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.

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.

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