Scenario Capabilities for Strategic
Planning Function
To spearhead this initiative, a core team was assembled, comprising their Chief of Staff (COS), Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP), and our team. The initial phase involved defining the scope of the project, including determining the number of teams and crafting unique focal questions for each.
The collaborative process unfolded as follows:
- 1 . Brainstorming Focal Questions: The core team engaged in a brainstorming session, generating approximately twenty potential focal questions.
- 2 Gathering Senior Team Input: The COS and HRBP actively participated in the regular staff meeting, polling the senior team, which included an executive sponsor reporting to the CEO to identify their top issues.
- 3 Refining Focal Questions: Based on the senior team's input, the COS and HRBP collaborated to create multiple options for focal questions.
- 4 Finalizing Selection: The core team refined the list, presenting it to the senior team for final selection. After careful consideration, the senior team chose their top six focal questions.
- 5 Wordsmithing and Buy-In: The core team engaged in further refinement of the questions, ensuring clarity and precision. The final set of questions garnered unanimous buy-in from the senior staff.
This key process spanned two weeks and involved three to four strategic meetings. The active involvement of the executive sponsor and his team throughout underscored their commitment to the initiative.
Following a successful launch with the executive sponsor, our team coached all the planners, guiding them through each phase of the scenario planning process. With each passing week, they honed their expertise, analyzed global trends, threats, and opportunities, and generated strategic responses.
The journey culminated with a live session when each team shared their insights and recommendations with the executive team. These recommendations are integrated into their evolving strategies, fostering a cohesive approach. This focal experience resulted in the entire planning function gaining a shared understanding of scenario work, coupled with advanced methods that now guide their future planning endeavors.
