Do it Workshops
Rapid Response Strategic Planning for a changing worldThe world is moving fast and heads are spinning. Industries are changing. Technology is advancing. Leadership is changing hands. Promising young leaders are coming of age. Emotions are emotion-ing.
I don’t know what kind of world we’re headed into. What I do know is that folx who work for values-driven organizations need to stay ready for change.
But how do you prepare for a world you can’t see yet? If you ask me, I’d say that it’s through Rapid Response Strategic Planning, using what I call Do it Workshops.
If I could look into a crystal ball and tell you what to expect, I would. Instead I’m doing the next best thing: I’m offering a revised package of services that meet each organization’s current needs while planning for a flexible future. These three sessions–Find it, Fix it, and Be it–are designed to be broken apart or linked dtogether, to provide the right amount and level of support at each moment of reaction and response needed to match the pace of today’s world.
Foundation Building
First, you get really clear about the things that give your team its sense of integrity. I’m talking about clear and enthusiastic support for your mission, vision, values, and culture. Before taking the first step on any journey, a leader and team need to be in agreement with the mission, vision and values of your organization.
This 1-2 day workshop is made for leaders and teams who need to get clear on the WHY behind their work.
Focus Alignment
There’s often many different ways to achieve success and there is rarely one right way. To ensure that you’re going in the same direction together, leaders and teams need to determine their areas of focus and gain alignment around what goals need the most attention and what various successes might look like in the end.
This 2-3 day workshop is made for leaders and teams who need to get clear on the WHAT, the intended outcomes of the work ahead.
Action Planning
Bringing all of your visionary ideas to life requires intention and mindful decisions made early and often. It’s easy to dive right into work that’s most flashy or exciting, but without a clear plan, you’re bound to experience false starts and a lot of running in circles, burning you and your team out before ever getting your ideas off the ground.
This 1-2 day workshop is made for leaders and teams who need to get clear on HOW their work will be executed through initiatives and projects.
Sound like something you and your team could use?
What is it?
A carefully-structured and thoughtfully-facilitated series of conversations and exercises designed to help your team get on the same page–and learn some ways to stay on the same page–around three central phases of Strategic Planning: Foundation Building, Focus Alignment, and Action Planning.
Who is it for?
Any values-driven team or organization comprised of 1 or more humans. This works best for teams who are motivated to discuss and manage a big change they are facing.
How much does it cost?
Team Sessions and 1:1 Sessions are typically billed using a flat fee based on the needs of your organization and the time required to prepare and execute your sessions.
Generally speaking Team Collaboration is $1000-$1500 per session/day while 1:1 Collaboration is $300-$500 per Session.
How is it structured?
The short answer: it’s designed to suit your team. You may need 1, any 2, or all 3 sessions to respond to the world around you. Together, we’ll determine where you are today and what support is needed to move into the changing future.
The component pieces for 1:1 Leader and Group workshops will include things like: mission review, visioning and organizational alignment exercises, SWOT analysis, program analysis, retrospective. Those kinds of human-centered activities, but with an LB.Co spin.
What is the output?
It depends. It depends both on what you need and how you want to stay connected after these sessions. We will determine whether or not we’ll co-create a new strategic document together, brainstorm 100s of ideas to solve your problems, or a one-pager of recommendations and next steps, to name a few.
what if something unexpected happens after we develop a strategy? Doesn’t that nullify all the work we do?
Absolutely not. That’s precisely what we’re preparing ourselves for. Let me give you an example:
In late 2024, I met with the leadership team of a nonprofit that serves Portland’s LGBTQ+ business community.
We met over the course of two days (one day in-person, one day virtually.) The team (which included 8 board members, 2 employees, and 4 executive board members) entrusted me to guide them through a series of dialogues, exercises, and activities.
They were eager to become more aligned with each other following the appointment of a new executive director, a recent board election, and the upcoming US presidential election. (Maybe you heard that that happened in November.)
With LB Collaborations at the helm, a number of interesting things were empowered to happen:
- The format of our work together invited the loudest voices to listen more–and amplified the voices of the shyest members.
- Those who have been with the organization longest shared historical knowledge.
- Those who were closest to the organization’s most sensitive pressure points made their team members aware.
- The difference between “how things have always gone” and “what this moment calls on us to do” became crystal clear.
- Emotions were honored without derailing the process.
The strategic document we built together identified priorities that have already proven to be consistent even as the organization’s tactics/projects/staffing change and evolve
Since our session together, the results of the presidential election (no spoilers) or an unexpected staffing change within the organization could have thrown off the organization’s momentum. But it didn’t. Because their Do it Workshops helped to strengthen the health and coherence of the team, not just the plan.
In short: The organization is more resilient and durable because they invested the time to develop a shared understanding of their challenges, opportunities, and values.
Sound like something you and your team could use?
Schedule a 20-minute call with me here and let’s discuss how Do it Workshops can be designed to help your team become crisis-ready.