I wanted to provide a toolkit that changes how we work. Whether you are mid-transformation or just starting to look at your 2026 roadmap, the goal remains the same: Operationalising the vision.

Stop thinking “Data-Driven” and move to a “Value Creation” reality this year, and let’s talk about how the Canvas can be applied to your specific environment.

The era of the “AI pilot” is over. Are you ready for the era of value creation?