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Impact-Driven Strategic Planning

As an impact-driven leader, you have vision for the impact your organization can have. Does your entire organization share that vision? Do they understand it? Does everyone use it as a guide for their day-to-day work?

Most organizations either take a top-down approach to strategic planning or they don't prioritize it at all. After all, why invest the time and effort for something that's going to collect dust on the shelf?

It's time to reclaim the impact-driven strategic planning process.
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Co-creation creates alignment. Alignment creates impact.

People have energy towards what they get to create.

The Strategy Energizer is a 4-5 month strategic planning journey that offers an inclusive, generative, strengths-based, and practical approach for effective strategic change at all levels within an organization.

The result? Buy-in. Engagement. Vision. Energy. Things that top-down, behind-closed-doors, consultant-driven planning processes can never achieve.

[RESOURCE] 8 Signs Your Strategic Plan Isn't Working FOR You

Strategic plans are a critical part of setting the direction of an organization. More often than not, they end up sitting on the shelf gathering dust.

Let's change that.

We put together a list of indicators that your strategic plan isn't working for you. These 8 signs, accompanied by helpful evaluation questions, will highlight the areas where your strategic plan is stuck.

Whether you recently implemented a strategic plan or it's been in action for a while, this guide will highlight areas to improve the effectiveness of your strategic plan.
We'll send you this resource as well as occasional THRIVE IMPACT updates. Of course, we promise never to sell or distribute your personal information and you can opt out of communications at any time.

Approach matters in creating sustainable change.

These are the guiding principles for every session we facilitate in the strategic planning process.

Appreciative Inquiry-Based Facilitation

Do you want a change process that works?
Appreciative Inquiry is a strengths-focused, generative approach that taps into the collective intelligence of an organization to solve any challenge with unprecedented speed and high levels of engagement.

Rooted in Co-Creation & Inclusion

Do you want to energize your team?
Top-down approaches rarely work for creating organization-wide change. Co-creation creates an inclusive environment allowing diverse voices to upgrade your culture so that you can implement your strategies effectively.

Data-Driven Alignment

Do you want to make better decisions?
From deep passion and heart to important missions, impact-driven work is full of subjectivity. Our process creates alignment through objectivity by gathering and leveraging internal and external data to drive and inform the most important decisions you need to make to be a mission-driven organization.

Iterative Learning

Do you want to adapt to change better?
In times of unprecedented change, your organization's ability to be relevant is not based on a single point in time, but your ability to apply learning and adapt quickly over time. Through experiential learning, we teach your team how to be a learning organization.
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Want to learn more about our strategic planning process for impact-driven organizations?

We published a series of podcast episodes focused specifically on strategic planning priorities.

EP 5: Our Journey of Effective Strategic Planning – An Interview with Dr. Cynthia Whitaker

Curious to hear the outcome of putting the strategic planning practices we’ve been talking into action? Dr. Cynthia Whitaker shares the impact and outcomes it had in her organization in this episode.
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EP 9: Ditching Top-Down Approaches to Change: Interview with Indy Frazee

How can nonprofit EDs & CEOs get more buy-in and create a more inclusive environment where their team feels like their voices are valued and part of the creation of strategy? It’s time to ditch the “top-down” leadership style and co-create.
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EP 32: 8 Signs Your Strategic Plan Isn’t Working

Ever felt like your strategic plan is more of a relic than a roadmap? A strategic plan should be the lifeblood of any organization, guiding its direction and ensuring a cohesive approach to achieving its vision. Unfortunately, even the most meticulously crafted plans can end up collecting dust on the shelf instead of creating real […]
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EP 40: A Lookback: 1.5 Years of Operationalizing a Strategic Plan with Greater Nashua Mental Health

The old method of strategic planning often feels like a rigid, top-down endeavor that stifles innovation and hinders genuine progress. The opposite of what it’s intended to do. It doesn’t have to be this way.  What if strategic planning was an evolving process driven by co-creation and continuous learning? A year and half later, Tucker […]
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Energize where you're stuck.

We developed The Impact Cycle™ to demonstrate what drives sustainable impact. Every part of the cycle needs to be properly resourced, otherwise they all decline.

Culture

Inclusive and collaborative leadership empowers every person in your organization to align around a shared vision.

Program

Your day-to-day activities determine how far and how fast you move towards your mission and the impact you desire.

Impact

Measuring the outcomes and outputs of your efforts educate strategic decisions on where to allocate time and finances.

Revenue

Creative fundraising and revenue generation expand your ability to properly resource the programs you're passionate about.

Story

The clarity with which you share your impact with the world drives buy-in from your team and your financial supporters alike.
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The health of your organization is why we exist.

Our strategic planning methodology generates real, measurable results at every organization we work with.

Improve culture

83.3%
improved their relationships with other staff members

Generate buy-in

100%
agree the strategic direction excites them for the future

Increase adaptability

91.7%
agree their staff is interested in better ways of doing things

Here's what impact-driven leaders say about working with us

“I was walking home from work last night and I marveled at how wonderful the Thrive Impact Strategic Planning Process was for our Board and Staff. The time we spent with the Thrive Team was a game changer!“

Kim Cox

President
The Father McKenna Center
“THRIVE IMPACT did an amazing job facilitating our strategic planning process. There was a lot of new data, historical perspectives and personality nuances that could have easily derailed us from achieving our goals. Their credibility, knowledge, and personalities were the reasons why we were able to get the clarity we needed!”

Lissa Goldenstein

Board Chair
RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association
“Our main revenue stream started to dry up and we needed to find the path forward. THRIVE IMPACT helped us find three new revenue strategies and started to see our revenue increase right away.”

Nantz Rickard

President & CEO
DCTV

A clear path forward.

Organizational alignment is only a few, simple steps away.

Schedule A Call

Tell us about the gaps between where you are and where you dream to be.

Get Aligned

We identify the biggest areas of opportunity and guide you through aligning your team.

Realize Your Impact

Finally make the difference you set out to make in the first place—inside and outside your organization.
Schedule a Design SessionSchedule a Discovery Session