Strategic Planning

We work with groups to develop concise and uniquely tailored strategic planning processes. Although the primary product is a written plan, an equally important and valuable outcome of a planning process is the enhancement of the capacity for strategic thinking among the participants. We draw from extensive knowledge and experience with many different planning formats and methods, including scenarios and results-based planning. We have designed and facilitated planning processes for businesses, government agencies, colleges, and non-profit organizations.

How can we avoid ending up with a plan that feels outdated as conditions around us change, and ends up getting filed away in a drawer?

It is critical to clarify your purpose in undertaking a strategic planning process, assess the forces that are operating within your organization and in your external markets or environment, and create the kind of process and work products that will align, guide and energize people throughout your organization to achieve your goals. The level of formality, the format, and specific methods to assess and measure the results of your plan will differ depending on the culture of your organization and the larger environment in which you operate. We offer outlines and steps for planning but never a one-size-fits-all process. Instead, we work with you to identify the critical questions that need to be answered in your plan, choose the right combination of methods to engage participants in focused, creative thinking about organizational directions and strategies, and to build the consensus and will to carry the plan to fruition. Ways in which the plan will be adapted as your organization evolves, and as the conditions in which you do business change, are also defined during the creation of the plan.

We are also experienced in conducting and preparing organizational assessments and reports that inform decision-making, or that serve as precursors to a more comprehensive planning processes.

“Thank you, Stephanie, for your guidance through this project. I really enjoyed your approach to the process and I feel that the living document we now have will be a great asset to helping us stay focused and on track over the next few years.” -- Barton Merle-Smith, Director of Marketing and Sales, NRG Systems, Inc.