Most of our attendees are C_Suiters, managers and strategy professionals from the private and non-profit/government sectors.
If You’re in a Private Sector Company
You are a company leader with a concern for the future. However, your organization only plans for the short-term, some three to five years out. Now and then, your team does talk about creating time to solve long-term issues that have been around for years, and may take a decade or more to solve.
But the timing never seems to be right. Everyone is busy and the challenge of working on long-term strategic plans keeps getting put off for another day.
However, in the middle of this situation you remain committed to game-changing results: the kind of BHAGs which inspire stakeholders but require more than three, four or five years to realize.
So far, you have tried to bring up the possibility of long-term strategic planning, only to hear from your colleagues: “It’s too hard”, “It takes too much time”, “Things are changing too fast” and “It costs too much.” The problem is, you can epathize. Everyone is very busy putting out fires.
But you aren’t totally convinced by these arguments. Instead, you have visited this website hoping to find more ammunition. Maybe there’s some tactic you have not tried to get the point across. Or perhaps you need more knowledge about how effective long-term strategic planning is being done. Or maybe you just need more confidence…something you can pick up by being around others of like mind.
Here’s a quick hint: you may need to understand how an entire long-term strategic planning cycle works, and looks like, before you can effectively persuade others.
The good news is that you are in the right place. If any of what has been said sounds familiar, you should register, and start gaining access to a community of professionals who are also trying to do the right thing. Plus, the flow of helpful materials will begin, especially if you purchase a Full Ticket.
If You’re in a Non-Profit or Governmental Organization
Your not-for-profit organization has taken a cue from the U.N. and Paris Agreements. The only way to make the kind of difference which counts in the world is to make public commitments to Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs.)
These are stretch targets which challenge organizations, inspire stakeholders and signal to the world that the outcome is of utmost importance. Even though it takes years and even decades to realize, that’s what makes them compelling.
But the truth is that your non-profit may have set such goals, and is now floundering. There simply is very little progress to show and you suspect that the tremendous size of your goals has helped to do the opposite – paralyzed people – so that not enough actions are taking place.
As such, you suspect that you need the kind of smart, detailed planning that covers the long-term. It could give people the confidence and trust they need to see success as a series of steps, rather than a leap of faith.
If this resonates, here’s an initial insight: you may be violating the laws of long-term strategic planning.
How this is happening, exactly, and what you need to do to turn things around are some specifics we can help you discover. Get the ball rolling by registering here.
If You Are a Consultant or Content Creator
You are someone who advises clients and assists them in their strategic planning. In your work, you see leaders and companies make fundamental mistakes. Consequently, you make a living helping them get back on track.
So far, you have relied mostly on your own wisdom. But is there a body of knowledge regarding long-term strategic planning you can benefit from? Can you find colleagues from around the world who you can trust to share best practices? And is there theory you could use to have a greater impact with your clients and your audience?
If this fits at all, consider the following: there are underlying principles to long-term strategic planning which you must be aware of in your practice as a consultant or content creator.
Don’t miss a chance to register so that you can learn from colleagues who are devoted to this discipline. You’ll emerge better at what you do than before, with a smart investment.
If You Advocate a World of Long-Term, Sustainable Thinking
You desire a world that works for everyone, especially with regards to long-term threats such as climate change and DE&I. And you are not ashamed to say that you care about tangible steps to benefit the entire planet.
But how can you help organizations see the benefits of long-term strategic planning?
Here’s a possible clue: people in companies won’t listen until/unless they see that doing so is in their self-interest. If they don’t have this insight or experience, they will always resist the logical arguments for why they should change course.
To have such conversations, you may need more than conviction. You may need the skills required to guide leadership groups level through a transformation to long-term strategic planning.
At the conference you will meet others who share this concern. They also want to pick up practical skills which can move the needle. Plus you will hear from others who are making progress. To start meeting them, register here to start your journey.
Do you also have these questions or concerns?
How can today’s leadership be less reactive and more creative?
You need to get past the existential threats posed by COVID-19, the recession, war in Europe, supply chain challenges, inflation, talent churn, and more. The future of your enterprise depends on it.
You need to infuse a new kind of thinking at the top of your organization, where Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs) should become the norm. But your leaders seem to have lost the knack for out-of-the-box thinking…they just want to hit their immediate KPI’s and go home.
Come to the conference to see how interweaving short/long-term thinking in your strategic planning can help your leaders think differently.
How can employees and other stakeholders be inspired in today’s environment?
As a leader, you are aware that people respond to visionary goals which are infused with higher purpose. However, the last few years have just been about business survival.
Some believe that recapturing people’s imagination and commitment is as easy as crafting a new vision statement, but you’re not so sure.
At the conference, you will hear more about crafting visionary strategic plans which are credible, realistic, yet lift staff members to higher performance.
What if I just don’t trust long-term strategic planning?
Maybe you have serious doubts about the value of an interwoven short/long-term strategic planning approach in a VUCA world. (VUCA means volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous). You want success but why can’t it happen by looking ahead only one year at a time?
If you care to examine some new thinking, our presenters will offer different points of view. Case in Point: a belief in short-term planning only is usually an unwitting commitment to the status quo.
In other words, when teams only focus on short horizons, they are really looking backwards, trying to preserve their prior accomplishments. In a market where customers have choices, this method can leave you open to disruption.
Will an interwoven short/long-term strategic plan take too long?
Sometime in the past, you were exposed to a prior form of long-term strategic planning. It took a long time and involved a major effort, perhaps even with outside consultants and a hefty price-tag. As such, you don’t want a repeat.
But if you could get the job done quickly, it might be worth it.
Fortunately, we will have a range of speakers with broad experiences. You’ll hear different methods for interweaving short/long-term strategic planning, which can take place in as little as two days.
Does my organization / company even need a long-term strategic plan?
Like every other healthy organization, your company does short-term planning. Staying successful over the next two to five years is a high priority.
But you suspect that if it were headed towards a far-reaching destination or vision, it could reduce the stress of chasing one issue after another. Also, you would do more than maintain the status quo and be more disruptive like Netflix or Apple.
At the conference you will learn advanced methods for quickly and efficiently completing long-term strategic plans. This means you can test the approach for yourself, even if it’s the first one in your organization’s history.
Can I just keep updating my short-term strategic plan?
You have a five-year plan which you update annually. While you stick to your schedule and feed into the budgeting process, you don’t see any obvious advantage from changing the approach.
But you are open to new ways of thinking.
We’ll address this issue from multiple angles at our event. For example, our speakers will ask whether or not your competitors with 6-10 year strategies are likely to win…just because they are looking further into a future which you are ignoring.
I care deeply about sustainability. What should I help companies do?
Even though you are someone with deep commitments and values you cherish, maybe you struggle to make them practical in a confusing world. You applaud the efforts to measure companies by their ESG credentials, but is that enough?
Attend the conference looking for answers, and you will find suggested ways to enlist companies in interwoven short/long-term strategic planning. For example, we hope that you bring this approach to your employer, small business, non-profit, school, club, church, family, etc.
In other words, if you want to make a difference, start with your own membership.
What if I don’t believe in sustainability? Or ESG? Not for my company.
It’s not clear to you that your company can do much to help or hinder sustainability in the way it’s been defined by most. It seems to be a topic that does not apply to your business or industry.
But you want more for your company than short-term plans. In fact, you can see where long-term thinking might be essential for new lines of business, technology trends, succession, investors and the creation of long-term value.
Fortunately, the conference theme is all about enduring, lasting, impactful strategic planning. This is the kind of activity every company can benefit from. Why? It falls deep inside their self-interest, as long as they want to make a financial and/or social difference.
Which is more important? ESG or Profits?
You care about the planet. At the same time, you don’t want your organization to fail for the many reasons it could. You actually want both outcomes, but don’t know that it can focus on both objectives at the same time.
Our speakers will suggest different ways of creating a sustainable strategic plan that allows you to do far more than you can in the short-term. In fact, you may even see the power of incremental investments which move the needle in incredible ways.
Should I wait until the conference starts to begin planning?
You want to make the most of your organization’s next strategic planning retreat. And you also hope to attend the conference…which should help. Question: should you wait until the conference starts to begin the planning process?
This one is easy. No.
Commit to having an interwoven short/long-term strategy in place long before this year ends. Take positive steps such as registering for the conference, letting your board members and fellow executives know why you’re going, and ask staff what a disruptive strategy would look like if your organization were to follow it.
In other words, the conference will enhance and energize your process if you start enrolling yourself and your stakeholders to the greatest extent possible.
You may be surprised by their reaction!
Do I need to be at the conference for two full days?
You want to get as much as possible done at the office. And the conference. Both at the same time.
But time is limited.
Fortunately, the Full Ticket allows you to choose from the full list of sessions – both live and pre-recorded. Why? You will receive all the video recordings once the event is over and you’ll be able to catch up on every moment that you missed.
This means you can miss the entire event! (Although we encourage you to make time to attend.)
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