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Issue #36 | 02/11/2026
From the Editor
Hey fam!
There's a 30-minute LinkedIn Learning course by Dan Shapero, LinkedIn's COO, that's quietly racked up over 190,000 viewers and a 96% positive rating. The title? Communicating with Executives.
Shapero says the key to communicating with executives isn't about being smarter or more polished—it's about learning to think like they think. Understanding what questions they're actually asking. What's really keeping them up at night.
Why does this matter for us?
Because whether you're a driver chatting with restaurant managers, a PM presenting to leadership, or someone building a side hustle who needs to pitch a client—you're constantly communicating with people who have more power, less time, and different priorities than you.
Shapero's core lesson: Before you present information, ask yourself what the other person actually needs to hear to be successful. Not what you want to say. Not every detail of what happened. Just the information that helps them make a decision or take action.
The best communicators aren't the most talkative. They're the ones who understand what the person across from them actually needs—and deliver exactly that.
This week's reads dig deeper into managing up, getting buy-in faster, and understanding what people really mean when they ask questions.
Let’s dive in!
Phedra Arthur Iruke
You Deserve a Better Intranet
A modern intranet like Haystack streamlines workplace operations by centralizing knowledge, communication, and resources.
Employees will no longer waste time hunting through email chains or scattered folders—they can find what they need in seconds.
With customizable templates, clear layouts, and multimedia capabilities, teams can create and share content that is easy to read, navigate, and reference. Haystack turns your intranet into an interactive, engaging resource hub that supports collaboration and knowledge retention.
Upgrading your intranet boosts efficiency across departments, reduces duplicated work, and ensures consistent, accurate information is accessible to everyone. Employees stay informed, aligned, and empowered, while leadership gains visibility into engagement and usage.
Haystack transforms your intranet from a static repository into a dynamic platform that drives productivity, connection, and culture.
Job Board
🦸 Hero Role of the Week
VP, Program Delivery — Quarterhill | Frisco, TX
Here's what the job actually is: you're running all programs across the organization. You own client satisfaction, operational efficiency, and a team of Program Directors, Project Managers, and Program Managers.
You're traveling to project sites. You're sitting in the room with state governments and industry partners.
The requirement that jumped out at me: "Strategic mindset with a history of successful program delivery and client satisfaction." They're not looking for someone who knows how to build a RAID log. They're looking for someone who can translate delivery outcomes into business value — and make clients feel like the investment was worth it.
If you've been running complex programs, managing senior stakeholders, and keeping the lights on while everyone else panics — you have a case to make here.
No spoilers. Go find it. Filter on VP-level roles, and it should be one of the top results.
👉 Browse this week's top roles 👇
Have a role you want featured? Reply to this email.
Giphy
Professional Development
💡 Micro-Tip of the Week
The "So What?" Test
Before any communication with leadership, ask yourself: "So what?"
Every data point should connect to a business outcome they care about: revenue, risk, or reputation.
Industry News
A few things from Big Tech & business leaders that you can steal in 10 minutes
"How to Get Faster Approval from Your Manager" — Wes Kao's Newsletter
What's really going through your manager's head when you ask for sign-off—and how to get the greenlight faster by anticipating their concerns.
Link: https://newsletter.weskao.com/p/how-to-get-faster-approval-from-your-manager"Question Behind the Question" — Wes Kao's Newsletter
Before you answer any question, pause: What are they really asking? Useful when dealing with anyone short on time and long on expectations.
Link: https://newsletter.weskao.com/p/fundamentals-question-behind-the"Managing Upwards" — The Engineering Manager
A practical guide to handling the relationship with your boss—covering expectations, how your manager is measured, and why proactively managing up is critical to your career.
Link: https://www.theengineeringmanager.com/management-101/managing-upwards/
From the Community
Resource of the Week
LinkedIn Learning: "Communicating with Executives" by Dan Shapero
Free with LinkedIn Premium. 30 minutes that could change how you show up in every meeting.
AI Alone Can’t Run Revenue
Finance doesn’t run on “mostly right.” It runs on math.
In The Architecture Behind AI-Native Revenue Automation, Tabs’s CTO breaks down why LLMs alone aren’t enough—and what it actually takes to build audit-ready, AI-driven contract-to-cash systems for modern B2B teams.
Energy
🎤 Phedra's Take
This week's theme: Communicating with Executives
Here's my take: You've probably been told to "get better at executive communication." To be more concise. More crisp. To "lead with the bottom line." To develop "executive presence."
What I've learned: That advice isn't wrong. But it misses the point. The real barrier isn't your communication skills. It's that you're answering questions they're not asking. Executives don't want a status update — they want to know if they need to act. They don't want context — they want a decision framework. Until you shift from "here's what happened" to "here's what you need to decide," you'll keep getting cut off mid-sentence.
Your move this week:
Start thinking like an executive before you speak to one. It means:
• Asking yourself "what decision does this enable?" before every update
• Leading with the recommendation, not the research
• Anticipating the two questions they'll ask — and answering them before they do
• Accepting that 80% of your work won't make it into the conversation, and that's okay
Want me to email this addition too, or can you copy from here?
Was this useful? Hit reply and lmk. I read every response.
P.S. - Know someone who could use real advice on comms? Forward this to them. Sometimes the shift starts with realizing you’re not alone.
That’s it for this week.
Keep showing up, keep cheering each other on.
How I can help?
The Delivery Career Decoder is the first comprehensive career transformation system designed specifically for delivery professionals, program managers, and technical operations experts who are ready to break through the "execution ceiling" and step into strategic leadership roles. This is a proven methodology that leverages your unique strengths as a delivery professional while systematically building the strategic positioning, executive presence, and communication skills that open doors to VP, Director, and C-suite opportunities.
The Business of Delivery Team
P.S.
You got this!