Wednesday, November 28, 2018

The Boons Of A Strategic Planning Workshop Facilitation

By Jessica Cole


Every organization runs with some sort of end goal in mind. These goals are many and sundry, the possibilities are endless, but they are usually achievable. However, there are cases when the organization is merely running in perpetual circles, speeding up and pressing down on the pedal with seemingly no end in sight, in fact very much comparable to a hamster on a running wheel. In order to set this metaphorical rodent free from this rat race, one would need to tailor some strategic planning workshop facilitation.

When companies need to straighten out or reestablish something, they usually hold a meeting of sorts. However, when they admittedly need some sprucing and vamping up, workshops are the way to go. These workshops are something that will get the org through its trodden path and opt out of any other unnecessary and irrelevant involvements.

Planning in an organization, or virtually every group with an objective, involves the refocusing of its targets. The constituents will have to reevaluate whether their plans are feasible and viable. Following that they would have to look at their so called SWOT. That is, their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Their strengths establish their strong points as an organization, that which gives them leverage when compared to their competitors. Weaknesses are just the opposite, in that they are what drags the org down, and inhibits or keeps it from achieving its objectives. The threats are external entities or circumstances that can potentially bridle or forbid the achievement of these goals.

Strategic decisions are therefore imperative, but making them is yet another quandary. For some organizational planning experts, three elements are contributive to successful strategic decisions. Structured conversation among the members of the group is said to aid in its fruition. Opportunities must be identified and accordingly addressed, and responsibilities will have to be delegated.

This planning stage is quite extensive and convoluted. First off, one must learn to identify opportunities, and then craft courses of action around them. Potential problems and roadblocks must be outlined. If ever multiple ones are pinpointed, then the organization would then have to establish their priorities according to their immediate needs. Of course, economics would have to be taken into account. After all, its the fuel that keeps everything, including your organization, up and running. One must therefore learn to effectively allocate all available resources.

The core competencies of an org would also have to be reiterated, if not reconsidered. After all, these are the organizations competitive advantages, and not putting them to good use will result in a knock down drag out languishing in whatever sphere the group is operating in. Its values and guiding principles would also need to be straightened out, that which outlines the culture of a company and giving a sneak peak on how things are done.

Thus the importance of getting a facilitator to aid both people and process. The facilitator is one that makes things easier for you and your company. This personnel helps to get your organization on track, by zeroing in on some particular focus and providing a viable direction. Usually, this facilitator is external to the company, but that can be beneficent and constructive. For one, he or she can bring outside perspective. After all, this personnel has most likely worked with many different groups, so he or she can bring a lot of tools, practices, and experiences to the table.

Also, effective facilitation ably provides direction and focus. The meeting will not stray into irrelevant and non exigent areas, thereby speeding up the accomplishment of tasks. A good facilitator will be able to draw on communication between participants, and exhort them to communicate constructively. The participants will then be able to question and challenge each other, sort out differences between them, and collate or compromise plans and ideas. With these networking of ideas and information, the objectives and goals of any organization will be speeded up to a considerable extent.




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