Should a Strategic Session Facilitator Challenge the Group When It Goes Off Track?

A Question That Stayed With Me After the Training

This past weekend I attended a training by Sasha and Lyudmila Dudorov on facilitating strategic sessions.

One question remained open for me: should a strategic session facilitator occasionally step into the expert role and challenge the group when they see it heading in the wrong direction? I lean toward yes — challenge is necessary.

When a Strategic Session Facilitator Must Push Back

A clear example from our own session: two groups formulated their key results vaguely — I would even call it superficially. I would not have let those groups walk away with results like that.

Because the day after the strategic session, I’m confident they would not take a single step toward the plan they outlined. Facade-level results produce zero real movement.

Gratitude and Takeaways

A separate and sincere thank you to the Imper Group team for the wealth of insights, techniques, and case studies. It was a genuinely valuable way to spend the weekend.