Real Talk Roundup - February 1, 2026

Five recent pieces on decision durability, reinforcement, and the quiet operating model work that keeps “data-driven” from turning into performance. Each one sits where systems, standards, and leadership meet. The place where good numbers either turn into movement, or turn into reruns.

If you’re new here (welcome!) or just missed a week, here’s a curated set of the latest pieces. Short intros below… open what hits right now, bookmark the rest for when you’re ready.

1) Decision Memory: Speed That Doesn't Forget

If you can’t retrieve what you decided, you’ll keep paying for the lesson. Memory isn’t documentation. It’s portability.

Decision Memory: Speed that Doesn’t Forget

If you can’t retrieve what you decided, you’ll keep paying for the lesson.

Brett W. Farmer | Technology Strategy for ImpactBrett W. Farmer

2) Decision Escalations: The Ladder That Keeps Work Moving

When escalation is driven by heat, decisions turn political. Design the trigger, and the system can move without drama.

Decision Escalations: The Ladder That Keeps Work Moving

When escalation is driven by feelings, decisions become political. Design the trigger, and the system can move.

Brett W. Farmer | Technology Strategy for ImpactBrett W. Farmer

3) Decision Boundaries: Autonomy Without Drift

Autonomy isn't a vibe. It's a design choice.

Decision Boundaries: Autonomy Without Drift

Autonomy doesn’t create speed. Boundaries do.

Brett W. Farmer | Technology Strategy for ImpactBrett W. Farmer

4) Data that Decides

When agreement stops being the hard part, clarity can finally do its job.

Data that Decides

Trusted numbers to repeatable calls: the operating system behind real outcomes.

Brett W. Farmer | Technology Strategy for ImpactBrett W. Farmer

5)  Closing 2025: When Agreement Stops Being the Hard Part

A year-end reflection on the gap between intention and follow-through and why transformation usually fails at the handoff.

Closing 2025: When Agreement Stops Being the Hard Part

The meeting looks different when the numbers finally behave. You can feel it in the room. The usual friction isn’t there. Nobody is arguing about which report is “right.” Nobody is burning time relitigating definitions. The dashboard is clean. The trend lines make sense. Someone asks a sharp question

Brett W. Farmer | Technology Strategy for ImpactBrett W. Farmer

Want the TL;DR?

• Durability beats alignment. The meeting is easy. The handoff is where systems prove themselves.
• If your escalations run on relationship, your “governance” changes every time the room changes.
• If the decision can’t be retrieved in under a minute, you’ve already scheduled the rerun.
• Reinforcement is the difference between intent and default. It’s the workflow change that makes the future behave.
• A decision system holds when new leaders can inherit context, exceptions can be classified cleanly, and work keeps moving without heroics.

If one idea helped, share this roundup with someone who’s stuck in reruns, rebuilding the same number, or trying to create calm before they chase speed.  

Real talk. Real strategy. Real results in digital transformation.  

— Brett