Every great strategic plan starts with a strategic narrative. Woden recommends four steps to build a plan that actually gets executed.
First, source objectives by prompting the working group with a single question rooted in the strategic narrative. What objectives does the organization need to achieve to realize what the story defines?
Second, affinitize those objectives by grouping similar ideas into categories aligned with the narrative.
Third, prioritize the strategy by giving every working group member votes to allocate across objectives, using the StoryKernel and Messaging Hierarchy as the arbiter when the group cannot reach consensus.
Fourth, shape the plan by advancing the objectives with significant support, debating the contested middle, and drafting a final plan that re-affinitizes everything into a small number of clear, measurable strategies each connected directly to the narrative.
