I was contacted by a person working for a small non-profit who knew something of ToP methods.  She said they needed a strategic plan, but they only had a half-day available to do it. On the face of it, this is an impossible request.

So I started asking questions about what had brought them to this point.  Her answers revealed that there were two of them, and that they were often stepping on each other’s role and plans, which created paralyzing discord and was sapping their ability to serve their clients.

They did not need a whole strategic plan.  What they really needed was a way to clarify their roles, and concrete action plans for each to carry out their roles. 

This meant that we could do a conversation on their roles, starting with each listing what they understood their responsibilities to be, followed by a simple Task Force Action Plan by each of them about their next steps.  Since the Action Planning format embodies vision, obstacles, strategies, and actions in its process, the whole process took a half-day and satisfied their need. 

This emphasizes the need to do a significant consultation with a prospective client before committing to work with them, in order to understand what their real needs are.