By Russell Lookadoo, TAB Salt Lake Metro
When developing an annual strategic plan, many companies go offsite to a “retreat.” I often cringe when hearing this term (although I heartily endorse the process). Retreating is an inherently defensive and reactionary move that implies the leaders of the company are leaving the field with their tails between their legs. Employees may ask themselves: Why are they hiding? Is it time to wave the white flag? Will we be able to keep our personal firearms and horses…?
I suggest you consider an alternative label for your strategic planning event. Depending on the focus and circumstances, it can be called a strategic planning meeting, a company renovation or renewal, a planning rally, or in my southern vernacular, a company revival. Read these titles aloud and see how you emotionally react. No matter which term you choose, your employees and co-participants will have vastly improved mindsets about the process.
Having participated in and facilitated such gatherings in corporate, government, non-profit and small business environments, I’d like to offer a few more pointers that can improve the outcome of this event.
- Choose a comfortable, neutral setting and establish an atmosphere of safe and open communication. (In TAB, we refer to this as a TABENOS environment based on the Greek concept of temenos.) Sorry, the boss’ house doesn’t qualify.
- Establish an “Up Front Contract“ for the event that includes clearly defined outcomes and agreed upon expectations.
- Consider using a trained and experienced facilitator to lead the meeting. A facilitator can:
- Manage meeting time so it is used efficiently.
- Make sure everyone feels heard.
- Help people find common ground, come to agreements and make decisions.
- Help the team surface individual and collective undercurrents, manage conflicts and come to some resolution.
- Make sure that next actions are clear and that all understand what is to happen in the future.
- Have a process for follow up, including clear assignments and deliverables, that creates accountability and keeps the plan alive. You don’t want to produce a binder of notes that simply sits on a bookshelf and is never looked at again.
Those who move forward without a plan are indeed planning to fail. The strategic planning event, however it is labeled, is an essential best practice – it’s worth the time to do it right!