AMBLER Growth Strategy Consultants, Inc., a growth strategy/management consulting firm, has been performing Strategic Assessments for large and small companies for over thirty years. A Strategic Assessment is a balanced appraisal of a company's opportunities, resources and strategic choices. Some of the steps are interviewing customers, reviewing documents, listening to an audio tape, interviewing managers, supervisors, sampling of employees and key vendors to get to know a client. This process consists of a series of components that occur before and after the actual on-site appointment(s). The key component of this process is the Strategic Working Session, a full day of interaction with the CEO or President and the management team both together and individually. The entire process takes at least three days for any size company, from the division of a large corporation to a stand alone, privately held company. The Strategic Assessment is the first step for any company and, based on the results, may evolve into full scale, long term strategic planning.

Companies looking for rapid change & growth who don't have time to wait for a linear strategic plan best utilize the below parallel processes to the strategic assessment process that address targeted/specific issues.

AMBLER 's Four Approaches to Strategic Planning

Synthesis Approach This approach works best for companies that may have teambuilding issues, autocratic leadership, a new management team or for those trying to upgrade current processes.

Catalytic Approach Companies with a chronic problem, such cash flow or high turnover have success with this approach because it focuses on problem solving.

Insight Approach An organization with unidentified issues, who can't figure out why what is being done isn't working, benefits most from this approach. Their problem usually stems from not having enough knowledge about the marketplace. Market research is used to gain insight and address the gap in awareness.

Developmental Approach Companies without any of the typical problems mentioned above use this approach to take their marketing, management, finance and technology to the next level in a balanced way. By nature, this is the least used approach.

There are many factors involved in placing a value on a Strategic Assessment. The type and duration of the process will depend on which of the above approaches are used, the complexity of an organization's current situation and the degree of experience the company has in strategic planning. Services can vary from a two-day company retreat to a six-month detailed strategic plan. Whatever the duration, AMBLER serves as a temporary extension of the CEO's office.

AMBLER guarantees that a Strategic Assessment will leave a client centered: actually knowing what the next level is, what the priorities are, what the client should and should not be focused upon and will have the understanding of how to actually achieve it. For several of AMBLER's clients, a generalization of the written results of a strategic assessment has even resulted in financing because it includes a three-phase budget.