A logo for strategic doing that says do more together

Strategic Doing Practitioners' Training


By Zoom on August 28, 29, September 4, 5, & 330-881-8693 from 2:00pm to 5:00pm EST (New York). Early bird and group discounts are available.


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About The Strategic Sandbox, LLC

The Strategic Sandbox is a collaborative consulting group in performance excellence and agile methodologies surrounding strategy development. 

About Our Workshops

Do You Have A Question?

Skills for New Ways of

Thinking, Collaborating, & Innovating!

Brian Kolenich

Brian Kolenich is an accomplished professional with over thirty years of experience in nonprofit healthcare leadership, complemented by extensive expertise in performance excellence and agile methodology. Serving as an executive director of continuing care retirement communities, he has been instrumental in developing an active aging ecosystem in the Mahoning Valley. This initiative supported two successful capital campaigns, raising $1.8 million for its growth, including the implementation of technologically advanced aquatic therapy and the Mahoning Valley Lifelong Learning Institute. His distinguished service with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) since 2003 highlights his dedication to quality and organizational excellence. The MBNQA is the nation’s highest award in quality and performance excellence. As a Master Examiner on the Board of Examiners, Brian has played a pivotal role in evaluating and promoting best practices across various sectors.


In addition to his role with the Baldrige Award, Brian serves as a Judge for the Partnership for Excellence, a Baldrige-based program that supports organizations in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and West Virginia. His insights and evaluations help drive performance improvements and strategic growth in these regions.


Brian's commitment to agile methodologies is demonstrated through his involvement with Strategic Doing, an approach that emphasizes rapid, collaborative action. Since 2017, he has been an advocate for this methodology, becoming a Certified Workshop Lead in 2018. His expertise and leadership were further recognized when he was named a Fellow of the Strategic Doing Institute in 2022. Brian has co-led numerous workshops and provided instruction in Strategic Doing, helping organizations and teams achieve agile, strategic outcomes.


In 2024, Brian utilized his expertise in aging services and Strategic Doing to establish the Active Aging Ideation Lab (TAAIL), a community of interest at the Strategic Doing Institute. TAAIL aims to redefine aging perceptions and practices by disseminating leading-edge insights and applying Strategic Doing methodologies. Through monthly broadcasts, workshops, and challenge-centric practitioner training, TAAIL’s goal is to foster innovation in the field of aging.


Brian Kolenich is also the founder of The Strategic Sandbox, where he uses his extensive experience to help organizations navigate complex challenges and achieve sustainable success. His work exemplifies a blend of rigorous quality standards and innovative agile practices, making him a sought-after expert in his field. His longstanding commitment to nonprofit healthcare leadership and excellence in performance ensures that he remains at the forefront of driving impactful change and strategic development.


What is it?

An outcomes-oriented collaborative

for strategic action plans. 

What is it?

Who Needs it?

The answer is simple, anyone!  Anyone

working in collaborative settings.

Who Nees It?
What is Strategic Doing


Strategic Doing:

  • It is a systematic, agile strategy development method that enables civic and business leaders to quickly form collaborations to guide change.
  • Is action oriented and highly scalable methodology.
  • It is highly collaborative and based on the idea of pulling a team together quickly to leverage their assets and talents to find new opportunities.
  • It is outcomes oriented. Unlike strategic planning, strategic doing is based a 30-day cycle of thinking and doing, thinking and doing in quick cycles.
  • It is set in a simple yet complex set of questions and rules that guide conversations to achieve strategic outcomes and action plans in a more organic manner.
  • It is based on over 20-years research at Purdue and the University of Northern Alabama’s Agile Strategy Labs. 


What to Expect from a Workshop



During a Strategic Doing Workshop, participants are led through an agile set of structured conversations and guided through workshop exercises, to define five things:

1.      New opportunities to address the complex challenges at hand.


2.      At least one approach with outcomes and metrics that define success.


3.      At least one initiative or project.


4.      Strategic plans that are ready to implement that day.


5.      A plan to meet again to monitor progress. 


The process focuses on four key questions:

1)     What could we do together?

  • Look first at the assets within the group at the table.
  • Next look to see how combining the known assets might offer new opportunities.
  • Evaluate who is not at the table but might have an interest or resources helpful to the solution.

 

2)     What should we do together?

  • Evaluate the options for action and help the group to narrow the scope of activity by suggesting the group focus on no more than three goals initially.
  • Analyze the opportunities to see which one will make the biggest impact and be the easiest to implement.
  • Define an outcome with specific characteristics of success and metrics.

 

3)     What will we do together?

  • Draft a strategic action plan that includes short-term action steps that includes deliverables and due dates.
  • Everyone participates in the strategic action plans by making “micro-commitments.”
  • The team makes public commitments to “do” the action steps.

 

4)     What’s our 30/30?

  • Decide how the group will communicate (face-to-face, virtual, email, weblogs, etc.)
  • Set a date to meet as a team in the next 30-days, for follow-up, report outs, and making course corrections, if needed.


Strategic Doing is a tested methodology that allows for your community, organization, or network to create innovative, strategic action plans, while building agility, accountability, and trust in a half day workshop.

Workshops to create, redirect, and drive strategic action plans for your community, organization, or network. In addition, training to learn how to practice Strategic Doing is available individually or for your group.

 

Strategic Doing Institute © 2022


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