Conceptually, strategic planning is a very simple and straightforward process that establishes where a business wants to get to within a specific timeframe, and the most effective route to take.

The reality of the task is sometimes rather more daunting.

In order to plan a journey, it becomes critical to determine the starting point. Many businesses find that they have evolved over time into multiple sub-businesses with no clear, definitive position in their market, their skills base or their apparent direction. When strategic discussion and exploration is attempted, many participants feel that they cannot agree on the appropriate strategic destination, when, in fact, the unseen source of disagreement is in the various assumptions made about the starting point.

Using a structured and facilitated process that carefully and clearly defines the focus and outcomes for each stage of the plan development, conflicting views become a healthy and constructive component of the analytical phase, rather than something to be avoided at all costs. Experienced facilitation and the sensitive teasing out of perceptions can transform the strategic planning nightmare into an enlightening vision, while simultaneously building shared vision and strengthening team dynamics.

Perhaps more important than the process itself is the context in which the process occurs. Most businesses require an individual approach involving flexibility and tailoring to adapt to a range of operational and financial constraints. stratFX  works closely with clients to deliver an individually tailored process that will deliver a robust strategic planning outcome.