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Most facilities leaders practice context switching almost constantly, switching between on-the-ground tactical details and high-level strategic outcomes.
Ankur Gupta, a Chief of Staff at FedEx, explains why the ability is a "muscle" that can be strengthened with a sharper focus on audience and goals.
The framework Gupta outlines can help leaders learn how to context switch with three simple steps: identify the audience, define the goal, and build the narrative.
For most people, senior leadership roles require a constant recalibration of thought. One moment calls for a high-level narrative for investors, while the next demands a granular data dive for an internal meeting. Today, this constant toggling between audiences, data types, and priorities is often seen as a demanding but unavoidable part of the job. But for many leaders, the cognitive cost of toggling can be a significant drain on focus.
According to Ankur Gupta, Principal, Chief of Staff to the Chief Customer Officer at FedEx, the solution is to master it. Gupta, who operates at the intersection of data, strategy, and communication, explains context switching by breaking it down into three core areas: functions, data types, and audiences.
"When you're talking to the CEO of the organization, you talk at a very high level in key bullet points. But for somebody deep in the weeds, like a warehouse manager, you must switch that context for the audience and have a completely different conversation," Gupta says. The mental process involves shifting between the quantitative (the numbers on a scorecard) and the qualitative (the story behind those numbers), he explains—all while continually adjusting the level of detail to suit the audience.
The core question: The approach is built on a simple principle that Gupta applies before any project: “Every project starts with: who’s the audience, what’s the goal, what story are we trying to tell?" he explains. For an external audience on an earnings call, for example, the goal is to discuss sustainable growth. An internal board meeting, however, requires a more detailed approach.
Building the muscle: Context switching is a skill that leaders can develop with purpose, Gupta continues. Describing it as a "muscle" that strengthens through effort, he points to his own experience as proof. "I wasn't naturally good at it. For me, it was a developed skill. I learned early on that you cannot simply reuse information for different audiences. The level of detail and language changes depending on the context," he explains.
But these principles aren’t just for the C-suite, he advises. Instead, they're just as relevant to the challenges faced by operations and facilities leaders. Using Walmart's success in integrating different business units as an example, Gupta explains that, while he doesn't work directly with front-line teams, the principle of adjusting communication strategy remains universal.
In modern facilities management, where on-the-ground execution ideally aligns with high-level goals that protect brand integrity, data-driven leadership is a key theme. "Someone on the floor needs specific details about a task, such as whether it is being performed on time and according to protocol. A senior leader in headquarters, in contrast, needs the summation of those tasks. They want to understand the outcome and how that work improves the business, reduces cost, or drives customer satisfaction."
Complete the loop: AI is already becoming a central tool to help reduce this cognitive load, Gupta explains. Here, he points to applications within his industry, like robots assisting in logistics or automating work orders on the factory floor. "I use AI as a strategic partner for brainstorming. I can ask it to enhance my work or refine it for a particular user persona. After meetings, I feed the real-world feedback I received back into the tool, instructing it to incorporate those learnings. It’s about completing that feedback loop."
When it comes to communication, Gupta shares several key principles from FedEx to reinforce strategic alignment. First, repetition is key to clear communication, he says. “You tell the audience what you're going to do, then you do it, and then finally, you tell them that you did it." Then, he discusses the importance of an overarching priority that everyone works towards. For example, FedEx's "Purple Chips"—the five or six key projects that matter most. Ultimately, leaders must understand the story from top to bottom to effectively communicate at a senior level, he concludes. "The numbers tell you the 30,000-foot story, but you have to be comfortable diving to 5,000 feet to see what’s actually driving them."
