Best Reasons to Schedule a Retreat

The issues that prompt executive leaders to schedule a strategic planning retreat take many forms. Here are some of the most common.

To enact a course correction when things are not going well. This may be the most obvious reason to hold a planning retreat. Yet, oftentimes things are left alone in the hope that whatever is ailing the organization will sort itself out in time. But that rarely happens, and the downward slide continues until a modest adjustment will no longer be enough.

To react to a rapid change in the internal and/or external operating environment. The loss of a key account, the emergence of a new competitor, employee changes, or dramatic shifts in the market or the economy more broadly can prompt the need for an offsite retreat.

The organization is experiencing sudden, rapid growth. While this may qualify as “a high-class problem,” it can be a challenge to recalibrate the organization around increased demand. Planning, scheduling and accounting for a high growth operating environment often creates stress and can expose weaknesses in operating processes and procedures.

When launching a new product or service. Getting members of the senior leadership team aligned around new initiatives at their inception can help ensure a smooth go-to-market strategy. Creative brainstorming can enhance and improve the new offering before it is revealed to customers and prospects. Setting a plan for communicating to team members how this will work and what their role will be is time well spent.

To address issues around organization culture. Culture is usually referenced in one of two cases: when it is exceptional and when it is far less than that. Sadly, it is usually the latter. A culture in need of a dramatic change can be difficult to define but it is fully felt organization-wide. Bringing the senior team together for a candid discussion of the elements that contribute to a culture in need of change and to lay out and commit to a plan for constructive change can bring powerful results.

As part of a systematic process for strategy development and tactical planning. By far, the best reason of all for holding a strategic retreat is when it is driven by a process rather than an event. It’s not by accident that the most enduringly successful organizations regularly schedule strategy retreats to align their senior team around the corporate mission, vision, and values and to plan for a bigger, better future. Committing to quarterly updates help ensure the plan is on track and that adjustments are made in real time.

For more information on ways your organization can benefit from a strategic retreat, contact me at joe@ajstrategy.com or visit my website at ajstrategy.com.