Recently, Invest Vancouver published its 2026 Annual Plan. I had the privilege of working with their team on that process, and as I celebrated the release of their plan, I was reminded how much work goes into developing and moving strategy forward inside public systems.

Strategic planning is never easy. But when the organization operates within the public sector, the complexity of that work increases in ways that are not always obvious from the outside.

Working with Invest Vancouver reinforced something I have seen repeatedly over the course of my career. Strategy inside public systems requires a different way of thinking than strategy inside private companies. The goals may look similar on the surface. Organizations want to improve services, allocate resources wisely, and achieve meaningful outcomes for the people they serve. But the environment those decisions are made within is fundamentally different. Understanding those differences is essential if a strategic planning process is going to produce something useful rather than something that sits on a shelf.

The conditions public organizations operate within

Public organizations operate within a unique set of expectations.

• They are expected to align with the mandates established by elected officials.
• They are expected to steward public funds carefully.
• They are expected to modernize services while maintaining accountability and transparency.
• And they are expected to respond to evolving public needs while managing significant operational pressures.

In many cases, these organizations are also navigating election cycles, legislative frameworks, and interdepartmental relationships that influence how and when decisions can be made.

Anyone working with government quickly learns that those conditions shape the strategic conversation from the beginning. Understanding the mandate of the organization, the work that has already been delivered, and the expectations that exist around future outcomes is an essential starting point.

But in my experience, identifying those conditions is actually the easy part of strategic work. The harder part is understanding what is standing between the organization today and where it needs to go.

Strategy is not just about priorities

Many strategic planning exercises focus on identifying priorities. That work is important, but in public systems it is rarely the most difficult part of the conversation.

Public organizations are usually very clear about what they are trying to achieve. The real question is what might prevent them from getting there.

Sometimes the challenge is capacity. A team may be responsible for delivering complex programs while navigating staffing shortages, competing priorities, or rapid policy change.

Sometimes the issue is awareness. Employees may not fully understand how their work connects to the broader mandate of the organization, which makes alignment difficult. Or the public may not understand when, how, or why to access the services offered by the organization.

And sometimes the barrier is deeper than either of those things.

I have worked with teams where regulatory frameworks across departments were unintentionally misaligned. Each department was following the rules designed for its own work, but the interaction between those rules made it almost impossible to achieve the desired outcome. Until those kinds of issues are identified, it is very difficult to design a strategy that actually moves the organization forward.

A strategy that ignores systemic barriers is unlikely to succeed, no matter how compelling it looks on paper. That is why the most important part of strategic work is often not defining the destination. It is understanding the terrain.

The private sector operates under different conditions

The differences become clearer when we compare public organizations with private companies.

Private sector organizations operate within their own set of pressures. They must remain competitive, they must generate revenue, and they must deliver returns for investors or owners.

The structure of decision-making is usually very different.

If a private company identifies a strong opportunity and can demonstrate a clear return on investment, leadership may decide to move quickly. They may hire additional staff, invest in new technology, or launch a new product with the expectation that performance metrics will guide future decisions.

The organization has the flexibility to take calculated risks and adjust course as it learns. That flexibility is often what allows private companies to move quickly.

Public organizations rarely have the same freedom to act independently.

If a major change is required, it may involve funding approvals through Treasury Board, policy considerations that require Cabinet involvement, or operational requirements that bring in IT departments, procurement teams, and other oversight mechanisms.

Those processes can add time and complexity to decision-making. But they also exist for a reason. Understanding that difference is essential when designing strategy in the public sector.

Public sector organizations are optimized for public trust

Private sector organizations are optimized for profit.

Public sector organizations are optimized for public trust.

This difference shapes everything about how decisions are made.

Public institutions exist to deliver services and programs that matter to communities. They are responsible for stewarding public dollars and ensuring those dollars are used responsibly. They must maintain transparency and accountability while balancing long-term sustainability with immediate public needs.

The systems that surround public organizations, including oversight structures and approval processes, are not simply bureaucratic hurdles. They are mechanisms designed to protect the public interest. Those systems can be complex and sometimes frustrating for leaders who are trying to move initiatives forward. But they also ensure that decisions are made with careful consideration for the broader community and the long-term stability of public services.

When strategy is developed without recognizing that reality, it often fails. 

When strategy is developed with those conditions in mind, it has a much greater chance of succeeding.

Understanding the system matters

I spent twenty years working inside the Manitoba Public Service, including five years in Cabinet Office leading public service transformation. Those years shaped how I think about strategy and organizational leadership.

During that time, I learned that many of the most complex problems in government are not technical problems. They are systemic problems. They require people to understand how different parts of the system interact with each other and how those interactions influence outcomes.

Since starting my consulting practice, I have had the opportunity to work with a wide range of public organizations navigating similar challenges. 

• Some of that work has been with Crown corporations such as Manitoba Public Insurance, where strategic planning must balance service delivery, financial sustainability, and public accountability. 
• Other work has involved institutions like Red River College Polytechnic, where strategy is shaped by the intersection of education, workforce development, and government priorities. 
• Municipal organizations such as the City of Winnipeg operate within yet another set of conditions, where local service delivery, infrastructure investment, and community expectations intersect in complex ways. 
• And regional organizations like Invest Vancouver operate in an environment where economic development strategies must align with public policy, regional priorities, and the evolving needs of industry.

Each of these organizations operates in its own context, but they all share one thing in common. Their work takes place inside systems designed to protect public trust. Understanding those systems is essential for developing strategies that are both ambitious and realistic.

Strategy that works inside public systems

Effective strategic planning in government is not about ignoring constraints. It is about understanding them and designing a path forward that can succeed within them.

That means identifying barriers early in the process. It means acknowledging the realities of approval processes and policy frameworks. And it means building strategies that are resilient enough to adapt as circumstances change.

When that work is done well, strategy becomes more than a document. It becomes a tool that helps leaders make better decisions and helps teams understand how their work contributes to broader outcomes. Over the course of my career, I have found a great deal of satisfaction in supporting public organizations through that process.

Public service is complex work. It involves balancing competing expectations, navigating evolving policy environments, and delivering programs that matter deeply to communities. Helping leaders think strategically about that work is both challenging and rewarding.

A conversation about strategy

If you are working inside a public organization and thinking about strategy, or if you are navigating a complex issue that would benefit from a strategic lens, I would welcome the opportunity to connect.

You can book a time to talk or send me a note. I am always happy to have a conversation about the work that public organizations are doing and the challenges they are navigating as they move it forward.