Author: Gal Hadad
The Quiet Cost of Organizational Self-Defense
There’s a form of dysfunction that doesn’t show up on the radar. It’s not loud. It doesn’t break things in obvious ways. But it’s everywhere – and once you notice it, it’s hard to unsee. I’m talking about self-defense. Not in the legal sense. Not even in the HR sense. I mean the quiet, structural…
Why Alignment Is Faked More Than It’s Earned
There’s a kind of meeting where everyone nods. You’ve seen it. The strategy’s been presented. The vision sounds tight. Leadership says what needs to be said. Heads bob around the room. There’s cautious optimism in the air. But when you walk out of that room – into the hallway, back to your team, into Slack…
On Systems That Self-Deceive
I’ve seen entire organizations run on theater. Not because the people inside them are insincere, but because, somewhere along the way, the system itself started lying to itself. It’s slow, and it’s subtle. A project that’s “90% done” for four straight months. A roadmap filled with initiatives that quietly get deferred, renamed, or re-scoped until…
On Clarity, Complexity, and the Feeling of Knowing What You’re Doing
There’s a certain moment – rare, but familiar – when you walk into a situation that should be chaotic and instead feel completely clear-headed. You see the moving parts. You understand where the friction is. You know, almost instantly, how the thing should work, and how to get it there. That moment is addictive. And, strangely, kind…
Against the Invisible Drift, Part IV: The Architecture of Coherence
This is Part IV of a series on organizational drift. Part I introduced the invisible drift problem—the growing gap between declared structure, perceived norms, and actual behavior. Part II clarified the difference between complexity and chaos. Part III exposed how feedback loops decay silently across layers. This final chapter explores how to restore coherence —…
Against the Invisible Drift, Part III: Feedback Loops Lie (Unless Mapped)
This is Part III of an unfolding series on organizational drift. Part I introduced the concept of invisible drift—the gap between design, perception, and behavior. Part II explained why confusing complexity with chaos leads to brittle systems. This chapter examines how feedback loops degrade in live organizations, and why their failure is both invisible and…
Against the Invisible Drift, Part II: Complexity ≠ Chaos – Why Most Org Design Fails Before It Begins
This is Part II of an unfolding series on structural drift in organizations. Part I introduced the concept of invisible organizational drift—how surface-level alignment can mask deeper structural misfires. This installment builds on that foundation by exploring the distinction between complexity and chaos, and why failing to understand that difference leads to failed design. Part…
Against the Invisible Drift, Part I: The Drift Problem – Why Organizations Rot While Appearing Aligned
This is Part I of an unfolding series on organizational drift. The series traces how structures quietly erode, why surface alignment often conceals deep dysfunction, and what it takes to diagnose and reverse drift at a systems level. Part II explores how mistaking complexity for chaos leads to brittle design. Part III will examine the…