CEOs and Board Chairpersons! Address This Serious Impact of Strategic Planning Facilitators on the Quality of Your Strategic Planning Outputs.

The Global State of Strategy and Strategic Planning

This article is based on more than twenty years of experience in event facilitation including facilitation strategy and strategic planning sessions as well as my ongoing research in the areas of metastrategy, strategic planning, strategic thinking, strategy use and the theory and practice in strategy and strategic planning. 

At time of writing this article, the calls are growing louder; many companies and organisations around the world, including many economies as well, are facing a serious strategy crisis. At least thirteen different world leading authorities on strategy and its practice are warning that despite a lot of teaching on strategy in universities around the world, there is still a lot that needs to be done so that more top decision-makers (including board leaders, top officials, chief executive officers, senior executives and senior managers) understand “what we really mean by strategy.” Some of these scholars and consultants argue that there is actually confusion of what strategy means and how best to go about doing strategy work and deploying strategy in companies, organisations, businesses and economies. There are also strong arguments, backed by evidence, that most of what is coming out of strategic planning sessions in many organisations around the world are nothing more than basic operational plans, with some industry forecasts and budgets and “peppered by misused or abused strategy jargon.” The results of this poor approach to strategy is evident; very few companies achieve what real strategy is supposed to achieve and that is dramatic positive changes and achieving or exceeding desired results efficiently or effectively. This means that many people go to strategic planning sessions and then what they do in those sessions is not strategic planning but basic operational planning. The theory and application of strategy in many companies organisations, businesses, economies and institution is deplorable and the world must wake up to this reality before it is too late. There are at least fifteen powerful reasons at the core of this strategy crisis. In this article I will focus on strategic planning facilitation.

The Impact of Strategic Planning Facilitation 

There are two main categories of companies, organisations, business and organisations; those that have embraced and understand the importance of having a competent strategic planning facilitator and those that do not see the need of having a competent, trained strategic planning facilitator. Those who do not use competent strategic planning facilitators are still in the dark because they do not understand just how important strategic planning facilitation is when it comes to developing a strategic plan. Many of those who use strategic planning facilitators appreciate the value of using strategic planning facilitators but most they not full understand the importance and value. Here is a facts;

1. “The quality of your strategic planning outputs very much depends on the quality of strategic planning facilitation that is used in developing that strategy and plan.”

2. Many leaders and their companies mistake strategic planning facilitation for chairing a meeting or an conference. Strategic planning facilitation, effective facilitation, is a very serious issue that requires specialised skills way beyond that of chairing meetings, being a master of ceremony, being a teacher or being speaker. 

3. There is a big difference being a strategist and strategic planning facilitator; a brilliant strategist can be a dismal strategic planning facilitator and a brilliant strategic planning facilitator does not have to be a brilliant strategist. 

The Impact of the Strategic Planning Facilitator

The decision on whether or not to use an external, competent strategic planning facilitator or not is a key factor in determining the quality of your strategic planning outputs. Make no mistake, have an competent, external strategic planning facilitator invariably produces better outcomes that using an untrained in house “facilitator” who many end up assuming a role that is very different from being a facilitator. The worst mistake is to make the chief executive officer or a head of deparment to facilitate a strategy session. Some even make the big mistakes of having many people taking turns to facilitate on strategic planning session. It is a total disaster. Many people who are not trained to facilitate strategic planning sessions do not know to handle it well. They invariably bungle it because successful strategic planning facilitation involves very specific skills, approaches processes. Some also make a mistake of confusing things for example;

1. Academic qualifications have nothing much to do with strategic planning facilitation capabilities. One does not necessarily need any specific academic qualitication to be a competent strategic planning facilitator. 

2. While a natural strategist can add value to the process but one does not need to have any strategic abilities to be a competent strategic planning facilitator. Strategic planning facilitation is driven by specific competences and not subject matter knowledge. 

3. Knowledge of strategic planning frameworks is important but this is not the core of strategic planning facilitation competency.  

4. Using the same strategic planning facilitator year in and year out is a dangerous practice that can easily lock you into the same old which might not be the best possible. What you may consider the best facilitator may not be the best after all. Sample different facilitators. 

5. Past experience in top executive position does not always imply knowledge or competency in strategic planning facilitation even when such people may have vast knowledge and experience in strategy. Such people can be dangerous if they are not conscious of the difference between a strategic planning facilitator role and the strategist role and then start influencing or even prescribing strategy content instead of ensuring intense, productive, inclusive strategy dialogue, conversations, debates and decisions by participants in the strategic planning session. Oversharing strategy knowledge and experience by a strategic planning facilitator can easily compromise great strategic planning outcomes that require thinking more than knowledge. 

The Contribution of Strategic Planning Facilitators in the Global Strategy Crisis

Sadly, strategic planning facilitators often cause more harm than good to their clients because they can also lock themselves into obsolete approaches or flaw approaches to strategic planning because they do not keep themselves abreast of developments in the field of strategy and the domains in which they facilitate strategic planning sessions.

Many strategic planning facilitators are part of the problem because they are also not aware of the strategy crisis and they are facilitating basic operational planning that they are also mistaking for strategic planning. This is an emotive issue and many such facilitators may not like it but it is better to act on this otherwise they are not doing what they must be doing and that is helping their clients to come up with real strategic plans that will make them achieve the real results that strategy must produce. Otherwise many companies, organisations, businesses and economies are losing billions of dollars for strategic planning facilitation that is not strategic planning but zero-strategy or bad-strategy basic operational planning.

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©Simon Bere, 2023

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1.1 Academic Performance Summary

As a student, Simon Bere was a top achiever, being the best overall student many times and winning several bursaries and other academic awards for this academic performance. He was the overall best student in his Ordinary Level Cambridge Examinations and won the Rio Tinto Foundation Advanced Level Bursary Award that paid for his Advanced Level Tuition Fees. He was also one of the best students in his Advanced Level Cambridge Examinations and the best national result in Biology that earned him a Government Merit Award. He also produced a distinction in his Master of Science Degree in Environmental Technology at Lancaster University. 

Apart from his strong background in natural, biological and earth sciences, Simon Bere has, through self-education, accumulated vast knowledge in many other disciplines including strategy, business strategy, performance, growth and turnaround, psychology, neurolinguistics programming, emotions and emotional intelligence, leadership, marketing, sales, entrepreneurship, management, organisations and their design, set-up, transformation, performance, leadership and management. Simon Bere has used this knowledge to help many top entrepreneurs, business owners, executives and boards to achieve their goals, solve their problems and transform their own performance and that of their companies, organisations, businesses, careers and economies.

Simon has written more than 2000 articles in different areas and has produced more than 500 original concepts, ideas, insights models and solutions in different areas such as business, marketing, sales, leadership, management, performance, strategy and general knowledge.

Simon Bere has more than 25 years’ experience working with leaders and managers and their companies, organisations and business in different roles and areas including consulting, strategy, planning, performance and results transformation, skills development, performance management, training, education, development, problem solving and solutions provision in the areas of business, environment, organisations and economy. 

Simon Bere’s core strengths are his ability to bring new and different perspectives to issues and situations, developing new and original solutions to problems and his ability to view things at systems, holistic, integrated way.

Simon Bere is well read and he draws from many bodies of knowledge to help individuals, boards, companies, organisations and businesses in solving problems and achieving goals.