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What Are StrategySprintsTM?

The expectation to organizations with agility and fluidity has grown to become the norm, not the rule. But, where do you start? How do you adopt an agile planning process? Enter StrategySprintsTM.

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A StrategySprintTM is is a 90-day strategic performance cycle used to connect your long-term vision to weekly activities.

In each 90-day sequence, you set quarterly focus, review results monthly, then review and refresh your plan at the end of each cycle. Adapt and change while still staying aligned to your long-term vision.

Types of StrategySprintTM Meetings & Pro Tips

There are three types of meetings (and one optional meeting) used in StrategySprintsTM, each accomplishes a specific task to keep your team focused and aligned.

#1 Annual Company-wide Priority Setting

These are the traditional annual planning meeting, with a twist. You’ll set company-wide annual strategic priorities or objectives for the year aligned to your 3(ish) year vision of success.

Tip

When you set your annual priorities/objectives, you should also review your previous annual performance. However, annual meetings ARE NOT the only time you need to be reviewing and refreshing your plan.

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#2 Quarterly Reviews and Refresh

Quarterly reviews are designed to review your performance and articulate focus for the next 90 days.

We consider quarterly strategy reviews “table stakes” when it comes to the agile planning process.

Tip

Not holding quarterly strategy reviews is a surefire way to lose focus on how your organization is performing against your goals, not just near-term, but long-term.”

 

#3 Monthly Check-ins

Monthly reviews are purpose-built sessions to review the performance of your OKRs/goals and decide what critical actions you need to take in the next 30 days.

Tip

The most successful monthly check-ins review core business metrics and performance.

*OPTIONAL* Weekly KPI Reviews:

You can integrate a component of the review process into your regularly scheduled weekly operational meetings. These weekly meetings show where there is momentum and where there are drags, clarifying the priorities for your team over the next 5 to 7 days.

Tip

Don’t create a new meeting if you want to review performance weekly. Integrate it into another standing weekly meeting as an agenda item.

⚠️Caution—Don‘t “Over-Plan”

Once you’ve determined your cycle to manage your OKRs/goals, work with your executive team to set annual company-wide goals/objectives. Then, work with their teams to set quarterly key results or actions.

You can read about how to create OKRs here!

The purpose behind this is to create agility and not “over-plan” work. Instead, you’re planning and managing results quarterly, which helps create a more exciting and dynamic goal setting practice.

👍It’s OK to Not Use OKRs

If you already have a planning structure and don’t want to use OKRs, that’s ok! Follow the principles in this guide and use any structure you’d like. Just know that you should complete the following:

👍Be Consistent and Visible

We know the “pro” of this approach is building agility into your organization. The “con” is the process can buckle under its \ weight if not managed simply and seamlessly. Here are a few tips:

Create Your StrategySprintTM Planning Cycle

Above is an illustration of a quarterly agile planning cycle. To make this work for you, here are a few questions to answer. Use your answers here and the worksheet to build a quarterly process for your team.

A Step-by-Step Agile Planning Cycle

How to Report on Performance & Plan Simultaneously

The trickiest part of streamlining an OKR cycle is reporting on performance and establishing the next quarter’s goals at the same time. Here’s how to make it easier. For every key result, goal or initiative, use the three “C’s:”

For whatever OKR software tool you are using, you need to output the Performance Report for the previous quarter and the Action Plan for the upcoming quarter.

Tip

While you are “refreshing” your goals and objectives every quarter, most of the time you will carry forward the objective and most of the key results (specifically quantifiable outcomes). What you will “refresh” is establishing the target for the next quarter and likely new key results that are efforts or initiatives.

Running a Great Quarterly Business Review

The heartbeat of a productive StrategySprintTM is a Quarterly Business or Strategy Review. There are many different ways to run this meeting, however, here is a tried and true agenda to start with and evolve to your culture.

Sample Review Agenda

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Led by a Senior Strategist and supported by the OnStrategy app, you will establish four 90-day strategic performance cycles to connect your long-term vision to weekly activities.

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