Executive Insight: Pre-Recess Leadership Clarity

Five Questions I Ask Executive Teams Before Year-End Recess

From Chief Executive Officer and Chief Innovation Officer, Krystel Reid Heath, MSW

As I conclude my final workday before the year-end break, I find myself reflecting on the same questions I consistently ask executive teams as they prepare to step away — particularly when a new legislative session, funding cycle, or policy shift is imminent. This period before recess is often decisive, shaping how organizations enter the first quarter.

Before executives take a year-end recess, these are the questions I consistently ask.

Where is your organization most exposed if the policy environment shifts faster than anticipated?

Risk does not surface only through introduced legislation. Early indicators frequently emerge through leadership priorities, committee activity, and administrative posture. Leaders who understand where exposure exists are better positioned to anticipate disruption rather than respond to it.

What assumptions are embedded in your organization’s strategic plan — and how are they shaping your approach to the upcoming legislative session?

Legislative engagement should not exist independently of organizational strategy. When pre-session positioning is not grounded in a clearly articulated strategic plan, organizations are often pushed into reactive decisions once session activity accelerates.

Which decisions will require executive-level attention immediately upon return?
If everything becomes urgent in January, leadership focus erodes quickly. Executives should know in advance where their attention will be required so priorities are not dictated by volume or velocity.

Where could your leadership team benefit from enhanced insight in order to act decisively?

Uncertainty does not pause during recess. The distinction is whether leaders return with visibility into emerging risk or unresolved blind spots that delay action.

What would give your executive team confidence entering the first quarter?

Confidence is rarely the result of having all the answers. It is the result of understanding exposure, clarifying priorities, and knowing where attention or action may be required.

Accordingly, I advise executive teams to ensure three foundational components are established before stepping away:

• A clearly articulated organizational plan and strategy that sets direction for the year ahead
  Legislative priorities should derive from, operate in tandem with, and complement the organization’s strategic objectives.

• Shared alignment on where policy or funding exposure intersects with organizational priorities
  Leadership teams should enter the first quarter with a common understanding of risk and priority areas, rather than fragmented interpretations.

• Agreement on what warrants executive-level attention versus ongoing monitoring
  Not every signal requires immediate action, but every signal requires visibility.

I share these questions because executives and their organizations benefit from stepping away with clarity — not unresolved exposure or risk awaiting them in January.

For organizations seeking structured insight into early-session risk and policy exposure, the Policy Vulnerability Diagnostic™ was designed to surface exactly these dynamics. Early access closes today.

I will be out of the office through January 5. Blog posts will resume the week of January 5. I wish each of you a joyous holiday season, a restorative break, and a strong start to the new year.