How We Approach Strategy Offsites

How
We
Approach
Oﬀsites

January
7,
2015

v4

2

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

While
Client
Needs
Vary
Widely,
We
Have
Developed
a
Backbone
to

Organize
Successful
Projects

PREPARATION
ONE
OR
MORE
OFFSITES

FOLLOW-‐THROUGH

EmoWonal

PoliWcal

RaWonal

Scope
&

Timeframe

FacilitaWon

Roles
&

Deliverables

ParWcipant

SelecWon

Data

Internal

External

Opinions

Context

AcWon

Steps

Metrics

OBJECTIVES
AGENDA

PROCESS
&

FRAMEWORKS
ALIGNMENT

STRATEGIC

INITIATIVES
Tracking

CommunicaWon

Facts

3

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

14
©2014 The Strategic Offsites Group, Inc. All rights reserved. StrategicOffsites.com
Offsite Objectives
!  Provide an overview of the process for developing [Client’s] Global
eCommerce strategy
!  Understand respective roles of the eCommerce Strategy Working Team, Steering
Group, European Advisory Team and the Global eCommerce Advisory
Committee
!  Define an initial set of walls and fences for [Client] across the corporation
!  Begin to understand how movable/immovable each wall or fence is and the
implications of those boundaries
!  Begin to compile the implications of the walls and fences on potential
eCommerce opportunities
!  Identify existing capabilities and assets and discuss how those may
translate in a digital environment
Example

From
Lengthy
Projects
to
a
Single
MeeWng,
the
StarWng
Point
is
a
Clear
Set

of
ObjecWves

4

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Based
on
the
ObjecWves,
We
Will
Work
With
You
to
Design
Interview/
Survey
QuesWons
to
Collect
ParWcipant
Opinions
on
Key
Issues

Typical
Interview/Survey
Ques5ons

1.  If
we
were
siHng
together
on
New
Years
Eve
of
2020
and
[Client]
had
just
had
an
outstanding
five
years,
what
would
have
been

accomplished?

How
would
you
measure
a
successful
‘pop
the
champagne’
moment
five
years
from
now?

2.  What
five-‐year
stretch
goal
would
you
set
for
total
[Client]
revenues?

3.  On
a
scale
of
1
to
7
(where
7
is
“we
have
a
terrific
growth
strategy,”
4
is
“our
growth
strategy
is
adequate,”
and
1
is
“we
really
need
to

rethink
our
growth
strategy”),
how
would
you
characterize
[Client]’s
growth
strategy?

4.  Five
years
from
now,
what
percentage
of
revenue
will
come
from
current
major
lines
of
business
(as
opposed
to
new/current
minor

businesses)?

5.  List
three
opportuniEes
[Client]
should
pursue
to
achieve
that
growth
and
why.

6.  If
you
were
siHng
across
from
a
new
hire
and
had
to
describe
[Client]’s
current
growth
strategy
in
a
couple
of
sentences,
what
would

you
say?

7.  How
would
you
describe
[Client]’s
current
status
relaEve
to
our
growth
strategy?

q  We
are
execuEng
against
a
clear
strategy

q  We
have
a
clear
strategy,
but
we
are
not
execuEng
against
it

q  Some
of
us
are
clear
about
the
strategy,
but
not
everyone

q  We
do
not
have
a
clear
strategy

q  We
do
not
have
a
strategy

We
need
to

rethink
our

strategy
Our
strategy
is

adequate
Our
strategy
is

terrific
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

<10%
11-‐20%
21-‐30%
31-‐40%
41-‐50%
51-‐60%
61-‐70%
71-‐80%
81-‐90%
91-‐100%

Example

5

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

25
©2014 The Strategic Offsites Group®, Inc. All rights reserved. Proprietary and Confidential. StrategicOffsites.com
Typical Answers to What [X Co Team] Said About…
Q#11. Here is a stack of 12 cards, each of which has a single word or phrase on it. Please select the three cards where, if we
dedicated ourselves to addressing our issues in those areas (i.e. improving or changing them) over the next 18 months, we
could have the greatest positive impact on the success of Client
PEOPLE
•  Need associates/analysts
trained enough to allow VPs/
MDs to get out there and
market/sell
•  Structural lack of training, to
get people to execute in
consistent manner- not terribly
invasive, but reasonable
procedural steps when
executive clients work -
harmonizing of procedures
•  That's all we have, time and
expertise - develop the next
set of leaders
LEADERSHIP
•  Competitors have 1-2 guys
who are recognizable, client
polished - "who's driving the
firm?" as an outsider question
is hard to answer
•  We don't have a natural leader
like Charlie Downer - his top
partners aren't stepping up as
leaders of the firm, only
leaders of transactions
CULTURE
•  Maintain things in motion -
shift to next step in evolution,
become less lifestyle-based
business, more traditional
•  Lots of good individuals, self-
starters, need the right culture
to support them. Lack of
cooperation, lack of
transparency in terms of
information about what's going
on (transactions, internal
decisions)
23
There Are Three Clear Areas for Investment
Q#12. If you could decide where Client should invest $100 million over the next 3 years to drive profitable growth,
where would you put it?
n=12 Average
2.5
7.1
8.8
13.2
17
22
29.5
Back Office/
IT Infrastructure
New Products and
Services
Entering New
Markets/Verticals
Training/
Professional
Education
Acquiring Talent
Investing in the
Brand
Entering New
Geographies
•  Build practice group in big dumb industries
•  Maybe debt advisory/restructuring, fundraising
•  China (5)
•  UK (5)
•  South Europe, Italy (2)
•  Asia, (1)
•  Hiring pre-trained associates/analysts
•  1-2 new associates in case of downturn; a distressed M&A
guy
•  Associates/VP in Europe and China
•  Marketing, some analysts, generate business, more VPs
•  Europe (Paris): pre-trained analysts
•  Institutionalizing/building methodologies for associates - how to
grow into VP/MDs, e.g. marketing, big picture thinking
•  Consistent D.C.F.s
•  Core processes
MIN MAX MEDIAN
0 50 30
0 50 27.5
0 50 15
0 34 7.5
0 30 0
0 30 0
0 10 0
Interview
and/or
Survey
Data
Serves
to
QuanWfy
ParWcipant
Opinions
and

Provide
a
Basis
for
Discussion

QuanWfying
opinion
is
as
important
as
‘hard
data’
for
sedng
prioriWes,

evaluaWng
issues
and
making
tough
decisions

24
Brand and Strategy Are Top Issues for the X Organization
0
4
7
1
1
1
1
2
3
4
7
7
9
Organization Structure
Back Office
Product and Service Offering
Other - Vision
Processes (i.e. Engagement
execution)
Culture
Leadership
People (includes Training)
Strategy
Brand / Marketing
Q#11. Here is a stack of 12 cards, each of which has a single word or phrase on it. Please select the three cards where, if we
dedicated ourselves to addressing our issues in those areas (i.e. improving or changing them) over the next 18 months, we
could have the greatest positive impact on the success of Client
n=12 Top 1 Top 3
Example

6

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Sample
Interview/Survey
Output:

Everyone
Agrees
That
Growth
Strategy
Includes
AcquisiWons…

Number Low High
14 125 500
10 0 200
8 0 250
9 0 125
8 0 60
8 0 100
4 0 60
Q7:
If
you
could
decide
where
Client
should
invest
$500
million
over
the
next
3
years
to
achieve
profitable
growth,
how
would
you

allocate
that
investment
over
the
following
Businesses
or
areas?

What
led
you
to
make
the
choices
you
made?

n=14

$
mm

Note:

Other
includes
“Building
relaEonships
with
media
partners”;

“Improving
key
processes”;

“New
verEcals”;

“New
channels”

Average
Investment

($mm)

16.2
25.4
27.1
38.2
46.4
57.5
290.4
0 100 200 300 400 500
Other
Developing cross-ENA solutions
Expanding into vertical markets
Acquiring new databases (i.e. names and
info)
Expanding internationally
Infrastructure / Technology
Acquire business(es) in…
Sani5zed
and
simplified
for
illustra5ve
purposes

7

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Average
Investment

($mm)

Sample
Interview/Survey
Output:

…But
They
Do
Not
Agree
On
What
Type
Of
AcquisiWons
to
Make

Q7:
If
you
could
decide
where
Client
should
invest
$500
million
over
the
next
3
years
to
achieve
profitable
growth,
how
would
you

allocate
that
investment
over
the
following
Businesses
or
areas?

What
led
you
to
make
the
choices
you
made?

n=14
$
mm

Area Number Low $ High $
Internet
Marketing
6 200 300
Online +
Offline mix
1 400
Addressable
Media
2 250 325
Database
Management
1 500
Consulting/
Solutions
Selling
1 125
Consulting/
Analytics
1 100
Rollups 1 100
General 2 300 340
16.2
25.4
27.1
38.2
46.4
57.5
290.4
0 100 200 300 400 500
Other
Developing cross-ENA solutions
Expanding into vertical markets
Acquiring new databases (i.e. names and
info)
Expanding internationally
Infrastructure / Technology
Acquire business(es) in…
Sani5zed
and
simplified
for
illustra5ve
purposes

Example

8

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Sample
Interview/Survey
Output:

Respondents
Were
Divided
Whether
Small
Town
Strategy
Can
Grow
XYZ
Stores

n
=
18

Q3.
We
plan
to
have
1,100
stores
by
the
end
of
2015.
What
percent
of
these
200
new
stores
should
follow
our
classical
“small-‐town”

strategy?

1

1

0
0

2

1
1

6

1

2

3

2

0-‐9%
10-‐19%
20-‐29%
30-‐39%
40-‐49%
50-‐59%
60-‐69%
70-‐79%
80-‐89%
90-‐100%

Percent
of
New
Stores
That
Should
Follow
Our

Classical
Small
Town
Strategy

Board
Members

ExecuEves

Sani5zed
and
simplified
for
illustra5ve
purposes

9

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

17
Competitive Positioning: Top 3 – 4 Competitors
COMPETITOR HOW THEY ARE COMPETING THREATS AND OPPORTUNITIES
XX !  DSD Model – using Instant Whip in many
areas
!  Self manufactures equipment but contract
manufactures all beverage products. (Uses
Elgin to contract pack most of its product)
!  Have heavily penetrated street business
with frozen smoothie, cocktail mixes and
coffee product line.
!  Willing to give equipment to almost any
operator with minimal volume requirements.
!  Have competed on price and quality. Value
proposition based on good quality products
with very attractive equipment program and
sales support.
!  Developed aseptic products through
Bysville and is beginning to target National
accounts with aseptic.
Strengths (Threats to Client)
•  Market Leader – proven success, brand
recognition.
•  Instant Whip sells bag topping with beverages.
•  Focused beverage company
•  DSD Model allows for lower cost (no distributor
markups), better product tracking and frequent
customer contact
•  Equipment program can put any operator into
the beverage business in a matter of days and at
no cost to operator.
•  Equipment placement costs are more affordable
since equipment is mass produced and self
manufactured
•  Complete, all natural product line
Weaknesses (Opportunities for Client)
•  Majority of product line is still frozen.
•  Vulnerable if demand for production exceeds
industry capacity.
•  Limited R&D resources for NPD
19
Content Marketing Is Being Seen As a Fundamental New Tool to
Connect With Customers
!  A marketing survey conducted by King Fish Media (a custom media marketing solutions provider) in Jun–Aug
2009 highlighted the increased usage of content as a marketing tool. The survey was conducted among 230
online respondents, primarily folks from corporate management and marketing/sales management
•  77% of the respondents1 considered custom content and media as the most effective medium to
communicate with their current customers, while
•  70% believed that the medium was very effective in communicating with prospects/leads
What are businesses doing?
Content Marketing –
An important and
effective medium to
connect with
customers
!  According to the study ‘B2B Content
Marketing: 2010 Benchmarks, Budgets
and Trends’, based on survey conducted
among over 1,100 B2B marketers from
North America
•  90% of the respondents use content
marketing strategies for their
businesses
•  On an average, businesses were
using 8 different content marketing
mediums for the purpose. The most
important mediums included:
» Social media (excluding blogs)
(79%)
» Articles (78%)
» In-person events (62%), and
» eNewsletters (61%)
!  According to the same study, following are the
main goals for businesses while implementing
content marketing strategies:
37%
51%
52%
55%
61%
63%
69%
78%
Website traffic
Lead nurturing
Thought leadership
Sales
%ofRespondents
Brand awareness
Customer retention/loyalty
Customer recruitment
Lead generation
!  The study further sighted the following as
major challenges to the implementation
of content marketing strategies by
various businesses:
36%
21%20%
9%
14%
Producing
engaging content
Producing a
variety of content
Budget to
produce
content
Producing
enough content
Others
Note: 1Responses to the question “What, in your opinion, is the most effective way to communicate with customers and prospects?”
Source: ‘Survey Shows Increased Use of Content as a Marketing Tool’, Hubspot Blog, Oct 13, 2009; ‘B2B Content Marketing: 2010 Benchmarks, Budgets and
Trends’, MarketingProfs and Junta42
AddiWonally,
the
Team
May
Gather
Internal
and
External
Data
to
Inform

Discussions
During
the
MeeWng

Seeding
a
conversaWon
with
the
appropriate
data
allows
the
group
to
have
an
informed

conversaWon
without
becoming
bogged
down

18
Shopping Through Mobile Applications Is Growing Rapidly
18.3
163.0
0
40
80
120
160
2009 2015F
USDBn
Exponential Growth expected in Mobile Shopping Global Mobile Commerce Revenues, 2009 and 2015F
Estimated Sales through Mobile for the US and ‘EU 3’1,
2011F
18%
17%
15%14%
12%
8%
6%
6%
4% Electronics
Apparel
Music & Video
Food & Grocery
Housewares
Books
Health & Beauty
Do it yourself
Other
Note: 1The ‘EU 3’ countries are UK, France and Germany
Source: ‘The M-Commerce Challenge to Retail’, Strategy + Business, Feb 2011; ‘Mobile Retailing On The Rise’, Practical Communications, Jan 2011; ‘62% of
consumers with web-connected mobile devices are buying goods via mobile’, Internet Retailer, Feb 2011; ‘EBay generates $2B in mobile sales in 2010’, Mobile
Commerce Daily, Jan 2011; ‘As Mobile Shopping Takes Off, eBay Is an Early Winner’, Businessweek, Jun 2010; 'Mobile E-Commerce Is Here to $tay’ Blue
Fountain Media, Sep 2010
!  According to Gartner, 150 MM users will use mobile shopping
applications by the end of 2012
!  According to Booz & Co., mobile applications influenced 10–
15% of total retail sales in the US, UK, France and
Germany in 2010, totaling USD 340 Bn
!  A survey among the US consumers by Booz & Co., published
in Feb 2011, reported that 15–20% of consumers use shopping
applications on their cell phones to compare products and
research prices
•  Another 25% of consumers indicated that they expected to
use these applications in the future
!  According to a study by Foresee Results, the percentage of the
US consumers using mobile applications from retailers
increased from 1% in 2009 to 7% in 2010
!  A 2011 survey by Adobe Scene7 among the US consumers
with ‘web-connected mobile devices’ reported that 62%
bought goods using their mobiles
!  eBay reported sales worth ~USD 2 Bn from mobile commerce
in 2010, a ~300% increase compared to 2009
(CAGR
2009–15F)
~44%
16
Client—Basic Competitive Profile
•  Client has targeted both the street and national accounts by offering aseptic packaging and high quality products as
key points of difference.
•  However, Client frozen broad line distribution, existing customer relationships, and brand have limited market
penetration because the aseptic point of difference is not being offered to customers, Client relationship with
beverage buyers is weak, and Client is not known as a beverage company.
•  Client equipment program lacks the ability to track placements and enforce annual volume contracts to cover
equipment costs, which is severely hurting its profitability.
OVERVIEW
OPPORTUNITIES
•  Leverage aseptic capabilities for use in other product categories to deliver breakout growth platforms outside of
beverages.
•  Strategic acquisitions or partnerships with equipment co., brands, distributors, or other beverage companies/
competitors in order to gain brand equity, alternate distribution, and improved equipment capabilities.
•  Focus on smoothies and ice coffee drinks with a more targeted sales approach toward national and regional chain
accounts where there is a more leveled playing field versus competition.
•  Improve profitability by getting equipment program under control – requires better tracking and enforcement of
contracts or limiting placements to national accounts where volume is more easily tracked.
•  Scope out bag-in-a-box capability to gain greater share of market.
THREATS
•  Increased competition from existing competitors (key competitors have all added aseptic products to their portfolio).
•  Business loss through clean up of equipment program
Example

10

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

This
can
take
the
form
of:

§  Pre-‐read
materials,
e.g.

•  Internal
informaEon
such
as
business
cases

•  External
informaEon
such
as
compeEtor
profiles,
market
condiEons
etc.

•  Other

§  Pre-‐meeEng
briefings
via
webex
or
conference
call

§  Homework
assignments

SomeWmes
CommunicaWng
InformaWon
to
ParWcipants
Before
the
MeeWng

Leads
to
a
More
ProducWve
Session

We
prefer
to
impart
informaWon
before
the
meeWng
both
to
provide
“soak
Wme”
and
to
redeploy

valuable
meeWng
Wme
to
beoer
use

11

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

We
Coordinate
and
Review
ExecuWve
PresentaWons
to
Assure

Consistency
with
the
MeeWng
ObjecWves

Our
role
can
include:

§  Working
with
each
presenter
to
develop
an
outline
for
their
presentaEon

§  Reviewing
and
“strategically
ediEng”
the
draos
to
ensure
the
presentaEons:

•  Convey
the
meeEng’s
themes
and
objecEves

•  Present
the
ideas
in
a
succinct
way

•  Are
at
a
consistent
alEtude

•  Occur
in
a
logical
sequence
to
deliver
an
integrated
message
consistent
with
the
meeEng
objecEves

§  Rehearsing
the
presenters
to
improve
their
delivery
of
the
messages

§  Designing
feedback
mechanisms
to
ensure
the
right
message
points
have
been
communicated

12

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

We
Work
with
Clients
to
Rigorously
Design
Each
MeeWng
Using
a

Facilitator’s
Agenda

TIME TOPIC RESP. OBJECTIVES SESSION ACTIVITIES/MATERIALS
11:00 –
12:00
Model current
resource allocation
–Allocate projects to
buckets
Mike/
SOG
§  Understand current allocation
of TS and non-TS project
groupings according to the
buckets
§  Wall charts with TS buckets and another for non-TS
activities
§  Take printed post-its (split between TS and TD) for
the project groupings and ask which bucket they
belong in
§  Add to appropriate wall chart
§  Review buckets and determine whether this is an
accurate reflection of the business
§  “How does this match up to interview questions
4/5 – 3/4 (allocate 100 points according to focus of
BSS)?”
§  “Would Ken or Mike’s peers be surprised by this
allocation?”
12:00 –
12:15
Current resource
allocation –
Introduce the poker
chip exercise
SOG
§  Understand instructions for the
next exercise
§  Show the poker chip board
§  Hand out the chips (different color to each participant,
Mike to vote last)
§  Explain exercise
§  Collecting participants’ input on risk adjusted
impact vs. time of todays’ activities and what it
should be in the future
§  Participants should allocate 100% of resources on
the poker chip board according to how they
believe the resources are allocated today against
those axes
12:15 –
12:30
Current resource
allocation –
Conduct the poker
chip exercise
All
§  Gather participants’ views on
current resource allocation by
risk adjusted impact and
timeframe
§  Ask participants to place chips for today’s resource
allocation and go to break
The
facilitator’s
agenda
shows
how
we
will
conduct
each
session
to
achieve
the
objecWves

13

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

14
Poker Chip Game - Instructions
!  Chips represent current spending – each one
is approximately $350 million
!  Move the chips around on the board to reflect
how you personally think resources should be
spent in the future
!  At your table, take one person’s 30 chips and
“reload” the large board in the center of your
table
!  Collectively move the chips to reflect a
common view of how the table believes
resources should be shifted
15
Poker Chip Game - Results
12
5
6
3
4
9.8
4.5
6.5
5
3.8
Supply Chain -
Product
Supply Chain
(inc. Customer
Care)
Sales (exc. Rep
Discounts)
Marketing (inc.
R&D)
G&A
Current Allocated
Average Responses
Current 30
Allocated 29.6
15
Heat Mapping Example
Instructions:
!  Spend 5 minutes reviewing the wall
charts
!  Place dots on the three barriers you
think are the most important for [Client]
to collectively focus on
!  Orange dots on the most important
barriers to address Monday morning
!  Blue dots on the highest impact barriers
to address over the longer term
!  Place only one dot per barriers
Ideas:
Barriers:
We
Build
the
Use
of
Appropriate
Tools
Into
Each
Module
of
the

Session
to
Ensure
the
Discussion
Meets
its
ObjecWves

Electronic
polling,
live
heat
mapping,
and
other
meeWng
techniques
keep
aoendees
engaged
and
honest,

thus
enabling
a
producWve
conversaWon

14

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Example:
An
Exercise
to
Publicly
Capture
and
QuanWfy
Individual

Preferences

7"
©2014"The"Strategic"Offsites"Group,"Inc."All"rights"reserved."Proprietary"and"ConfidenEal.""
DRAFT
Par$cipants+Indicated+Strong+Preference+For+Moving+Away+From+
Moderate+Short+Term+Project+Towards+Longer+Term+Higher+Value+Work+
How do you think Client currently allocates its resources by potential return and timeframe?
How do you think Client should allocate its resources in the future according to potential return and timeframe?
Current'
(Average'Scores)'
Future'
(Average'Scores)'
ILLUSTRATIVE+
A
Poker
Chip
Game
in
Progress

Clearly
Ar5culated
Group
Preferences

15

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Breakout
Exercises
Can
Take
a
Number
of
Forms:
from
Giving

Feedback
to
Providing
Input

17#
©2015&The&Strategic&Offsites&Group,&Inc.&All&rights&reserved.&Proprietary&and&ConfidenDal.&&
Teams#Will#Provide#Feedback#on#the#Mission#Statement#
Objec&ve(
!  Capture&feedback&on&new&Mission&statement&
In(mee&ng(
1.  Each&parDcipant&has&a&copy&of&the&mission&statement&
2.  Before&starDng,&conduct&an&iniDal&keypad&vote&on&a&scale&of&1&M&10&how&strong&do&they&think&the&
mission&statement&is&(1&=&very&weak,&10&=&very&strong)?&
3.  Facilitator&gives&instrucDons&
•  Plates&dots&on&the&mission&statement&where:&
!  You&have&quesDons&about&what&is&being&said&(yellow)&
!  You&have&edits/concerns&about&what&is&being&said&(red)&
4.  In&teams,&gather&feedback&on&what&would&it&take&to&have&a&10&for&the&mission&statement,&and&
drive&to&consensus&on&feedback&
5.  Capture&on&flip&charts&the&quesDons&for&the&areas&with&the&most&yellow&dots.&&Write&these&on&
quesDon&cards&and&hand&in&
6.  Capture&on&flip&charts&the&suggested&changes&for&the&areas&with&the&most&dots&
7.  PrioriDze&the&suggested&changes&
8.  Report&out&the&top&suggested&change&for&each&group,&then&the&second.&&If&one&group’s&number&
one&has&already&been&raised,&raise&the&number&2,&etc.&
18#
©2015&The&Strategic&Offsites&Group,&Inc.&All&rights&reserved.&Proprietary&and&ConfidenDal.&&
Breakouts#Will#Iden3fy#Areas#of#Synergy#
Objec&ve(
!  Capture&input&on&areas&for&synergy&
(
In(mee&ng(
1.  SOG&introduces&the&exercise&
2.  ParDcipants&breakout&into&six&assigned&groups&
•  Randomly&assigned&except&P&Ls&remain&together&
3.  Each&group&discusses&then&writes&on&post&its:&
•  Areas&where&the&inefficiency&of&doing&things&in&mulDple&geographies/divisions&clearly&outweighs&the&advantage&of&
doing&it&independently&
•  Areas&where&the&skills/best&pracDces/discoveries/patents/scale&etc.&of&one&area&could&be&beneficial&to&other&areas&
of&the&company,&either&in&the&form&of&cost&reducDon&or&increased&growth&
4.  Teams&place&the&post&its&on&flip&charts&in&their&groups.&&Ideas&can&be&idiosyncraDc&to&a&division&or&
general&for&the&business&
5.  PrioriDze&up&to&6&ideas&in&each&group&and&prepare&to&give&“teaser”&report&out,&&
6.  Write&top&ideas&on&post&its&and&place&in&box&on&wall&chart,&idenDfying&whether&an&idea&is&idiosyncraDc&
or&general&
7.  Teams&giver&teaser&reports&
8.  As&parDcipants&go&to&break&in&the&P&L&units,&they&carry&dot&votes&and&vote&once&on&whether&their&P&L&
would&opt&in&(i.e.&use)&or&opt&out&of&this&best&pracDce&and&capture&reasons&on&post&its.&&If&they&want&
further&informaDon&or&to&contribute&they&should&post&their&contact&details&in&the&comment&column&
Feedback
Providing
Input

16

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

To
Drive
Strategy
Alignment,
We
Use
a
Variety
of
Frameworks
and

Approaches
that
Clients
Open
Incorporate
into
Their
Toolkit

Tiers of Strategic Activity Target Exercise “Fuzzy Logic”
Prioritization Matrix
Directly
Somewhat
Tangentially
Now Soon Later
Nice
toDo
Should
Do
Must
Do
Urgency
Importance
Strategy
Dependent
Strategy
Neutral
Heat Mapping
North&America&Sales&&&Service&POA&Q&A&
#& Ques7ons& MG& SA& GA& MB& AC& DD& DD& CE& JF&
Introduc7on&
1"
What&are&the&outcomes&we&are&looking&to&achieve&
with&the&POA?"
2"
What&are&the&underlying&design&principles&for&the&
POA?"
3" What&is&the&7meline&to&implement&the&POA?"
Customer&Segmenta7on&
4"
How&will&we&segment&customers&to&achieve&the&
POA?&How&is&this&approach&different&than&today?"
5"
What&are&the&criteria&for&segmen7ng&customers&into&
the&Global&Accounts&Program,&Strategic&Industry&
Ver7cal&Account&Groups,&Na7onal&Accounts&and&
Inside&Sales&segments?"
Global&Accounts&
6"
What&does&it&mean&to&be&a&customer&in&the&Global&
Accounts&Program?"
7"
How&will&we&assign&Global&Business&Directors&to&
Global&Accounts?"
8"
What&is&our&target&number&of&Global&Accounts?&Will&
we&begin&with&that&number&immediately&or&use&a&
phased&approach?&"
9"
What&are&the&characteris7cs&of&an&account&in&the&
Global&Accounts&Program?"
10"
How&will&the&Global&Accounts&Program&actually&work&
in&terms&of&the&overall&buy&from&a&global&customer?"
11"
Who&will&be&assigned&to&the&Global&Accounts&
organiza7on?&"
1"
Crea5ng
common
terms
to
discuss
strategy
helps
enable
more
fluid
ongoing
conversa5ons

(e.g.,
Goals
and
Objec6ves,
Drivers
of
Change,
Capabili6es
and
Assets,
Opportuni6es
and

Enablers,
Walls
and
Fences,
Value
Proposi6on,
Barriers
and
Obstacles,
Ini6a6ves,
Metrics,

Milestones,
Resources,
Enablers,
Dependencies)

17

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Aper
Launching
IniWaWves
In
a
MeeWng,
We
Open
Work
With
Their
Owners

to
Further
Define
Them

Ini5a5ve:
Name
of
iniEaEve
Execu5ve
Sponsor:
Name
of
execuEve
sponsor

High
Level

Overview:

Brief
synopsis
of
the
iniEaEve

Objec5ves:
What
do
we
intend
to
accomplish
by

doing
this?

Deliverables:
What
are
the
key
deliverables

from
this
iniEaEve?

Benefits
2015
2016
2017
Costs
2015
2016
2017

Revenue
($)
Expense
$

Savings:
$
FTEs

Savings:
FTEs
Capex
$

Other
(non-‐quanEfiable)
benefits

Dependencies
What
current
iniEaEves
does
this
iniEaEve
depend
on?

What
current
iniEaEves
depend
on
this
iniEaEve?

Timing
What
is
the
Eming
around
the
key
milestones
for
this
iniEaEve?

EXAMPLE

19

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Strategic
Offsites
Group
at
a
Glance

§  BouWque
strategy
consulWng
firm
founded
in
2002

•  Work
around
the
globe
with
CEOs,
senior
execuWve
teams
and
Boards
across
industries
on

their
most
important
strategic
issues
and
opportuniWes

§  Specialize
in
the
design
and
facilitaWon
of
strategy
processes
and
discussions
to
help

execuEve
teams
and
Boards
make
beoer
decisions
and
convert
those
decisions
to

measureable
acWons

§  Through
our
thought
leadership,
offer
new
ways
of
thinking
about
strategy
process
and

decision
making

§  Operate
single
office
in
Boston
with
eight-‐person
team

•  Leverage
specialist
research
firms
to
gather
market
and
compeEtor
data
when
required

20

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

How
We
Serve
Our
Clients

§  Whether
engaged
for
a
single
meeWng
or
a
mulWyear
change
iniWaWve,
our
role
is
to
help

design
and
manage
criWcal
strategic
discussions

§  The
common
denominator
underlying
our
work
is
expertly
facilitated
and
prepared

workshops
and
processes
designed
to
achieve
organizaWonal
and
execuWve
alignment

§  Beginning
with
seHng
clear
objecEves,
we
help
clients
maintain
a
balance
of
process,
content,

and
conversaWon
to
ensure
that
strategies
gain
and
hold
momentum

§  We
collect
and
synthesize
relevant
data
that
inform
objecEves
and
frameworks
to
drive

management
teams
to
acWonable
outcomes

21

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

Our
Client
Work
Open
Falls
Into
Five
Categories

Vision and strategy development
Create a clear vision for an organization’s future and the strategies
and roadmap to achieve that vision
Priority setting and resource allocation
Clarify organizational priorities and ensure alignment of critical activities
and initiatives designed to make them a reality
Initiative development and dependency management
Design and structure key initiatives and manage interactions with
key stakeholders to ensure consistent direction and buy-in
Accountability and measurement
Identify, define, and align behind strategic measures and processes
to monitor and analyze business performance
Organization and strategy process design
Work with boards and executive teams to design and structure
appropriate strategic conversations and processes

22

©2015
The
Strategic
Oﬀsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConﬁdenEal.

We
Enjoy
Strong
Client
RelaWonships
With
ExecuWve
Teams
Around

the
World

Selected Clients
R A L P H L A U R E N

23

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Our
Thought
Leadership
is
Featured
in
our
Books
and
ArWcles
in

Some
of
the
World’s
Leading
Business
PublicaWons

“Off-‐sites
that
work”
is
the
seminal
Harvard
Business
Review
arWcle
on
strategy
offsites
and
has

been
reprinted
in
nine
foreign
ediWons

24

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Bob
Frisch,
Managing
Partner

For
over
30
years,
Bob
has
worked
with
execuEve
teams
on
their
most
vital
strategic
and
organizaEonal
challenges,

both
as
a
consultant
and
a
corporate
execuEve.
He
is
considered
one
of
the
world’s
leading
strategic
facilitators,

having
conducted
execuEve
offsites
in
fioeen
countries
with
companies
ranging
from
Fortune
10
mulEnaEonals
to

German
miMelstand
family
businesses.
Bob’s
work
has
been
featured
in
publicaEons
ranging
from
Fortune
to
CFO

Magazine
to
the
Johannesburg
Business
Report,
and
he
is
the
author
of
three
Harvard
Business
Review
arEcles:
Off-‐
Sites
That
Work
(June
2006),
When
Teams
Can’t
Decide
(November
2008)
and
Who
Really
Makes
The
Big
Decisions
in

Your
Company?
(December
2011).
When
Teams
Can’t
Decide
was
recently
named
a
‘must
read’
arEcle
on
teams
by

Harvard
Business
Review.

Bob’s
first
book,
Who’s
In
The
Room?
How
Great
Leaders
Structure
and
Manage
the
Teams

Around
Them,
was
published
by
Jossey-‐Bass/Wiley
in
January
2012
and
quickly
became
an
Amazon
bestseller
in
the

categories
of
Leadership
and
Decision
Making.

It
is
now
in
distribuEon
in
12
countries.

Before
founding
the
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Bob
was
a
Managing
Partner
of
Accenture,
where
he
helped
create

the
OrganizaEon
and
Change
Strategy
pracEce.
Bob
joined
Accenture
from
Cap
Gemini
SogeE,
where
he
created
the

firm’s
global
capability
in
corporate
vision
and
growth
and
led
the
Strategy
pracEce
for
the
Americas
Region.

He

began
his
career
at
the
Boston
ConsulEng
Group
where
he
was
among
the
last
consultants
to
train
under
the

legendary
Bruce
Henderson.

Bob’s
execuEve
roles
began
when
he
went
to
work
for
a
client,
running
planning
and
business
development
for

The
Dial
CorporaEon.
Bob
went
on
to
become
the
youngest
Division
President
of
this
Fortune
500
company,
now

a
division
of
Henkel.
A
decade
later,
he
took
another
leave
from
consulEng
to
head
corporate
strategy
for
Sears,

Roebuck
and
Co.
where
he
helped
guide
what
was
the
largest
voluntary
restructuring
in
US
corporate
history.

Bob
is
a
magna
cum
laude
graduate
of
Tuos
University
and
earned
his
MBA
at
the
Yale
School
of
Management.

Bob

lives
in
Newton
Centre,
Massachusess
with
his
wife
Iris
and
their
four
children.

Dangerous
Company,
a
best-‐selling
book
on
the
consulEng
industry,
says
of
Bob:
"He
has
been
there,
small
company

and
big,
strategy
and
operaEons.
He
has
lived
much
of
his
professional
life
on
the
road
or
in
the
corridors
of
power
of

huge
insEtuEons.
In
the
game
of
business,
he
is
equipped
to
be
the
perfect
coach."

25

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Cary
Greene,
Partner

Cary
has
over
20
years’
experience
working
with
senior
execuEves
and
boards
on
challenging
and
complex
strategic

issues.
In
addiEon
to
his
experEse
in
strategy
workshop
design
and
facilitaEon,
Cary
leads
SOG’s
efforts
focusing
on
large-‐
scale
transformaEon
and
strategy
programs.
These
include
strategy
formulaEon
and
execuEon,
execuEve
and

organizaEonal
alignment,
and
performance
measurement.
Cary's
work
has
spanned
the
financial
services,
healthcare,

retail,
manufacturing,
business
services,
sooware,
and
transportaEon
industries
in
the
United
States
and
Europe.

Examples
of
recent
client
engagements
include:

§  Worked
with
60
execuEves
across
six
teams
to
develop
a
three-‐year
growth
strategy
for
a
$5
billion
wealth-‐
management
firm.

§  Worked
with
30
execuEves
and
50
doctors
across
four
teams
from
the
second
largest
medical
associaEon
to
develop
a

comprehensive,
mulEyear
strategy
to
transform
a
leading
medical
specialty.

§  Designed
and
facilitated
a
series
of
workshops
for
the
board
and
senior
management
of
a
$5
billion

telecommunicaEons
provider
to
idenEfy
and
prioriEze
a
set
of
criEcal
growth
opportuniEes.

§  Supported
70
execuEves
in
six
teams
to
create
strategies
and
new
funcEons
across
three
strategic
themes.
The
effort

was
designed
to
drive
and
sustain
75%
business
growth
over
seven
years.

Prior
to
joining
the
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Cary
led
the
Finance
pracEce
at
the
Palladium
Group,
where
he
worked

closely
with
David
Norton
and
Robert
Kaplan
(co-‐creators
of
the
Balanced
Scorecard)
to
pioneer
Palladium’s
“Planning

for
Results”
offering.
Previously,
Cary
co-‐founded
Painted
Word,
a
strategy
and
technology
consulEng
firm
specializing
in

corporate
performance
management,
where
he
established
and
managed
the
firm’s
Strategy
and
Financial
Services

pracEces.
Inc.
magazine
twice
named
Painted
Word
to
the
Inc.
500
as
one
of
the
fastest-‐growing
privately
held

companies.
Cary
led
the
process
to
sell
Painted
Word
to
Monitor
Clipper
Partners,
a
private
equity
firm,
and
the

subsequent
merger
with
the
Balanced
Scorecard
CollaboraEve
to
form
the
Palladium
Group.

Before
founding
Painted
Word,
Cary
worked
for
A.
T.
Kearney,
a
management
consulEng
firm.
He
began
his
career
in

investment
banking
at
PrudenEal-‐Bache
Capital
Funding,
where
he
was
an
Associate
in
the
Financial
InsEtuEons
Group.

Cary
earned
a
BA
with
Highest
DisEncEon
from
the
University
of
Virginia
and
a
MBA
from
Harvard
Business
School.

26

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Andrew
McIlwraith,
Senior
Engagement
Manager

At
Strategic
Offsites
Andrew
has
consulted
across
mulEple
industries
in
several
conEnents.

Sample
industries
include

retail,
financial
services
(including
insurance,
retail
brokerage,
clearing,
credit
cards,
credit
reporEng),
food
and

beverages
(both
retail
and
ingredient
supply),
upstream
oil
and
gas,
industrial
products,
and
medical
instruments.

In

addiEon
mulEple
strategy
development
projects,
Andrew
has
worked
extensively
on
iniEaEve
prioriEzaEon
and

resource
allocaEon
issues
helping
connect
the
worlds
of
strategy
and
implementaEon.

Before
joining
Strategic
Offsites
in
2005,
he
spent
nine
years
with
Gemini
ConsulEng
(subsequently
Cap
Gemini
Ernst

&
Young)
in
the
Strategy
pracEce.
While
at
Gemini,
Andrew
leveraged
his
financial
and
strategy
experience
to

develop
Balanced
Scorecards
in
a
variety
of
industries,
including
consumer
products,
chemicals,
and
food
ingredients.

Other
project
work
included
a
distribuEon
strategy
for
a
consumer
lawn
and
garden
chemical
company
and
a
debit

card
strategy
for
a
major
regional
retail
bank.

Prior
to
joining
Gemini,
Andrew
worked
as
a
credit
analyst
in
the
Specialized
Finance
arm
of
Dresdner
Bank
AG,

London
Branch.
His
responsibiliEes
included
analyzing
new
leveraged
and
project
finance
loans,
as
well
as
loans

which
had
been
reclassified
into
the
specialized
department.

Before
Dresdner,
Andrew
was
with
CiEcorp
Investment
Bank
Limited,
London.

Andrew
graduated
from
Duke

University
with
an
AB
in
Economics
and
History.

27

©2015
The
Strategic
Offsites
Group,
Inc.
All
rights
reserved.
Proprietary
and
ConfidenEal.

Mike
Katzman,
Consultant

Since
joining
Strategic
Offsites
Group
in
2013,
Mike
has
contributed
to
engagements
with
market-‐leading
clients
in
the
credit

card,
informaEon
services,
luxury
goods,
commercial
insurance,
transportaEon
and
retail
industries.
He
has
worked
closely
with

senior
execuEve
teams
to
design
and
conduct
mulEphase
strategy
processes
in
strategy
development,
organizaEonal

transformaEon,
strategy
execuEon,
resource
allocaEon,
and
sales
go-‐to-‐market
strategy.

Mike
directly
supports
SOG’s
partners,
primarily
focusing
on
the
preparaEon,
implementaEon
and
documentaEon
of
strategy

workshops
and
meeEngs.
Over
the
course
of
his
projects,
he
has
helped:

§  Manage
the
planning
process
for
a
$1.5
billion
public
informaEon
services
firm
to
idenEfy,
vet
and
prioriEze
strategic

investment
opportuniEes

§  Develop
the
growth
strategy
for
a
leading
Canadian
payments
company
aiming
to
achieve
$400
million
of
topline
growth
over

5
years
and
package
it
for
the
Board
of
Directors

§  Analyze
the
compeEEve
environment
for
a
$4
billion
retailer
of
commercial
trucks
to
be
used
by
the
firm’s
senior
execuEve

team
to
brainstorm
growth
opportuniEes

Mike
holds
a
BA
in
Finance
and
Film
and
Media
Studies
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis.

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