Strategic planning is not just an exercise about defining a desired future and detailing actionable goals to get there. It is, far more importantly, an engagement exercise, an opportunity to (re)connect with the entire team to plan a future together and prioritize the work that will get you there.

Leadership is neither glamorous nor easy, yet so many of us willingly sign up for it.

Done right, done with intention, your leadership principles should become your and your team’s compass.

I asked myself: who am I as a leader and what do I stand for? Why on earth would/should people follow me? 

And whatever I came up with, I needed to make it mine, make it clear, communicate it often, and, most importantly, live and breathe it. 

Once in a leadership role, I rapidly grew to recognize the overwhelming importance of organizational culture….

I could have created the best strategic documents, the most definitive and clarifying policies, but neither made a difference if the team I supported did not feel engaged, safe, or aligned.

Client-consultant relationships matter. Relational skills like interpersonal warmth, humour, empathy and kindness - when cultivated with sincerity - ensure a blend of strong relationships and strong results.

The shift is mighty from decades of public service to entrepreneur and business developer. Building a bridge to a new destination calls on clarity, courage, partners and allies, and a commitment to continuous learning.

A well-designed strategic session or retreat is full of ‘treats’ in the form of insights, connections, new questions, and shared accountability. At their best, great offsites energize the people and fuel the work.

Our secret sauce, if you will, is this clarity of purpose combined with a very human-centred, joyful approach to the work. Simply put, thriving organizations need:

• Clear direction,

• Strong leadership,

• Effective teamwork, and

• An adaptive organizational culture

The opportunities to deepen our skills with conflict and communication are plentiful. From a labour relations experience with interest-based bargaining to training as a mediator, practices like win-win thinking change trajectories.