SERVICES

Strategy over Strategic Planning (TM)

The need for planning can arise at any stage of an organization’s life. Whether you are a startup, launching a new program or service, or an established organization seeking to confirm your future direction, you will benefit from a partner who will help you articulate your vision and turn it into action. Drake Strategy Partners provides Responsive Strategic Planning to organizations who are ready to interrogate their purpose and mission, align their closest held values to the strategies they will pursue, and ensure that the work they are doing is meeting the needs of the people they purport to serve. 

How does this compare to a “traditional” strategic planning approach? It will probably take a little longer. It will probably have a bit more focus on existential questions than you’re used to (we should think carefully about why you exist and wrestle with the answers!). We will talk to people outside the organization about you as much as we talk with your staff and board. And most notably, it may not result in a set of sweeping goals and objectives for the organization. 

If you are a leader who wants to run away at the mention of strategic planning, I get it. But what may also be true about you is that you understand the fundamental importance of strategy - knowing where you’re going and how you will get there. Drake Strategy Partners is much more interested in helping you answer those questions, which may mean the deliverable is an org chart, a financial model, or a decision-making tool rather than a Gantt Chart. Through Responsive Strategic Planning, you will have clarity about who you are, your values, and how they connect to the work you plan to do on the ground over a specific time period. 

Increasing impact, decreasing stress

You were once a young, scrappy, and hungry little nonprofit that could. Now you’re outgrowing your office space, having trouble keeping track of the donors that need to be acknowledged, need more staff but aren’t sure how to supervise them, and you could use a CPA on your board. Let me assure you: this is normal. When brilliant people set out to change the world, they do the work and ask questions later. But your light is shining so brightly that you now have more donors or staff than you ever imagined, and they are expecting a level of accountability that you’re not sure how to begin providing.

Capacity building doesn't have to be an abstract idea. Quite simply, it's an organization's response to the question: what do we need to make our core programs run easier and more smoothly? Drake Strategy Partners can work with you to start putting systems in place and create a roadmap so that your infrastructure matches - and helps grow - your impact. You'll be more sustainable and better positioned to do your work effectively for the long haul.

GETTING IT DONE

Sometimes organizations need facilitation, help, and advice. Other times, you need direct, hands-on help putting a program or strategy in place in addition to the consultation and coaching. Drake Strategy Partners never leaves organizations hanging - you can expect some level of implementation with every engagement and we will be available for support to keep you on track as you work on the plans we create together.

Nobody sets out to create a plan that sits on the shelf, but it's a real possibility when the work is vast and your time is scarce. If you need a partner to keep the ball rolling, hold you accountable to a timeline, and to, well, get shit done, we may be the right partner for you.

Culture Eats Strategy

Becoming an equitable organization is a change management process. It requires culture shift - not just workshops or programs that change individuals’ hearts and minds, but a commitment to doing things differently to ensure that your constituents (board, staff, clients, partners, etc.) have positive experiences with your organization regardless of their backgrounds or identity.

We have a point of view about DEI work, partly based on lived experience and partly because oppressive systems are knowable, predictable, and measurable. Justice is an essential component - you can't make progress without acknowledging and repairing the past harms perpetuated by your institution (knowingly or unknowingly).

Drake Strategy Partners is committed to helping organizations take on actionable DEI projects that focus on shifting their policies and practices, with an eye toward organizational development and changing your institution’s behavior.