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Essential StrategyTM
A Quantum Intelligent Foundation for Strategic Planning
Let's Talk About Strategic Planning that Actually Works
Welcome!
This page is all about Essential StrategyTM, what it is, why it works, and how you can learn the formula to improve strategic planning in your own organization!
​​I spent nearly fifteen years working my way up through mangagement and into senior leadership building a career around improving strategy, risk and resilience at the companies I worked for. What I found was that the uniqueness of every organization demanded the creation of a hybrid approach to get it done.
This was the problem I wanted to solve when I started Black Fox Strategy in 2015. My goal was to simplify strategy, creating a process that worked for every organization regardless of who they were, what they did, big or small. The result is Essential Strategy.
For ten years now I have worked with organizations large and small across industry sectors, in the for-profit and non-profit world, state and federal agencies and the government contractors who support them, and even universities. I have consistently achieved success with Essential Strategy, refining and perfecting it along the way. ​
Essential StrategyTM
is a simplified approach for designing and executing strategy that creates focus and intentionality on the things that matter most for your success.
Better Strategy Simply Done
The Problem
Strategic planning is a critical process for every organization. Yet.....
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It is more often than not an ineffective and time-consuming process that yields little in the way of strategic breakthroughs, cohesion, or vision alignment.
Those tasked with running it struggle to find the right framework and process to successfully get the engagement, information, and guidance that will produce a meaningful and trackable plan.
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Sadly, the end result is too often a plan that fails to deliver, gets left on the shelf, or is completely scrapped when the next round of planning comes along.​​​
The things you're doing are not wrong.
The model you were taught is simply missing a critical piece of the puzzle.
There is a secret to making strategic planning work in any organization and it requires the addition of a critical planning element that was never built into the process and is missing from the model of strategy design that we were all taught.
The Secret
The secret to foolproof strategic planning is....
The addition of 3 very specific framing statements that connect vision to goals - I call them Quantum Imperatives.
Q.Imperatives define those things we must do so that the organization can:
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Deliver on its purpose
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Create intentional growth, and
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Actively anticipate necessary evolution.​​
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Framing strategy around these three elements - Purpose/Growth/Evolution - is like building the foundation of a house before you begin putting up the walls. What often happens is that we go from vision (what the house will look like when we are done) to goals (putting up walls, installing plumbing, etc.) When I see significant disconnects between strategy and operational reality, it ALWAYS comes back to a gap in one of these areas.
What Essential Strategy Solves​​​
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Vision failure, where vision and operational reality are disconnected
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Scaling failure, where growth outpaces internal capabilities
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Evolution failure, when the need to change is realized too late​
Seems too easy?
These three seemingly simple questions are multifaceted, and lead to not-so-simple answers when we work through them according to the 4 Rules.
The Essential Strategy Foundation generates deep conversation and builds strategic thinking discipline. Its loosely defined framework is specifically designed to flex, layering into the strategy you already have, revealing hidden gaps and opportunities, so that you can make it even better.
Essential Strategy works, and it works every time, regardless of size, complexity or industry.
Erin Sedor, the creator of Essential Strategy explains.
Four Rules of Essential Strategy
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Purpose must be clear and compelling creating a sense of common cause within, and excitement for the contribution offered to those being served.
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Growth must be intentional balancing the development of internal capabilities to sustain the growth of business your calling in.
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Evolution must be actively anticipated to keep pace with the changing wants and needs of both employees and those you serve in business.
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Purpose, Growth & Evolution must exist in a state of Equilibrium for the long-term health and sustainability of the organization.
These things cannot be left to chance - this foundation is the formula for building successful, sustainable strategy!
Sound Familiar?
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We have something in place, it just doesn't work very well, and no one likes the process.
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We didn't see much value from the last plan we created, and it took a long time to get it done and then it just sat on the shelf.
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I know we need a plan, but we are not sure where to start and just can't afford to bring someone in to help us.
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The company is growing fast so things change daily - strategic planning would just slow us down.
Strategic thinking discipline over static plan-building.
That is the goal.
Are you ready to embrace a new approach to strategic planning? One that builds on what you have but takes the quality, engagement, and value of your process to a whole new level?
It's not that you don't know the business, but there are disconnects between strategy and operations that you didn't even know were there. No one else is teaching strategy this way.
- Jen Jarvis, Business Owner
Who It's For
Essential Strategy is a framework suitable for every organization, regardless of size, complexity or industry.
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It can be used to build a new strategic plan from scratch, or can be layered into an existing planning process to add additional value by revealing disconnects and creating greater clarity.
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Essential Strategy has been successfully used by:
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For-Profit & Publicly Traded Entities
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Non-Profits
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Universities
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Tribal Entities
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Alaska Native Corporations
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Utilities & Telecommunications
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State & Federal Government Agencies
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Even Consulting Agencies!
People intuitively understand the need for purpose, growth, and evolution in their own lives.
Connecting these elements to business is where the magic happens.
Solopreneurs and Micro Business Owners
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Essential Strategy is the framework I have used to successfully build my own solo practice - you can too!
When you alone ARE your business, strategic planning becomes more intuitive with zero distance between the decisions you make and the impact on your day-to-day. Within this space, purpose, growth, and evolution in equilibrium becomes even more critical.
While the mechanics of the Essential Strategy framework work the same, we take special consideration to turn these elements inward so that you can do the work you're passionate about and build your livlihood at the same time. ​​
Introducing Essential Strategy for Small Business
A Complete Do-It-Yourself Course
Everything I have learned throughout the creation of Essential Strategy is now available for you in a step-by-step program complete with templates and video lessons. This program is completely self-paced AND supported by weekly live group coaching calls. ​
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This course will give you the confidence to plan, lead, and successfully develop a robust and meaningful plan even if you have never led a strategic planning effort before!
The Essential Strategy Guide to Foolproof Strategic Planning
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Complete Essential Strategy Foundation framework together with detailed discussion of the 4 Rules of Strategy
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Complete Essential Strategy Planning Process that outlines strategic planning in an easy to follow 4-step process
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​The Facilitator's Guide