Debrief with our Challenge Strategist

Debrief with Our Challenge Strategist

The final phase of the Refresh Workshop transitions the Team from internal planning to external leadership alignment. The primary purpose of this session is to secure high-level commitment for the final part of the sprint and to begin “planting the seeds” for sustainability.

By bringing the Challenge Strategist and other leadership stakeholders into the room at the end of the day, you ensure that the Team’s new ideas are not just theoretical but are supported by those with the power to clear systemic hurdles.

Deep Dive Video

The Session Follows a Four-Part Flow

The “Asks”

Defining exactly what support is required to succeed in the next 50 days.

Sustainability Pre-Mortem

Identifying why results might drop after the Sprint ends, and planning how to prevent this.

The Leadership Dialogue

Presenting the revised plan and the roadmap for long-term impact.

The Ritual of Close-out

Workshop feedback, Appreciations and the final words.

1. The "Ask"

Defining the Support Needed

Ask the Team to prepare a clear, bulleted list of the specific support they require from the Challenge Strategist for the remainder of the Sprint.

The “Why”: Being clear on one’s needs increases the odds of these needs being met.
Connection: These “asks” should directly address the worries identified earlier in the workshop.

2. Sustainability Pre-Mortem

Use a “negative visualisation” approach to protect the Team’s hard-won gains.

The Scenario: Ask the Team to imagine it is three months after Day 100 and performance has returned to pre-Challenge levels.
Risk Buckets: Brainstorm why this happened using post-it notes and group them into “Sustainability Risk” buckets (e.g., policy gaps, budget shifts, or staff turnover).
Actionable Steps: In breakout groups, develop recommendations to minimise these risks, such as policy changes, process updates, or role adjustments.

3. Leadership Dialogue

The Team presents their revised strategy to the Challenge Strategist and other leaders using a three-part narrative, including the support needed and ideas from the “sharpening the plan” discussion.

Looking Back

Share the revised goal and highlights of the updated work plan.

Looking at the Present

Thank the leaders for their current support and present the list of specific “asks” needed now.

Looking Forward

Share the recommendations for risk mitigation and the changes required to sustain results long-term.

4. The Ritual of Close-out

Ending on a positive, high-energy note is essential for maintaining the “Enabling Environment”.

Workshop feedback: Ask the team to complete the short workshop feedback survey to help you keep improving.

Appreciations: Introduce the activity by emphasising the importance of appreciating each other in this work. Here’s one fun way to express appreciation. We refer to it as the Paper Plate Awards:

Pass out 2-3 paper plates to each person, and ask them to write their name and give them back to you
Then, hand out three plates to each person (not giving them back their own).
Ask Team members to write an “award” to the individuals whose names are on the plates they received. The award will be “in recognition of” something they have done over the past two weeks that went above and beyond the call of duty.
Go around the group and have people present awards to one another.