How does future search relate to strategic planning?
There is a common maxim that strategic plans make good doorstops. This is because they are often easier to write than to implement. When a plan is developed by a committee or consultant team – even with input from focus groups, interviews or surveys — it often meets resistance or is poorly understood during implementation. Because future search involves people from all levels of the organisation, from CEO to line people, these problems are avoided. In fact, many organisations find that employees who have participated in a future search take the initiative on implementation. This results from seeing their own handiwork in the plan. In addition, in a future search participants make a public commitment to tasks they have chosen to take on. Since this is a free will commitment, it acts as a strong motivator. Future search can be used to develop a strategic plan from scratch, engaging the full breadth and depth of your organisation in a way that assures it will be implemented. When a plan i
