An Open Letter to Michael Fiddelke, Incoming CEO of Target
Hi Michael,
Congratulations on being named as the incoming CEO of Target.
In your first remarks, you spoke about the need to "move with urgency and focus." It's great to hear you reference the tension that defines modern leadership: in a world where everything feels urgent, what truly matters and deserves our energy and effort?
As with other accomplished executives, you probably have seen how urgency can be a double-edged sword. Too little, and opportunities slip away. Too much, and an organization burns itself out chasing noise while missing the signal.
What will determine Target's next chapter isn't simply speed but clarity and direction. The ability to align 400,000 employees not just around moving faster, but around moving faster on the right things.
That capability has a name: Strategic Urgency.
What Is Strategic Urgency?
Strategic Urgency is the discipline of distinguishing between what feels urgent and what actually matters. It's not about panic. It's not about slowing down. It's about precision: accelerating at the right moments and conserving energy when it's noise.
Although there are other aspects of Strategic Urgency, it ultimately comes down to asking these four deceptively simple questions in response to a perceived opportunity:
1. If our competitor acted on this opportunity tomorrow, how would we feel?
2. What's the cost of being wrong versus the cost of being slow?
3. What can we do this week to capture the opportunity before it fades away?
4. How easily can we undo this if it doesn't work?
These questions act as a lens for every decision. They give frontline employees permission to elevate the right signals from customers, empower managers to prioritize real threats to the business growth plan, and help executives create urgency around what truly matters—capturing market moments before competitors do—without overwhelming teams with false alarms.
Why It Matters for Target
Retail today isn't defined by the luxury of time. Market windows that once stayed open for years now close in weeks. AI accelerates execution, but the winners aren't those who simply move fast but the ones who know what deserves speed.
For Target, Strategic Urgency will mean:
• Capturing market moments: Whether it's TikTok Shop, supply chain pivots, or consumer experience innovations, early movers win market advantage. Strategic Urgency reveals where speed changes the game and helps you gain ground on competitors while keeping customers loyal.
• Refocusing talent on strategic goals: Top performers don't leave for money, they leave because they can't see what matters to support strategic goals, such as regaining your position as market leader. Give them clarity, and you'll keep them.
• Reducing organizational noise: Endless "urgent" fire drills distract teams from real growth opportunities. Strategic Urgency channels urgency into progress, not panic.
Take Target's recent inventory struggles as an example. Using Strategic Urgency, the questions become: Would we panic if Walmart solved supply chain visibility tomorrow? (Yes.) Is the cost of imperfect inventory data higher than the cost of empty shelves? (Absolutely.) What can we implement this week to improve stock visibility? (Start with top 100 SKUs.) How easily can we course-correct if the solution isn't perfect? (Very easily.)
The Path Forward
Michael, your instinct to emphasize "urgency and focus" is exactly right. But the power lies not just in urgency itself, but in teaching 400,000 people how to discern urgency and develop the skills to act on it strategically. It won't happen automatically.
The retail world is watching to see if Target can execute a turnaround under pressure. If you can embed Strategic Urgency into Target's DNA, you won't just survive this transition but emerge as the case study other retailers wish they could replicate. The framework is ready when you are.
Congratulations again on this new chapter. Along with millions of other consumers and leaders, I will be watching and cheering you on.
Respectfully,
Shama Hyder
Author of The Upside of Urgency (upcoming!)
Keynote Speaker on Leadership, AI, and Business Growth
Thank you.