Strategy to Action Sprint
Strategy to action facilitators: clear choices, a few priorities, one plan
The Strategy to Action Sprint takes your leadership team from strategic choices to company OKRs – a committed plan for the next 90 days. Day one makes the choices. Day two turns them into owners, resources and dates – so the whole team moves in one direction from the very next morning.
Free and without obligation – we come with questions, not slides.
Two days, six steps
Format
1-hour prep + two days on site
Who
6–10 leaders incl. the decision-maker
Day 1
Choose
Day 2
Commit
You leave with
Company OKRs for the next 90 days
How the sprint works
Choose on day one, commit on day two
Many strategy offsites end with good discussions and a long list. The Strategy to Action Sprint ends with decisions, because every step closes with one – and day two builds directly on what day one decided.
Prepare
A one-hour prep session works through a set of structured questions to map your status quo, what success looks like and who makes the final call. A short pre-survey and an evidence pack mean nobody starts from zero.
Choose
Shared facts, a deliberate balance between today's core, the next growth engine and future bets, and an explicit choice of where you compete and why you win.
Commit
The critical few priorities, a stress test, a not-now list – and company OKRs with owners, resources and review dates for the next 90 days.
The same six steps every time, adapted to your strategic question, your numbers and your team.
The six steps
A repeatable framework from strategy to action
Each step answers one question and ends with one decision. We fine-tune the flow together in the prep session – including what success after the sprint means for you.
1 · Face the facts
Where do we really stand?
You leave with one shared fact base and the three decisions this sprint has to make.
2 · Balance the portfolio
How do we split effort between today's core, the next growth engine and future bets?
You leave with an agreed share of money, people and leadership attention for each.
3 · Pick where to compete
Which customers and markets get our focus – and why do they choose us?
You leave with an explicit choice of where you compete, why you win and the capabilities it takes.
4 · Name the critical few
What must go right for this strategy to work?
You leave with three to five critical priorities, each with one accountable owner.
5 · Stress-test and stop
What could knock us off course – and what do we stop to make room?
You leave with counter-moves for the biggest risks and an explicit not-now list that frees capacity.
6 · Set OKRs and the rhythm
What will we see in 90 days?
You leave with company OKRs for the next 90 days – with owners, initiatives and a fixed review rhythm.
How we work together
Four agreements that make a senior team fast
Simple ground rules give every voice room and keep two full days calm, focused and fair.
Decide, then move on
Every step closes with a decision, so energy goes into the next question instead of the last one.
Facts first
Numbers and customer evidence on the wall before opinions – the strongest argument wins, whoever makes it.
Write first, then talk
Everyone thinks on their own before the group discusses. Quiet experts get heard too.
Clear decision rights
Agreed in the prep session: who gives input, who decides. That keeps choices clean and fast.
Outcomes
What your leadership team takes home
Built on proven strategy thinking
Proven strategy thinking, one practical flow
The sprint brings together what leadership teams need most from the strategy literature – and turns it into two workshop days with clear outputs.
Portfolio
Today, next, future
Strengthen the core while building the next growth engine and testing future bets – deliberately, not by accident.
Choice
Where you compete, how you win
Strategy as a set of explicit choices, including the customers and markets you decide not to pursue.
Focus and execution
The critical few, measured by OKRs
A handful of priorities with real commitment, turned into quarterly Objectives and Key Results.
Inspired by the work of Mehrdad Baghai, Stephen Coley and David White; A.G. Lafley and Roger Martin; Peter Killing, Thomas Malnight and Tracey Keys; and Andy Grove and John Doerr. The Strategy to Action Sprint is our own facilitation format and is not affiliated with these authors or their publishers.
Before and after
From the first call to the first results
Before
Prep session (1 hour)
A structured call with you and your CEO or sponsor that maps where you stand today, what the sprint must decide and who decides. Then a short pre-survey for your leaders.
During
Two days of facilitation
At your site or an offsite venue. We keep time, focus and fairness, so every leader – including the most senior – can fully take part.
After
Plan and follow-through
Decisions and OKRs captured in the room. Optionally an online OKR check-in after about 90 days.
The prep session
Eight questions that map your status quo
- What is the strategic question this sprint has to answer?
- What does success look like the day after the sprint – and in 90 days?
- Where do we stand today: key figures, trends, customer signals?
- What works well today that we want to protect?
- Which initiatives are running – and which compete for the same people and budget?
- Where does the leadership team see things differently today?
- Which constraints are fixed, and what is off the table?
- Who decides – and how do we decide when views differ?
Your answers shape the evidence pack, the pre-survey and the agenda – so the sprint starts on day one with the real questions.
Your facilitators
Your strategy to action facilitators
Two senior facilitators, one shared standard: leadership teams leave the room with fewer priorities, clear ownership and the discipline to see them through.
Joern has been facilitating workshops since 2014 and supporting companies with OKRs since 2019. Before that he worked at Accenture, XING and the freenet Group, and he holds an MBA from EADA Business School Barcelona. He is at his best when a leadership team has to turn many options into a few clear priorities and measurable OKRs.
Oliver brings deep experience in transformation and leadership dynamics – especially the human side of change: the accountability, collaboration and trust that decide whether decisions stick. He guides leadership teams through demanding discussions to shared perspectives, clear decisions and real ownership.
Selected clients
FAQ
Good questions before you book
Why two days and not one?
Day one gives the team room to make real choices. A night in between lets them settle – and day two turns them into owners, resources and OKRs while everyone is still in the room.
Do we need OKR experience?
No. The sprint works with or without it. Your critical priorities become your first company OKRs, and we explain everything you need along the way.
Who should take part?
Your leadership team of six to ten people, including the person who makes the final call. Choices made by the people who carry them out stick.
What do you need from us beforehand?
One hour for the prep session, the material you already have – current plan, key figures, running initiatives – and around 20 minutes per leader for the pre-survey.
Do both of you facilitate?
Depending on your team size and question, one of us leads the sprint or we facilitate as a pair. We agree the set-up with you in the prep session.
Can we adapt the six steps?
Absolutely. The flow is a proposal that we tailor in the prep session to your strategic question and your goals.
Where does the sprint take place?
At your site or at an offsite venue of your choice, anywhere in Europe – in English or German.
Next step
Let’s plan your Strategy to Action Sprint
Tell us about your team and what should be different afterwards. In 30 minutes we find out whether the sprint is the right fit for your leadership team.
Book a 30-minute callJoern Steinz · hello@okr-consultants.com · 0049 175 566 4329