Leader’s Intent

Leader’s intent, similar to Commander’s intent, describes what constitutes success for a strategy, product, or other desired organizational outcome

• In an Ordered environment (known knowns & unknowns) in which cause-and-effect relationships are present, the objective is to focus on the desired end-state through decentralized planning and execution of activities from those closest to the work
• For Complex environments (unknown-unknowns) in which there is no direct cause-and-effect relationships, desired outcomes are unknown and are formalized through sense-making activities through autonomous agents closest to the problem

Ref: The Flow System: The Evolution of Agile and Lean Thinking in an Age of Complexity (p. 40). Aquiline Books|UNT. Kindle Edition.