Most growing organizations have ambition.
Few have a system to back it up.
I help leadership teams build the strategic plan and the operating rhythm to execute against it — so direction becomes decisions, and decisions become results.
Sound familiar?
Two engagements. One connected system.
Most organizations are strong in one or two stages and weak in others. My work identifies the gaps and builds what’s missing — without creating long-term dependency on outside support.
Build a plan worth executing
A complete strategic plan from the ground up — aligned to your market, grounded in competitive reality, designed to inform your budget and resources for the year ahead.
Strategy + Operating Rhythm
The flagship engagement. Build the plan and launch the operating system concurrently. End the year with a working plan, a running system, and a team that can sustain both.
Build the system to run the plan
The recurring cadence, reporting structure, and decision-making process that keeps your leadership team aligned, informed, and moving — quarter after quarter.
The goal is not a plan. The goal is a leadership team that thinks and operates differently as a result of building the plan together.
The first conversation is free.
In 60 minutes, you’ll have a clear picture of where to focus and how I can help — or honest direction elsewhere if that’s what fits.
Two things: a plan worth executing,
and the system to execute it.
These are not separate problems — they are two sides of the same challenge, and most powerful when built together.
Primary entry points
- Full Strategic Planning Engagement (all deliverables below)
- Full Operating Rhythm Reset (all deliverables below)
- Engagements run concurrently — plan and system launch together
- Knowledge transfer to sustain both independently by year end
- Strategic Intelligence assessment — market, competitive, consumer
- SWOT analysis — an honest view of position and opportunity
- Vision, Mission, and Values in language your team actually uses
- Strategic Focus Areas and Objectives
- Annual Planning and OKRs cascaded to execution teams
- Communication plan to bring the strategy to life
- Designed operating cadence — Monthly Operational Reviews, Quarterly Strategy Reviews, Executive Planning sessions
- Agenda and reporting frameworks that make meetings outcome-oriented
- Facilitation of your actual meetings throughout the year
- Board and All-Team meeting materials support
- Knowledge transfer — coaching your team to own and sustain the system
Expansion services
Additional services available as the work surfaces new needs.
Strategic Intelligence Deep Dive
Deeper market, competitive, and customer research beyond the planning engagement.
Strategic Plan Annual Refresh
Keeping your plan current and relevant year over year as conditions change.
Portfolio Management Setup
Decision-making frameworks and investment roadmap management across initiatives.
Results Management System
Building or configuring the right tracking and reporting infrastructure for your team.
Gap Analysis
Assessing the distance between current goals and operational state — and what it takes to close it.
Strategic Planning Training
Equipping your leaders to own elements of the planning process independently.
Not sure which engagement fits?
The first conversation is free. In 60 minutes I’ll give you an honest read on where to focus — whether that involves me or not.
Growth-oriented. Mission-driven.
Ready to build something that lasts.
I work with leadership teams in small and mid-sized organizations — typically 30–100 people — in manufacturing, technology, healthcare, and nonprofits. What matters more than sector or size is mindset.
Where I work best
Manufacturing
Operational planning, strategic growth, competitive positioning. Companies that make things and want to grow them intentionally — within 90 minutes of Des Moines and beyond.
Technology
Strategic focus, product and market development. Small and mid-sized tech firms that have built something good and need to operate more intentionally around it.
Healthcare
Operational efficiency, strategic direction. Small healthcare organizations navigating growth, market change, or leadership transitions who need clarity on where to focus.
Nonprofits
Efficiency, operational clarity, and expanding reach. Nonprofits don’t need to grow revenue — they need to grow impact. I help them build the planning and operating structures to serve more people, more consistently, with the resources they have.
A note on nonprofits: Budget constraints are real, and many nonprofits can access capacity-building grants to fund strategic planning and operational work. I’m happy to discuss what’s available in the central Iowa nonprofit ecosystem as part of our first conversation.
The goal is not a plan. The goal is a leadership team that thinks and operates differently as a result of building the plan together.
A genuine partnership.
- 1An honest assessment of your situation — including things that may be uncomfortable to hear.
- 2Prepared, efficient sessions that respect your team’s time and move things forward.
- 3A framework shaped to your organization — not a one-size-fits-all template.
- 4Consistent follow-through and clear communication throughout the engagement.
- 5A practice built on referrals. Your results are my reputation.
Think you might be a fit?
Let’s find out. The first conversation is free — 60 minutes and you’ll know whether this is the right direction.
15+ years at the intersection of
strategy and execution.
Most consultants are strong on one or the other. I built my career doing both at the same time, in real organizations, under real pressure.
Jenn Burton
I spent 15+ years in senior strategy and operations roles across manufacturing, healthcare, and technology — most recently at Kreg Enterprises, a mid-sized manufacturing company in Iowa, where I designed and implemented the strategic planning and operating rhythm systems you can see reflected in how I work today.
In those roles, I was not a consultant who came in, delivered a framework, and left. I built the systems, facilitated the planning cycles, managed the portfolio, and helped leadership teams learn to run it all themselves. I’ve seen what happens when this work is done well — and what happens when it isn’t.
Outside of my corporate work, I’ve applied these same practices in the nonprofit world — running annual planning for Foster SQUAD, and enabling execution for the IIBA Central Iowa Chapter and Downtown School PTA through board-level financial leadership. That experience shaped my belief that operational clarity matters just as much in mission-driven organizations as in growth-stage companies.
I started this practice because the organizations that need this work most — growing companies and nonprofits in the 30–100 person range — rarely have access to it. Big firms are too expensive and leave little capability behind. A full-time hire is a major commitment. There was a gap, and I knew how to fill it.
The thing that drives me is seeing a leadership team shift from reactive to intentional.
From running hard without a clear direction to moving purposefully toward something they’ve defined together. That shift changes how decisions get made, how people show up, and what the organization is capable of achieving.
My clients don’t become dependent on me — they become more capable because of working with me. That is the point.
Ready to have a real conversation?
Sixty minutes, no pitch, no obligation. Just an honest conversation about where your organization is and what it takes to get where you want to go.
The first conversation is free.
In 60 minutes, you’ll have a clear picture of where to focus and how I can help — or honest direction elsewhere if that’s what fits best for your organization.
Schedule a Discovery Conversation
Direct contact
Prefer to reach out directly? Email is the best way to get in touch. I typically respond within one business day.
“The goal is not a plan. The goal is a leadership team that thinks and operates differently as a result of building the plan together.”
— Jenn Burton
Des Moines, Iowa
Serving central Iowa and beyond — within 90 minutes of Des Moines. Remote engagements available.