In this Issue

📡    Frontline Iterations
📆    Actual + Forecast
🚩    Culture of Asking

📡  Frontline Iterations

A boardroom strategy is a hypothesis until it’s put into action.

Facing a much larger adversary, Ukraine has demonstrated the power of frontline iterations. They are turning battlefield intelligence into products and solutions at lightning speed.

Ukraine equips its infantry with weapons produced in close collaboration with soldiers. Drone and robotic manufacturers, for instance, place QR codes on the units. When a soldier encounters an issue, they scan the QR code to receive real-time support. Within days, not months, the manufacturers deliver software updates, replacement parts, or new product generations.

The speed of these iterations gives Ukrainian forces a compounding advantage. In 2022, at the start of the war, Ukraine produced a few thousand drones annually. By 2026, Ukrainian manufacturers are producing seven million drones that cost between $3,000 and $5,000, with an estimated 68% success rate.

The defining feature is a closed loop between manufacturing and the frontline. This bypasses traditional bureaucracy and top-down assumptions to create an agile, learning system.

This is a powerful and applicable model for mid-market companies too. We may not have a battlefield, but we have sales.

In CoStrategy, we use sales sprints for market research. By capturing real-time, qualitative feedback, sales evaluates market demand so that operations can adapt to meet those needs.

📆  Actual + Forecast

Many businesses avoid forecasting because they can’t predict the future. The trouble is it leaves the business steering from the rearview mirror.

Forecasting is about making better decisions with the information currently available. This doesn’t require tracking everything or having accurate historical data to make forward-looking assumptions.

Forecasting requires tracking the activities that move the business forward.

Fruitland Manufacturing, an Ingersoll-Rand company, is a leading manufacturer of mobile vacuum pumps. On a weekly basis, the team tracks three metrics:

• Orders Received
• Orders Shipped
• Backlog

Fruitland’s forecast is built from the forces that impact each. This can be a moving target. The 2022 supply chain shortages impacted procurement and deliveries, while 2025 tariffs impacted sales.

The insight isn’t to stop forecasting. It’s to adapt with the data you have.

In CoStrategy, we advise starting with a 90 day rolling forecast. This is a skill you have to build that takes six to twelve months to master.

A simple structure for reporting on the forecast is “Actual + Forecast.” We report this as a “Zero Plus Three” structure:

• 0 + 3: Start of fiscal when actuals are zero plus a three month forecast.
• 3 + 3: Q1 actual plus three month forecast.
• 6 + 3: Q2 actual plus three month forecast.

Your forecast adds an honest lens to strategic planning. If the forecast indicates unexpected results, up or down, you can adjust your plans in response. You don’t have to blindly follow a strategic plan when the market is indicating your future is shifting.

📊  One Stat to Watch

73%

of CEOs expect revenue to be higher in 2026 with 65% anticipating higher profits, according to Chief Executive’s July 2026 CEO Confidence Index

🚩  Culture of Asking

Encourage your team to speak up and ask for help.

Problems fester and projects get delayed, because employees don’t know they can ask for help. But a simple question or ask may be all that’s needed to unlock the project.

Inside your organization are immense problem-solving capabilities:

• Executives can pull strings or create budget that managers or employees don’t know about.
• There may be external resources and partners that can help approach the problem from an entirely different perspective.
• There may be people who have faced similar challenges and can offer assistance so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.

The simple act of asking for help unlocks potential. Make it part of your culture. When things get delayed, stuck, or off track, encourage the team to name the issue and ask for assistance.

🤔  Thoughts on Today’s Issue?

We’d love to hear your feedback. Message with any thoughts, comments, or ideas for future issues.