July 22, 2025
In today’s fast-paced and often chaotic world, organizations need a way to stay grounded and nimble while remaining visionary. Networks and organizations are, on the one hand, handling fast flying objects and, on the other, trying to be strategic and proactive.
If we only respond to challenges with fear to what’s coming at us, like increased community needs, staff burnout, or tightening budgets, we risk becoming overwhelmed with organizational fatigue and getting stuck in the muck.
However, we know many of you are also looking toward the horizon, seeking trends and partners, and asking what is most critical to ensure your impact in the community/sector is lasting and meaningful. We call this: building strategic direction for uncertain times.
Why We’re Choosing Strategic Direction Over Traditional Planning
At IISC, we approach strategic direction setting with a keen awareness of the uncertainties and emerging opportunities that organizations face.
Conventional strategic planning often assumes a stable environment. It involves a deep analysis of current reality (SWOT analysis), and typically emphasizes clear objectives, fixed timelines, and detailed implementation strategies based on what is known today.
Building alignment and accountability is of utmost importance, but in uncertain times, this kind of rigidity may lead to plans that are quickly outdated or otherwise fall short.
Strategic direction setting, by contrast, helps you stay attuned to a changing landscape, making sense of what’s happening, and co-creating a flexible path forward. The goal isn’t to create a rigid plan; it’s about identifying a clear direction that can evolve and pivot, leaving room for emergence, learning, and innovation while still providing clarity, focus, and purpose.
How Do We Do It?
- Engagement that builds buy-in and trust – We build buy-in and trust by engaging hearts and minds across our organization, including members, constituents, partners, board members, and especially those closest to the challenges and injustices we aim to address, because making meaningful impact takes all of us.
- Strategic collaboration – We design and facilitate collaborative processes that bring these voices into the conversation, helping you shape strategies and strategic priorities rooted in shared values and lived experiences.
- Values-alignment at every step – At each stage, we work with you to ground in your values and mission, acknowledging but not being guided by fear or urgency.
- Flexibility and creativity for complex times – We co-create a space for emergence, experimentation, and iteration to move forward in today’s reality.
Why This Matters Now
From movements to nonprofits to foundations, we feel and hear the impact of attacks and uncertainty on and within organizations. There is growing fear, stress, burnout, and internal conflict, as well as a hunger for clear and strategic direction, knowing that we can’t solve everything or be sure about the long haul. The cumulative impact of COVID, work, and health changes, and authoritarian practices, including against foundations and nonprofits, means that you need support, space for grieving, and thoughtful planning processes.
In this blog series, we will explore five practices to guide organizations toward clarity and momentum.
We consider this a love offering to our sector: how can we help you to get clearer, to shake loose what needs changing, and to be more healthy and successful in your work?
The Five Practices We’ll Explore in This Series
1. Clarify Your North Star
Ask: What is the core purpose that must remain constant, even as the world shifts? How can you stay emergent and responsive to crises while still focusing on building long-term power and transformation?
2. Plan for Multiple Futures
Ask: What are the factors we know or can imagine, and what is beyond? How can we hold the future lightly as we plan and move with purpose?
3. Design for Flexibility, Iteration, and Collaboration
Ask: Is our strategy flexible enough to adapt, and do we have strong processes in place to support ongoing experimentation and collaboration?
4. Center Equity and Building Power for Your Organization and Community
Ask: What are we building? Who are we accountable to? Are we building in ways that foster a more equitable future?
5. Strengthen Internal Capacity for Resilience and Well-Being
Ask: What do we need to sustain our people, funding, and infrastructure in the long run?
If your organization is seeking a more grounded, adaptive approach to strategy, especially in these times, we’re here to walk alongside you. Whether or not we work together, we invite you into this journey. We’ll be sharing more on each element in upcoming blog posts, so stay connected.
“How do we cultivate the muscle of radical imagination needed to dream together beyond fear?” – Adrienne Maree Brown
Ready to Move from Chaos to Clarity?
If your team or organization is navigating complexity, burnout, or uncertainty and still dreaming of impact, justice, and transformation, we’d love to connect!
Reach out to explore how we can support your team through Strategic Direction Setting. We’ll help you align around what matters most, build courageous collaboration, and chart a course grounded in shared power, visionary leadership, and real-time responsiveness.
