Mind the Gap
The future requires a structure.
Most organizations have an idea of where they are and an idea of where they want to go. The hard work is defining the present clearly, determining the future intentionally, and designing a structure capable of spanning the distance between the two.
VennCo uses a simple, three-step planning process.
01 — Define the Present
Where are we now?
Every journey is determined by two points: where you begin and where you intend to go. A trip to Disney World looks very different for the person starting in Kansas than for the one starting in Beijing.
The same is true for your organization. Before you can plan where to go next, you need an honest understanding of where you are today—who you are, what you have, what is working, and what may be holding you back.
Defining the present gives you a clear starting point and a better understanding of the potential already inside your organization.
02 — Determine the Future
Where are we going?
With a clear understanding of your present reality, you can begin making intentional choices about the future.
What opportunities are available? Which are worth pursuing? What do you want the organization to become? And which possibilities best fit your ambitions, resources, and capacity?
Determining the future turns possibility into direction. It gives the organization a destination around which decisions, priorities, and people can begin to align.
03 — Design the Structure
What must be built to get there?
When the present is defined and the future is determined, the distance between them becomes visible.
That distance is the gap.
Crossing it requires adequate structure—and that structure must be designed intentionally around three elements:
Strategy: Doing the right things.
Capacity: Having what it takes.
Execution: Making it happen.
Strategy determines where to focus. Capacity establishes what the organization can carry. Execution turns decisions into movement.
Together, they create the structure that helps move the organization from its present reality toward its chosen future.
That structure only works when the organization understands the future it is being built to support. Knowing where you are and choosing where you want to go are essential, but that clarity cannot remain with the owner or leadership team.
Your people need to understand the future you are building toward. They need to see how priorities connect, where their work contributes, and what the organization is trying to accomplish together.
A clearly defined present, a shared vision of the future, and a structure aligned around that direction increase the likelihood that the organization actually gets there.
Where are you taking your organization?
Will your current structure get you there?