Systems naturally accumulate complexity. Healthy systems remove it.
Every organisation begins simple. A small team, a clear goal, fast decisions. Then something gets added: a meeting, a process, a tool, a layer of management.
Nothing gets removed. Not because people are irrational, but because addition feels safe and subtraction feels risky. Left alone, organisations grow heavier over time. Decisions slow. Priorities blur. Energy drains.
Light House exists for leaders who understand that the most important strategic act is not addition, it is subtraction. Knowing what to remove, having the discipline to remove it, and building the habit of keeping the house light.
7.7%
Marketing budgets have flatlined at 7.7% of company revenue. 59% of CMOs say that is still not enough to execute their strategy.
Gartner CMO Spend Survey, 2025
30%
Only 30% of marketers rate their own organisation's marketing as very effective. The report is titled: Eliminating Complexity for a Frictionless Marketing Experience.
HBR Analytic Services / Quad, 2024
9,304%
Growth in marketing technology between 2011 and 2024. From 150 tools to over 14,000. Nobody removed anything.
Chief Marketing Technologist, 2024
Complex organisations are rarely designed. They accumulate.
02 — The Three Principles
01
First Principle
Subtraction
Complexity is the default state. Systems naturally grow heavier over time. The discipline of removing what is unnecessary is not a one-time act, it is a habit.
“The most important word in strategy is no.”
02
Second Principle
Lightness
Light systems move faster, adapt more easily, and consume less energy. Lightness is not aesthetic minimalism, it is functional simplicity.
Optimal structures do more with less.
03
Third Principle
Clarity
What isn’t obvious cannot be executed. Visibility is the prerequisite for action.
LESS is not a philosophy of doing less. It is the discipline of keeping systems light. Organisations naturally accumulate complexity. LESS is the practice of continuously removing it.
Four principles. One direction.
L
01
Lighten
Remove the weight. Light systems move faster, decide better, and last longer. Heaviness is always optional.
E
02
Eliminate
If it doesn't add value, it adds cost. Remove without sentiment. The hardest cuts are always the right ones.
S
03
Simplify
The clearest version of a thing is usually the most effective. Complexity is rarely necessary. Simplicity always is.
S
04
Sharpen
What remains must be precise. Clarity is earned, not given. Sharpen until the signal becomes obvious.
04 — About
Ross Duncan
lighthouse
The discipline of removing complexity
I've spent years watching organisations add. Add meetings, add processes, add tools, add layers, add strategy decks that nobody reads. Almost nobody removes anything.
It bothers me. Not just professionally, personally. I have an almost physical intolerance for clutter, unnecessary complexity and the energy organisations waste on things that simply do not matter. There is an elegance to simplicity that I find genuinely compelling. It is more efficient, more effective and, frankly, more beautiful than the alternative.
That belief found its commercial footing early. Nearly a decade at General Electric taught me that the same discipline applies to marketing. Strip out what is not working. Sharpen what is. Connect everything to outcomes that actually matter.
Since then I have worked with founders and startups, independent digital agencies and global media groups across the UK and APAC.
Complexity is the problem. Subtraction is the answer.
Some of the organisations I've worked with and for
One idea. Once a week. The LESS way of thinking, in your inbox.
diagnostic tool
clarityscore
This diagnostic is designed for CMOs and Heads of Marketing responsible for commercial outcomes. It reveals where complexity may be quietly weakening the marketing function.
Does your marketing team work closely with a dedicated sales team to drive revenue?
B2B only
your result
0
Category breakdown
Want a deeper breakdown?
Enter your email and light house will send a short diagnostic summary highlighting the areas most likely creating complexity inside your marketing function.
Thank you. Your Clarity Score report is on its way.
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id: 'people', number: '01', title: 'People',
subtitle: 'Is your team designed for the work that matters?',
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id: 'strategy', number: '03', title: 'Strategy',
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{
id: 'measurement', number: '06', title: 'Measurement',
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'Every report my team produces on a regular basis directly influences a real business decision.',
'I can draw a clear and defensible line between my current marketing investment and revenue.',
'My marketing technology stack makes my team faster and smarter — it does not create dependency or cost without return.',
'The way we measure marketing success has been agreed with the CEO — not inherited from a previous regime.',
'If I had to explain the commercial impact of my marketing function to the board today, I could do it in under five minutes with complete confidence.',
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{ min: 126, max: 167, label: 'Carrying weight', cls: 'band-carrying-weight', desc: 'Complexity exists but is manageable. There are clear areas of strength alongside areas where accumulated weight is slowing you down. Identifying and removing the obvious drag will unlock meaningful commercial impact.' },
{ min: 84, max: 125, label: 'Heavy', cls: 'band-heavy', desc: 'Significant complexity is reducing your marketing function\'s effectiveness. Multiple areas require structured attention. The priority is subtraction — removing what is not working before adding anything new.' },
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{ min: 151, max: 201, label: 'Carrying weight', cls: 'band-carrying-weight', desc: 'There are genuine areas of strength but complexity — particularly at the marketing and sales interface — is creating drag. Targeted simplification will unlock significant commercial improvement.' },
{ min: 101, max: 150, label: 'Heavy', cls: 'band-heavy', desc: 'Complexity is present across multiple areas and is materially slowing commercial performance. The misalignment between marketing and sales is likely costing real pipeline. Structured subtraction is needed now.' },
{ min: 51, max: 100, label: 'Critical', cls: 'band-critical', desc: 'Systemic complexity is undermining your marketing function\'s commercial impact. Clarity is low across strategy, execution and alignment. A comprehensive simplification programme is required.' },
{ min: 0, max: 50, label: 'In crisis', cls: 'band-crisis', desc: 'The complexity in your marketing function is urgent and foundational. Commercial impact is severely compromised. Immediate and decisive intervention is required across people, strategy, execution and alignment.' },
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doc-e
