Strategic Planning

Our Services

abc’s of Strategic Planning

all of us together begin to create

Engaging your teams and stakeholders in key conversations is the heart of the strategic planning process. We use a simple and clear process to lead these very critical conversations and that data that emerges from and around them.

Phase 1 | commence

Commencement is the time where we develop our workplan and methodologies together, identify key milestones and deliverables to ensure we meet the target you have set out to complete your plan.

We start where you need to start, especially in the case of organizations who have lived strategic planning processes in the past, we won’t start at ‘a’ if your organization is ready to begin at ‘m’. We gather the Collaborator team who is a best fit with your organization and who will guide you through the next change phases.

Clarify your need



Deadlines and deliverables

Gather the teams

Phase 2 | capture

Capturing a portrait internal and external of your organization provides a user and implementer snapshot focused on the people who will implement the strategic plan and those who will be the recipients of your goods or services.

Capture your profile
(Board-level, Executive, staff, volunteers, first and second level end-users, etc.)

On-boarding of your team
(Capture their hearts! Create the interest, excitement and engagement)

Develop a communication plan
(Capture their interest: keep all staff and stakeholders informed)

Data collection and document review
(Capture the best practices currently uses, evaluation review, etc.)

Identify best practice and benchmark similar industries
(Capture best practices in your industry: market analysis, etc.)

Gap analysis
(Capture the divide between where you are and where you want to be)

Phase 3 | create

Creating the change plan and identifying strategies that are impactful is the essential work of a strategic plan, along with identifying strategies that are not useful to an organization.

Create a visual map
(Hands-on, engaging strategic planning with your various stakeholders where your teams begin to identify where they want to go and where they had not considered going: vision, mission, goals, objectives, strategies.)

Create a buzz
(Look outside for input on your map, what have we not considered? Using crowdsourcing, social technologies, etc.)

Create draft plan
(Put your words and ideas to paper for a first draft)


Phase 4 | crystalize

Crystallizeing the strategic plan ensures that once the strategic plan process is over that the Board, Executives and staff have the competencies required to operationalize the plan.

Crystalize the plan
(Consolidate feedback and produce a second version of your plan)

Final plan
(Final paper layout of the strategic plan, promote within and outside your organization (posters, etc.)

Operationalize the plan

(Preparations for presentation, communication, marketing, task distribution in your teams)

Crystalize the after-Plan

(Develop implementation and innovation plan)

Phase 5 | circle back

Circling back is a process that begins during the Crystalize phase. It is in this phase where a2z strategic consulting wants to ensure your success—supporting the REAL work of strategic plans, which is their implementation and innovation.

It is a phase of monitoring and evaluating the plan implementation, progress to targets, as well as a time where organizations are guided to revise and adjust their processes and strategies at least yearly, if not quarterly, to ensure that all goals and objectives are met.

Develop monitoring and evaluation plan

Implementation support plan

Innovation support plan