A guiding hand for a new kind of strategy
Suzy Lamplugh Trust
“David was a great help. It was great to have someone objective to step back and spot gaps, ask questions, challenge and reassure. I felt very confident in his experience and expertise and was impressed by how quickly he grasped the situation.”
Suky Bhaker, CEO, Suzy Lamplugh Trust
Background:
Suzy Lamplugh Trust was set up following the disappearance and presumed death in 1986 of 25-year-old estate agent Suzy Lamplugh. Today the Trust continues to campaign to ensure better protection and safety for victims of stalking and lone workers.
With a three-year strategy refresh due, CEO Suky Bhaker and her Board decided, in the abnormal light of the Covid-19 pandemic, that an interim review, rather than a full strategic refresh, was in order. As she worked on the interim review, Suky realised she could benefit from an independent pair of professional eyes to sense check and make sure everything was being considered.
Brief:
Suky approached David Saint not knowing exactly what she needed to ask for, so they agreed on an initial half-hour call. This enabled them to identify what the requirement was and how Action Planning could fulfil it. This amounted to a couple of hours help in thinking through some planning scenarios for Suky to present to her Board, in the light of the impact of Covid-19 on the work of the Trust and the uncertainty about how long that might last.
Process:
David and Suky shared a Zoom call during which David gave Suky a clear idea of the scale and detail required for a one-year interim strategy and played out a couple of scenarios to allow for the uncertainty as to what 2021 might bring. David asked some challenging questions where necessary, to test the robustness of Suky’s thinking and to quickly get to grips with how the Trust operates.
He brought up some issues that Suky might want to think about in future and sense checked where had got to so far, helping to highlight any gaps and instil confidence that the finished strategy was sufficiently comprehensive and well thought through to present to the Board.
Outcome:
Suky produced her interim strategy in time for approval by the Board in October. The scale and flexibility of the service David offered was perfectly suited to Suky’s needs and resource constraints and the outcome has given her a firmer grasp in terms of what she needs to address the bigger task of writing the next three-year strategy.
Consultant’s insight:
“Bringing in a consultant” can feel like a Big Deal, but sometimes all that is needed is the lightest touch on the tiller, as in this case. Just a couple of hours was all it took to give Suky the support she needed, and an informed external perspective to probe a few new areas.
We are very happy to provide whatever level of service the client needs – sometimes it is a major intervention involving several days’ or even weeks’ work. But in this case Suky had a very good grasp of the issues and just needed a small amount of input to make sure she was on the right track. We were happy to oblige.