Strategy Setting Canvas

#The problem this canvas solves

Organizations struggle to translate high-level transformation visions into actionable design choices. Leadership teams often disagree on fundamental tensions like centralized vs distributed decision-making, or how to share value across the ecosystem. The Strategy Setting Canvas forces explicit choices on nine key polarities, creating alignment and generating design principles that guide concrete experimentation.

#When to use it

Use the Strategy Setting Canvas to translate the vision into concrete strategic choices. This canvas helps leadership teams position the organization on nine key polarities across the three 3EO dimensions, analyze the rationale for each positioning, and derive design principles that will guide experimentation and implementation.

The polarities represent fundamental tensions in organizational design (e.g., centralized vs. distributed decision making, competitive vs. systemic value distribution). There is no universally "right" position - the optimal choice depends on context, industry, and organizational maturity.

#The canvas

The canvas in the updated Boundaryless brand (full resolution — click to zoom). A print-ready PDF and editable SVG are also available on request.

#Canvas structure

#Evolutionary Dimensions

Same three dimensions as Envisioning Canvas

#Polarities

Ecosystemic Polarities —

Enabling Polarities —

Entrepreneurial Polarities —

#Positioning Analysis

#Design Principles

#How to use it

For each polarity, mark where the organization should position itself, document the reasoning, and derive design principles for implementation.

#Steps

1. Polarities — Mark the desired position on each spectrum
2. Positioning Analysis — Document why this position makes sense for your context
3. Design Principles — Extract actionable principles to guide experimentation

#Tips

• Current state and target state may differ - be clear about which you're mapping
• Consider industry constraints when positioning
• Design principles should be specific enough to guide decisions
• Revisit positioning as market conditions change

#Connections with other canvases

#Feeds into

• The 3EO Map — Strategic positions inform organizational structure
• 3EO Organizational Experiment Canvas — Design principles guide experiment design

#Informed by

• Envisioning Canvas — Vision provides direction for strategic choices

#Where it's used

This canvas is documented in the 3EO Toolkit guide. It isn't yet wired into a modern technique or pipeline.

#Related reading

• An Entrepreneurial, Ecosystem Enabling Organization — Explains the three dimensions and how strategic positioning works in practice

#Resources

• Guide reference: 3EO Toolkit User Guide - Strategy Setting Canvas chapter
• License: Creative Commons Attribution - Share Alike 4.0 International
• Version: 1.0

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Part of 3EO Toolkit · v1.0