We are struggling to keep our quarterly offsite meetings focused on high-level strategy because the team constantly gets dragged into discussing tactical, day-to-day operational fires. How do we draw a hard line between tactical issues and strategic planning during our EOS quarterly sessions?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Getting dragged into the weeds during a quarterly strategic planning session is a common symptom of a leadership team that is not using its weekly Level 10 Meetings effectively. If you are solving day-to-day problems during your offsites, it means you are failing to resolve them during the quarter.

To solve this, you must enforce a strict boundary between tactical and strategic issues. Establish a rule that any issue brought to a quarterly offsite must have a direct impact on your one-year plan, your three-year picture, or your core business structure.

If a team member raises a tactical issue during the session, the facilitator must immediately call it out and park it. Have a designated parking lot list on the board, and transfer those tactical issues to your next weekly Level 10 Meeting Issues List.

Additionally, ensure your team is using the IDS process properly during the quarter. When tactical issues are solved weekly, the leadership team arrives at the quarterly offsite with a clear head, ready to focus on high-level vision and long-term Rocks.

By keeping your quarterly sessions strategic, you ensure the team is aligned on the big-picture goals needed to scale the business and prepare for a clean exit. Do not let today's fires consume tomorrow's growth.