STRATEGIC PLANNING THAT GETS RESULTS – FAST

Your strategy shouldn’t gather dust. It should drive action.

At Shifft, we believe in strategy that’s alive – not just a plan that sits in a drawer. Our approach is built around Strawman Planning: we create a working draft strategy early (the “straw man”), then test, refine, and improve it with your team. Combined with our Strategic Planning Workshops and Quarterly Strategy Days, this gives you strategy that’s better, faster and more aligned with how your business moves.

Here’s how we do it — and why it delivers better outcomes in less time.

What Makes Our Model Different: Straw Man Planning

Start with something tangible

Instead of waiting to build a perfect strategy, we create an early draft — enough to provoke meaningful input and debate.

Iterate fast

Gather feedback from your leaders, test assumptions, adjust and improve. Each iteration brings clarity and alignment.

Focus on what matters

Because the draft exists, you see gaps, omissions, risks and differences of opinion early – enabling the team to focus on issues that matter, rather than staying stuck in “what-if” planning.

Speed to action

Because we don’t over-engineer in the beginning, you can begin executing sooner. Strategy becomes something you do, not just something you write.

Relevant research and consulting frameworks (e.g. McKinsey-style straw man proposals) show that hypothesis-driven, draft-first models help prevent analysis paralysis and get buy-in sooner.

Strategic Planning Workshops

Best for SMEs and larger organisations ready to set direction with clarity.

In these workshops, we facilitate a collaborative process to build a working strategic plan: vision, objectives, priorities and hypothesis-based actions. You’ll emerge with a strategy that’s ready for testing and refining.

What’s included:

A facilitated full workshop with your board and/or leadership team
Relevant stakeholder engagement, interviews, surveys, diagnostics, as required
Creation of the initial Straw Man strategy draft – outlining key priorities, risks, assumptions
Vision, mission, values alignment, plus long-term objectives – Strategic and Annual Plan, as required.

Benefits:

Leadership alignment around shared vision and strategy
Early detection of risks, assumptions and required adjustments
Faster time to execution with less “analysis paralysis”

Pricing:

Price on Application (POA) — bespoke, based on scope and size of leadership team and consultation required.

Quarterly Strategy Days

Best for businesses that want to keep strategy live and relevant.

Strategy only works if you revisit it. Flowing from a Strategic Plan, our Quarterly Strategy Days bring you back together every 90 days to reflect, refresh, and reset. We lean into the straw man model by revisiting your draft and refining it: what’s working, what’s not, where assumptions changed, where opportunities emerged.

What’s included:

Full-day facilitated strategic review sessions
Progress Dashboards: what’s green, what’s amber, what’s red
Re-assessment of key strategic issues, priorities, and assumptions
Reset of next 90-day priorities using Shifft’s proven tools
Leadership Training for the participants

Benefits:

Keeps your leadership team aligned and focused on highest-value opportunities
Ensures strategy evolves rather than becomes outdated
Helps teams spot and respond to challenges early

Pricing:

$5,000 per quarter

Integrated Leadership & Executive Coaching Support

To make sure your strategy doesn’t stall, you often need strong leadership to deliver. Many of our clients choose to include Executive Coaching or Leadership Development Programs as part of the process. This ensures that the individuals leading the execution have the capability, confidence, and decision-making clarity to deliver results.

Ready to Shape Strategy That Works?

If you want a strategy process that’s fast, focused, and delivers real outcomes — let’s talk. Book your free 20-minute Intro Call, and we’ll explore how Strategic Planning Workshops + Quarterly Strategy Days + Leadership/Exec Coaching can work for your business.

Book My Intro Call →

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is Straw Man Planning, and how is it different?

Straw Man Planning starts with an early draft of your strategy — a “straw man” — which is then tested, debated, and refined with your leadership team. This saves time, gets you to meaningful conversations faster, and ensures execution begins sooner compared to traditional drawn-out planning methods.

2. How long does a Strategic Planning Workshop take?

Most workshops run as a full-day session, although half-day formats are available for smaller teams or focused planning. The format is tailored to your business needs.

3. What is the typical agenda for a Strategic Planning Workshop?

We cover vision and direction, key priorities, risks and assumptions, long-term and annual goals, and a first draft of 90-day priorities. Every workshop ends with practical next steps so you can move straight into action.

4. Who should attend the workshop?

Typically the business owners, senior executives, and key managers who are directly involved in setting or executing the business strategy.

5. What happens in the Quarterly Strategy Days?

These are half or full-day sessions held every 90 days. We review progress, update your strategy draft, talk through the big strategic issues facing the business, build leadership capabilities and reset priorities for the next quarter.

6. How do you track progress between sessions?

We set up a simple dashboard and use a traffic-light system to monitor your plan. This makes it easy to see what’s on track, what’s behind, and where action is needed.

7. How much does it cost?

Strategic Planning Workshops: Price on Application (POA) — tailored to scope and team size.
Quarterly Strategy Days: $5,000 per quarter.

8. Can leadership development be included?

Yes. Many clients choose to combine Strategic Planning with Executive Coaching or Leadership Development Programs. This ensures your leaders have the capability and confidence to deliver the strategy.

9. How soon will we see results?

You’ll leave the first workshop with a clear annual plan and cascaded 90-day priorities, so you’ll begin seeing momentum straight away. The Quarterly Strategy Days then build on this to maintain focus and deliver ongoing results.