Holding regular planning sessions are essential for all executive teams – regardless of the size of the organization. Regular planning sessions enable for many benefits, including enabling:
- Alignment behind the organizational strategy
- Sharing of information among the executive team
- Strong relationships among the executive team
- Discussions around the types of projects that should be completed
- Understanding of challenges faced by other executives’ business areas
- Increased collaboration among executive team members
Regular planning sessions ensure that the organization continues to move in the right direction and keeps everyone focused on the same goals.
Consider these examples of regular planning sessions that Abudi Consulting Group facilitates for their clients.
Example 1: Pharma Company
This pharma company holds bi-annual planning sessions in both North America and Europe. The primary goal of these 2-day twice a year sessions is to not solely discuss the strategy of the organization but also enables executives from across the organization to get together to share successes, best practices as well as solve challenges they are facing.
Example 2: Global Retail Organization
This global retail organization holds an annual 4-day strategic planning session, alternating between their European headquarters and their US headquarters. This session is primarily focused on strategic planning for the year. The first day entails each executive reporting on progress towards goals as well as sharing their successes for the past year. The next two days entails discussion around the organization and determining their areas of focus for the following 2 – 3 years as well as goal setting and prioritizing initiatives to be accomplished. The last day entails action planning to ensure that there are budget monies as well as resources committed for those initiatives prioritized to be completed as well as drafting communication to the organization about the focus over the next 2 – 3 years given the strategic planning session.
Example 3: Healthcare Organization
This US-based organization holds annual business problem sessions. These 2-day off-sites bring together the executives as well as the next level of leadership to discuss business issues deemed to be potentially harmful to the business in the long term if not resolved. Prior to the session the executives develop 5 – 6 business issues to be a focus for the upcoming year. During the session, the issues are discussed to ensure common understanding and then the group is divided into 5 – 6 teams, each with a focus on a particular business issue. At the end of the 2-day off-site there are action plans in place to address each issue, with executive sponsorship, resources and budget monies committed and timing agreed upon for addressing the issue.
These are just three examples of the many strategic and business planning sessions that Abudi Consulting Group facilitates for their clients. In each of these situations, the executive team understands the value of off-site planning sessions. In each of these cases, the organization has seen significant value from their investment of time in off-site planning.
Contact Abudi Consulting Group today to learn how we can help your organization to make the most of off-site planning sessions to ensure the continued viability of your organization.
