strategic planning.

A key process in a volatile and unpredictable business environment 

Companies can build resilience and adaptability, enabling effective growth in the face of uncertainty. Strategic planning aims to:

• develop a plan of action to achieve long-term business goals;
  
•  reduce business risk and build a competitive advantage. 

 At the same time, it allows participants involved in the planning process to have a real impact on the future of the enterprise and to gain knowledge and practical skills in the area of planning competence.

---

​Frequently asked questions

What is the purpose of organizing a strategy workshop? 

Strategy workshops are organized to determine the direction of development of a company or organization  in context of  the current market challenges. The scope of the strategy workshop can cover the activities of the entire organization or a selected area of its operation. ​

Who should participate in a strategy workshop? 

We recommend that members of the Board of Directors and representatives from all departments of the company participate in the strategy workshop. With such representation, we get both more creativity in generating business ideas and the ability to make key decisions.​

What is the program of a strategy workshop? 

Strategic workshops usually last 2-3 days, and can be implemented with breaks between sessions, during which participants acquire additional information that is needed or conduct a deeper analysis. The strategic workshop program includes 4 main parts:

1. defining long-term goals
2. analysis of the current situation
3. a creative session dedicated to generating innovative solutions based on the earlier analysis 
4. deciding which initiatives will be implemented  and agreeing on an action plan

What tools do we use during strategic workshops? 

The selection of strategic planning tools and methods depends on the defined scope of the workshop and the availability of analytical data. We have the knowledge, experience and proficiency to use the following tools:

• Analysis of financial results
• Analysis of facts and experience
• Portfolio analysis
• Competitor analysis
• Analysis of "non-consumption" areas
• Porter's 5 forces 
• Benchmarking
• SWOT analysis 
• Repository of ideas
• Cause-and-effect analysis 
• "Brainstorming" 
• TOWS method 
•  "Blue ocean"  canvas
• Mind maps 
• Decision-making matrix
• Lateral marketing
• Marketing mix 

What is the role of the consultant-moderator of the strategic workshop? ​

The consultant gets involved even before the start of the strategy workshop by analyzing the needs of the main stakeholders and commissioning the preparation of relevant data for the preliminary strategic analysis. During the strategy workshop, the facilitator ensures that the activities follow the agenda, as the sequence of strategy sessions has a major impact on the effectiveness of the strategy workshop. For example, business ideas should not be evaluated before the creative session is completely finished. The facilitator of the strategy workshop has extensive experience in conducting classes and has a powerful repository of tools and methods, which he uses depending on the course of the workshop. ​

What are the results of the strategy workshop? 

The primary outcome of the strategic workshop is a strategic action plan, which includes a timeline, allocation of resources to activities, and expected outcomes. Depending on the findings, the results can also be: revised contents of the Mission and Vision, a marketing plan including selected elements of the "marketing mix", a risk management plan, recommendations for scenario planning, and others.​

What should be the time frame of strategic planning? 

The time frame depends on the scope of the strategic planning and the industry in which the business operates. For service companies it is usually a 2-3 year time frame, for manufacturing companies it is longer in cases where major investments in infrastructure are involved. 

More and more companies prefer an agile approach to strategic planning. In these cases we  recommend establishing a dedicated permanent strategic team, which evaluates the effectiveness and relevance of implemented solutions on a quarterly basis. 
 

---

​Results of  strategic planning
​

---

​Process description

Preparation for the workshop

1 A consultation between the facilitator and the Board of Directors                            

• Agreeing on the time frame of the   strategic    planning 
• Getting to know the needs and expectations of the decision makers addressed by the workshop
• Initial agreement on the methods used during strategic planning

2   A document analysis carried out by the consultant                             

• Initial proposal of business objectives provided by the Board of Directors
• Short memo - a summary of strategic activities to date
• Mission and Vision
• Revenue share and profitability of specific lines of business (types of products and services)
• Results of customer satisfaction surveys, if available (e.g.  the  Net Promoter Score )
• A list of major competitors

 3. Filling out online questionnaires by all the participants of the process
          (preceded by an announcement  from the Board of Directors concerning the strategic planning process and its timeline)                          

• Questions concerning business objectives relevant to one's role in the business
• Questions concerning the evaluation of the competitiveness of the goods and/or  services offered
• Questions regarding the directions of future development 
• Questions regarding the sales growth potential of individual services
• Questions regarding particular customer behaviors

4 Outlining the strategic planning process​

Sample   strategy workshop workflow  blueprint facilitated by a BPD consultant

1. introduction: the strategic planning process
(a guided discussion defining the process)

• Defining medium- and long-term goals
• Strategic analysis
• Creating   development concepts and ideas for future development
• Coming to decision 
• Planning strategically-driven tasks

2 Defining mission and strategic objectives

• Discussing the basic principles: defining the attributes of a strategic objective, discussing the role of mission and vision
• Defining  the scope of the focus    - the overall and partial strategies
• Discussing the constraints: budgetary, technological and others
• Agreeing on long-term goals

3 Strategic analysis - selecting the tools

• Financial data - results, balance sheet, cash flow, key performance indicators (a  discussion)
• An analysis of facts and previous experiences (gathering observations from the participants' fields of operation)
• A portfolio analysis of the products and services (a discussion and a preliminary filling out of the  portfolio     matrix)
• An analysis of the industry competitors (based on the "Blue Ocean" concept)
• Discussing Porter's Five Forces (a group analysis)
• The PEST analysis of the external factor at play (a group analysis)
• The SWOT analysis (creating an  analysis summary  and drawing conclusions)

4 Selected methods of creating strategic ideas

• The TOWS (group brainstorming  using  selected pairs of SWOT) 
• The Blue Ocean strategy   canvas  (helps in choosing  a    strategic direction in selected categories of products) 

​5. strategic decision-making 

• Comparative methods 
• Path of least resistance method 
• The Selection criteria   matrix
• Scenario planning 
• Summarizing workshop results and deciding on the next steps 
• Presenting    the strategy (this includes a    discussion about best practices) 
• Appointing a team to monitor the implementation of the strategic projects

​Additional  support provided by the consultant during the strategy implementation

The extent of this support will be discussed with the client