1We prepare the facts
Before the session we gather data and interview the participants, so that at the session people argue about decisions.
Strategy Session
A difficult decision in one room. A session is useful when it's prepared with facts and ends with decisions that have owners.
Sound familiar?Managers have different pictures of what's going on, Discussions go in circles and don't end in decisions, The team needs a shared priority, and everyone pulls in a different direction
Strategy and Consulting
How we work
1
2We agree on the words
Shared definitions of key terms: what a priority, a deal and a result are.
3We lead the discussion
Alternatives, the cost of each, refusals.
4We record the decisions
Owners, deadlines, checkpoints and a review date.
Sound familiar?
- Managers have different pictures of what's going on.
- Discussions go in circles and don't end in decisions.
- The team needs a shared priority, and everyone pulls in a different direction.
What usually lies behind it
A session without preparation turns into an exchange of opinions: interesting, but the next day nothing changes. The reason is usually that participants have different facts and different definitions of the same words, and they have to decide things nobody has calculated.
What you get
A record of decisions: who, what and by when.
A list of refusals agreed by the team.
A date and format for checking execution.
The cost of waiting
If nothing changes
- 01
Disagreements will keep slowing down execution.
- 02
Priorities will be interpreted differently.
- 03
Managers' time will go into repeated discussions.
When you don't need this service
- The decisions that need to be made aren't known yet. Owner advisory or the EMET Diagnostic comes first.
- There's no data for the decision. A session without facts produces impressions instead of decisions.
How to tell it worked
Decisions with owners
how many decisions from the session have an owner and a deadline.
Execution
how many of them are done by the checkpoint date.
A shared picture
whether participants describe the priorities the same way a month later.
Questions
How long is a session?
Usually one or two days. The preparation takes longer than the session itself, and that's the right ratio.
Who takes part?
The owner and the managers who will carry out the decisions. Usually no more than ten people.
What if it turns out during the session that there isn't enough data?
We record exactly what's missing and schedule the decision for a date when it will be available. We won't decide blind.
Related
Services: Strategic Planning · Owner Advisory · KPIs for Business Materials: The owner's glossary · Strategy as a list of refusals
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