You’re about to start a strategic planning session. How can you make sure it’s effective?

To ensure an effective strategic planning session, establish clear objectives and goals, involve key stakeholders, and create a collaborative environment. Begin with a thorough analysis of internal and external factors, fostering open communication and diverse perspectives. Prioritize key issues and opportunities, encouraging creative thinking and innovation. Develop actionable plans with specific timelines and responsibilities. Ensure that the strategy aligns with the organization's mission and values. Foster a culture of adaptability and continuous improvement. Finally, regularly review and update the strategic plan to stay responsive to changing circumstances and maintain long-term success.

IDOARRT is the best framework for creating a solid meeting agenda. Intention, Desired Outcomes, Agenda, Rules, Roles, Time. There are plenty of templates online for this, but it's critical that you are clear about what the purpose of any meeting is. Share your IDOARRT with all participants prior to the session so they can make an informed decision about attending. At the beginning of your workshop put the IDOARRT in clear view and read through it so that everyone is aligned on the goal. This will improve your results by aligning stakeholders on a single purpose.

Depending on the size, scope, and complexity of your strategic planning session, you may need different tools and methods to facilitate the discussion, analysis, and decision making. team should discuss their need and choose the right tool according to requirement. Some common tools for strategic planning are SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats), PESTLE analysis (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental factors), and the Balanced Scorecard (a framework to align your strategy with your vision, mission, values, and goals). You should select the tools that best suit your purpose, context, and audience.

The choice of tools is pivotal but should also not absorb all your energy. While exploring new methodologies can be tempting, I would recommend to opt for the comfort of familiar tools as it yields the most effective facilitation. As a facilitator, your primary role is to steer the discussion, not to grapple with the mechanics of a new tool. The energy and focus you give to your new tool often comes at the expense of your group. Should you still go for something novel, transparency with the participants or the support of a co-facilitator well trained in the tool is crucial. Make sure you create an environment in which your focus can remain on fostering productive dialogue.

Preparing a planning meeting agenda in advance is crucial to guide the discussion, allowing effective participant preparation, avoiding omissions of important topics, and managing time efficiently. This demonstrates respect for the team's time and promotes an organized work environment, contributing to overall effectiveness. It's about focus on what really matters.

"You are all on a sinking boat. You have 5 minutes to grab an item before boarding the life raft. Time starts now." I use an icebreaker for every workshop. Even if everyone in the room knows each other. It sets a positive tone for the session, adds a little fun and helps a team get to know each other better. Usually when we run a workshop the participants are in-between pieces of work or other meetings. Their brains need a moment to refresh before divergent thinking and creative problem solving. To activate this type of thought you need to throw in a novel problem for them to briefly engage with. Try giving your next group an easy hypothetical problem to solve before jumping into the real world scenarios.

To engage people in a remote meeting there are several facilitation techniques, from asking everyone to open their cameras to saying that at the end of the meeting someone will be randomly selected to take the minutes. The second option usually works better.

It's crucial to allocate time to have rounds of meaningful conversations. This approach starts by 'elevating the soul,' which means creating a welcoming atmosphere with a relatable introductory speech that sets the tone and encourages openness. The next phase, 'challenging assumptions,' helps cleaning the air of misunderstandings by inviting participants to expose their preconceptions, opening them up to scrutiny. This step opens the way to 'reorient our perspective. This is a moment where we look at the project from different angles. As a result we 'expand our consciousness' which means broadening the group's vision and paving the way for new solutions. In the final step we have to 'focus our energy towards concrete and actionable steps.

Strategic planning can be exhausting for team members. Try to understand the strengths of the members sitting at the table. Work to understand who is more vocal, who will need the nudge to share that most important piece of data. Set ground rules for technology or no technology. Bring play-Doh. Bring fuzzy, colorful pipe cleaners. Bring snacks. These fun items will entertain those that are more active/vocal thinkers giving some quiet space for the others that need more space to share their thoughts.