Building Nimble Strategies Through Team Input: A Catholic Approach to Adaptive Leadership

In today’s volatile world, strategy can’t be static. For Catholic entrepreneurs, building a mission-driven business means listening - not only to the Holy Spirit but also to the team you’ve been entrusted to lead.

The companies that adapt fastest aren’t always the ones with the smartest founder. They’re the ones where strategy is a team sport.

Strategy That Listens

Too often, strategic planning is a closed-door exercise: a founder retreats for a weekend and emerges with a five-page PDF of answers.

But real discernment isn’t done in isolation.

When we include our team in the strategy process, we do three things at once:

1. Honor their dignity as co-creators, not just executors.

2. Improve our data by surfacing insights from those closest to the work.

3. Deepen their ownership of the outcome - because people commit to what they help create.

The Catholic Case for Collaborative Strategy

In Catholic tradition, discernment is communal. St. Ignatius emphasized the value of consolation and desolation - not just in one’s own soul, but reflected in the experiences of the body of believers.

Translating that to the boardroom: if your people feel unheard, your strategy will be short-sighted. But if they feel included, they’ll help you course-correct before crisis hits.

How to Build Strategy With Your Team (Not Just For Them)

1. Host Strategic Listening Sessions
   Invite key team members to speak into emerging challenges and opportunities. Ask: What are we seeing that others might be missing?

2. Give Space for Candid Feedback
   Create a culture where disagreement isn’t disloyalty. Honor dissent as a form of care - not criticism.

3. Adapt in Small Loops
   Rather than rolling out a 12-month plan, try 4-week strategic sprints with checkpoints. Keep the vision stable but the tactics flexible.

4. Discern, Don’t Just Decide
   Bring prayer into your planning process. Invite the Holy Spirit into strategy - not just spirituality.

The Result? More Responsive, Mission-Aligned Leadership

When you invite your team into the strategy room:

• You build trust.

• You discover blind spots.

• You create a culture that doesn’t panic under pressure.

It’s not just smart leadership - it’s Christian leadership.

Ready to Go Deeper?

SENT is where Catholic founders sharpen their strategy with faith and peer wisdom. You don’t have to figure it out alone.

Apply to join the SENT Fellowship and surround yourself with founders discerning boldly, building wisely.