Planning
Strategic | Brand | Communications
Helping mission-driven organizations plan effectively is integral to my work as a strategy consultant. I focus in three areas:
- Strategic planning: I’ll work with your board and staff to develop multi-year goals, strategies and action plans. Together with my partners at Solid Ground Consulting, I base strategic planning on a robust assessment of your organization’s current leadership, strategy, brand and culture.
- Brand planning: When the time comes to redefine and relaunch your organizational brand, I’ll advise your executives on how to introduce and live the brand internally and launch it externally.
- Communications planning: In support of your overarching strategic, branding or fundraising goals, I’ll develop comprehensive communications plans. Your plan will encompass all the essential elements: objectives, audience profiles, key messages, appropriate communications recommendations, timelines and budgets.
I will tailor any planning engagement to meet your needs, resources and timelines. Regardless of the type of plan I’m working on, my approach incorporates the same fundamental steps: listen, assess, facilitate, draft, implement.
Listen
I asks questions, lots of them. And then I listen deeply for what matters to you, your colleagues, customers and other stakeholders.
Assess
Standing outside the organization, I objectively assess your organization and relationship with key stakeholders and the marketplace within which you operate. I rely on online research, stakeholder surveys, interviews, listening sessions and other means to gather insights about key issues and opportunities.
Facilitate
I’ll compile and present the implications of what I’ve heard and learned to your planning group. I then lead your group through workshop discussions and exercises to arrive at decisions on overarching directions, goals and strategies.
Draft
Using the workshop outcomes, I’ll write an initial plan for your review and iteration. I also advise any individuals or groups assigned to individual components of the overall plan.
Implement
Once a plan is finalized, I’m available to execute or advise on individual projects or programs, whether it’s a brand launch, a marketing campaign or a high-profile communications or fundraising piece.
