Most working groups generate far more objectives than any strategic plan can realistically absorb. A planning session with a cross-functional leadership team can surface upwards of 50 objectives, each representing something a different part of the organization believes is critical. The challenge is not generating ideas. It is deciding which ones belong in the plan and which ones do not. A good strategic plan places as much emphasis on what not to do as on which objectives make the cut.
Effective prioritization starts before the voting begins. The facilitator reviews the StoryKernel and Messaging Hierarchy with the entire working group to reinforce that the plan must align with the strategy the organization has already committed to. This anchors every vote in the narrative rather than in individual preferences or departmental priorities.
Each working group member then receives the same number of votes to allocate across objectives however they choose, with the freedom to weight certain objectives more heavily by concentrating multiple votes on a single item. Following the vote, objectives naturally sort into three groups: those with strong support that advance into the plan, those with no support that get one final opportunity for someone to make a case before being set aside, and a contested middle that the group debates directly. When the group cannot reach consensus on a contested objective, the StoryKernel serves as the tie-breaker. If an objective does not advance the story the organization has committed to telling, it does not belong in the plan regardless of how many internal advocates it has.
