90-day action plan workshop
Strategy to action plan: commit to what you'll execute in the next 90 days
In one facilitated workshop your leadership team agrees its top priorities, the key actions for each and who owns them. You leave with one wall that everyone has written and everyone stands behind, ready to start right away.
What you leave with
Your 90-day action plan on one wall
At the end of the workshop the result hangs on the wall: up to five priorities for the next 90 days, the four key actions for each priority, and for every action one owner and the contributors. Everyone in the room has written it, so everyone can explain it to their own team right away.
Illustrative example. Your wall shows your own topics, actions and names.
How we get there
How we build your strategy to action plan in five steps
Your team sees the whole process on one workshop wall: from a long list of options to ranked priorities with outcomes, actions and owners. The examples below are illustrative.
Step 1 · Collect
Create options for the next quarter
Each leader writes down the topics that could move the business in the next 90 days, one per sticky note, in silence first. Then we cluster duplicates, so the wall shows the real options.
Step 2 · Vote
Dot-vote on clear criteria such as impact and effort
Every participant gets three dots and places them by agreed criteria, for example impact and effort: which topics bring the biggest business improvement for sensible effort? On an impact-effort grid the team's judgement becomes visible in minutes, before the loudest voice wins.
Step 3 · Rank
Rank your top three topics
We discuss the result and the leadership team decides the order: priority one, two and three. Everything else goes to a visible parking lot, not into the bin.
Step 4 · Work out
Work out what it means and what needs to happen
Now we take priority one. What does it mean in 90 days? Two or three measurable outcomes answer that, in OKR style. Then the team agrees the four key actions that move those outcomes.
Step 5 · Own
Agree owners and commit, then take the next priority
Every key action gets one owner and named contributors, and the team commits. Then we repeat steps four and five for priority two and three. With time and capacity the plan can grow, but never beyond five priorities.
Why it works
Few priorities create momentum
Most strategies do not fail for lack of ideas. They stall because ten good ideas compete for the same people. A strategy to action plan gives the team permission to focus.
Focus you can feel
Three ranked priorities, never more than five, tell every leader what comes first. Saying no to good ideas becomes easy, because the team decided together.
Clear criteria, fair decisions
The dots follow impact and effort. The team chooses on criteria everyone can see, not on who argues longest.
Owners, not committees
Every action has one name next to it. A short weekly check-in keeps the plan alive long after the workshop.
Formats
Choose the format that fits your team
We agree the format in a short preparation call. There we also clarify what success looks like after 90 days.
Half-day workshop
The full five steps in one session at your office or offsite venue. Ideal for leadership teams who want the decision made together in one room.
Two 3-hour sessions
Session one collects, votes and ranks. Session two works out each priority with actions and owners. Works well for teams spread across locations.
Day-90 review
Optional: we facilitate the review at the end of the quarter, score the results and help the team set its next priorities.
When teams book it
Moments when a 90-day action plan pays off
The strategy is set, execution stalls
The direction is clear, yet daily business eats every week. Three clear priorities get the strategy moving.
A new quarter starts
Instead of carrying forward every open topic, the team chooses deliberately which few topics win the next 90 days.
After a strategy offsite
The offsite produced big themes. The action plan turns the first of them into owners and dates.
A new leader or a new team
Shared priorities build trust quickly and show results early.
Who you work with
Your facilitators for the strategy to action plan
Depending on your team, one or two of us facilitate. Both of us have worked on the client side of strategy and have run more than a thousand workshops as facilitators.
Joern Steinz
Partner · Strategy execution and OKRs
Facilitating leadership teams since 2014, more than 60 OKR engagements and over 1.000 workshops. Formerly a consultant at Accenture and in corporate development at XING. MBA, EADA Business School Barcelona.
Oliver Pasdzior
Partner · Strategy and leadership
Over 15 years in corporate development and strategy execution, formerly an executive at major corporations. Leads growth, efficiency and change initiatives with analytical clarity and a pragmatic feel for the people side.
Strategy workshops and offsites we have facilitated for the leadership teams of
Further clients
FAQ
Questions about the strategy to action plan
What is a strategy to action plan?
A strategy to action plan translates a strategy into the next 90 days. It lists a few ranked priorities, what each one means in measurable terms, the key actions, an owner for each action and a review rhythm. It fits on one page.
How many priorities should a 90-day plan have?
We rank the top three and work them out one by one. Teams with enough capacity can add a fourth or fifth, but never more than five in any 90-day plan. Fewer priorities mean more momentum.
How do you decide which priorities make the cut?
With a dot vote on clear criteria, for example impact and effort. Everyone places their dots on an impact-effort grid, so the decision follows criteria rather than the loudest voice. Then the leadership team ranks the top three.
How does the workshop use OKRs?
For each priority the team answers what it means after 90 days, in measurable outcomes. That is the logic of objectives and key results. Actions are only kept if they move an outcome. You do not need any OKR experience; we explain it as we go.
How long does it take to build a 90-day action plan?
Half a day on site, or two 3-hour online sessions. Before the workshop we hold a short preparation call to understand your strategy and what success should look like after 90 days.
Who should take part?
The people who decide on priorities and those who will own the actions, usually a leadership team or the management team of a department. The workshop works best when the decision makers are in the room.
How do we keep the plan alive after the workshop?
Through the rhythm you agree on: a 15-minute weekly check-in, a mid-quarter review and a review on day 90. On request we facilitate the day-90 review and help you set the next priorities.
Related services
From strategy to execution
Still deciding on direction? Our strategy workshop for leadership teams sets it, and the strategy to action plan turns it into the first 90 days.
Next step
Let's build your strategy to action plan
In a 30-minute call we find out where your strategy stands, which format suits your team and which dates work.
Write to ushello@stryke-consulting.com · 0049 175 566 4329 · Hamburg
Strategy development and execution · Hamburg