Research Long-Term Strategy
What can we learn from 50 projects over 20 years?
You have heard people (experts?) claim that long-term strategic planning is impossible. Or impractical. Or old-fashioned. Or defunct.
But deep down, you wonder. How were cathedrals built over several centuries? How did man reach the moon? Why were the UN and EU created from the ashes of WW2?
These are examples of long-term thinking, strategy and action which help bring the above-mentioned negative, but increasingly popular notions into question.
And so does the work we have done at Framework Consulting. Over a period of twenty years, I have partnered with three consultants to complete more than 50 strategic plans ranging from 15-30 years in duration. Amie Devero, Scott Hilton-Clarke and Dale Pilgrim-Wade have joined me in doing what some people say is impossible.
I have also taught a few others how to do the same, but we have never attempted to step back and research the work we have done. As a trained operations researcher, I have my regrets!
Nevertheless, the best way to start…is to start.
I have made a list of the 50 most likely candidate projects. Most are based in the Caribbean, but the list includes a division of a Fortune 100 company, a church, several government entities and a number of multinationals.
They span 2002-2023, and have all used interwoven short/long-term strategic planning. More specifically, we consistently applied precursors to EndPoint Strategic Planning, our method of engaging organizations.
Recently, some companies have gone public about the difference we made and I’ll highlight them in separate posts, but the point here is not to brag.
Instead, I hope to inspire those who have lost hope in interwoven short/long-term strategic planning as a category. While it’s not easy to find companies who engage in the practice AND are willing to share their results, I think that studies such as this one should help.
And, we want lots of companies to step up to share what they are doing. Let’s confound the critics who lack first-hand knowledge with actual data.
Stay tuned for updates, which will be shared with subscribers first.