It will look at how the force may develop into the mid 2020s, but no detailed plan will be unveiled.
The 10-week long consultation comes as Police Scotland experiences severe pressure on its budget.
But it also gives the force the opportunity to re-examine its priorities as the nature of crime in Scotland is also changing.
Crime is at a 40-year low but increasingly it is happening behind closed doors.
Domestic violence and cyber crime place significant demands on officers who have had to adapt their policing methods.
The force will be asking what sort of officers it will need in the future, and what ratio there will be between front-line operations and corporate functions, including intelligence gathering.
There will also be a recognition that increasingly police are dealing with vulnerable people who need medical or social care rather than law enforcement officers.
Police Scotland is beginning a consultation to help shape the service for the next 10 years.