Strategic planning, when done well, is a process that yields tremendous insight as the participants ask themselves important, and sometimes challenging, questions.
And, when done well, it produces a living, breathing document that serves as a dynamic and iterative roadmap to guide the implementation and feedback process.
Strategic planning is not creating a 50-page document that no one ever looks at, except to dust around it when the office gets cleaned.
The beauty of the process is that it can be applied to any big picture questions an organization faces:
- Who do we want to be in the next five years?
- How will we pivot to address market changes?
- How do we become an industry leader as we seek to create a culture of true diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice?
- How do we rethink how we work?
- How do we become better stewards of the environment?
As we work with you to answer your critical questions and leverage your most compelling opportunities, we are both methodical and creative in our step-by-step approach.
- Align. Work with the project team to clarify outcomes and objectives, and align the work of the project to the mission, vision, and values.
- Assess. Assess the current state of the organization.
- Envision. Envision the desired future state and the criteria for success.
- Design. Formulate a road map that will lead from the current state to the desired future state.
- Implement. Implement the plan with guidance from ThirdWay.
- Evaluate. Gather feedback and evaluate success.
- Iterate. Adapt as necessary.
- Sustain. Build capacity, establish practices that ensure changes are sustainable, and create an ongoing mindset of continual improvement.
- Celebrate. Take time to acknowledge hard work and celebrate success!