Lance Mortlock: The Outside In, Inside Out of Business

In this episode of The Unfolding Thought Podcast, Eric Pratum talks with Dr. Lance Mortlock—Managing Partner for Industrials & Energy at EY Canada, adjunct professor, and author of Outside In, Inside Out and Disaster Proof. Together they explore how leaders can create clarity and resilience in a world defined by uncertainty, disruption, and accelerating change.

Lance shares what decades of advising executives have taught him about why most strategies fail—not because they’re wrong, but because they’re poorly executed—and how his “diamond framework” helps organizations balance external insight with internal capability. The conversation ranges from the evolution of AI and scenario planning to why balance, adaptability, and courage define the best leaders and companies.

Topics Covered

• How Lance’s work as a strategist and adjunct professor shaped his writing
• The continuing impact of AI on organizational design and decision-making
• Why humans remain essential for understanding—beyond data and knowledge
• The “Outside-In / Inside-Out” diamond framework for strategy and execution
• The role of balance: vertical (external vs. internal) and horizontal (strategy vs. execution)
• Why 90% of strategies fail and what great companies do differently
• How resilience and adaptability separate good organizations from great ones
• Lessons from Hari Budha Magar’s Everest climb on leadership and perseverance

Resources Mentioned

• Visit Lance Mortlock’s website: Visit lancemortlock.com
• Follow Lance on LinkedIn: Visit linkedin.com
• Lance’s first book Disaster Proof: Visit amzn.to
• Lance’s most recent book Outside In, Inside Out: Visit amzn.to
• James Barrat’s Our Final Invention: Visit amzn.to
• Nick Bostrom’s Superintelligence: Visit amzn.to
• Max Tegmark’s Life 3.0: Visit amzn.to
• Double amputee Hari Magar: Visit en.wikipedia.org

For more episodes: Browse all episodes

Questions or guest ideas: eric@inboundandagile.com

Key takeaways

• Strategies often fail less because the idea is wrong than because execution is disconnected from the organization’s real capabilities.
• The outside-in, inside-out diamond balances external change, internal capacity, strategic choice, and execution.
• Data and AI can expand what leaders know, but judgment is still required to turn information into understanding and action.

Questions this conversation answers

• Why do so many sound strategies fail during execution?
• How does the outside-in, inside-out framework connect market insight to internal capability?
• What role should scenario planning play when disruption is accelerating?
• Which human decisions remain essential as AI becomes more capable?

Continue listening

If this conversation was useful, continue with Kelly Monahan: Work Changed. Leadership Didn’t.

Questions or guest ideas? Contact Eric.