Strategy Safari Exercise

Purpose

The Strategy Safari Exercise, based on Henry Mintzberg, Bruce Ahlstrand, and Joseph Lampel's framework, helps groups recognize that "strategy" is not one thing but ten different schools of thought — from deliberate planning to emergent learning, from power plays to cultural expression. By exposing teams to multiple lenses, the exercise breaks them out of their default strategic thinking mode and opens new possibilities.

At a glance

How to run

1. Introduce the ten schools (10 min). Briefly describe each school: Design, Planning, Positioning, Entrepreneurial, Cognitive, Learning, Power, Cultural, Environmental, Configuration. Post each on a wall card with a one-line description.
2. Self-assessment (10 min). Each person places a dot on the 1–3 schools that best describe how their organization currently forms strategy. Discuss: Where do the dots cluster? What is missing?
3. Explore underused schools (15 min). In small groups, choose one school the organization neglects and discuss: What would our strategy process look like if we adopted this lens? What would we see differently? What would we do differently?
4. Integration dialogue (10 min). Groups share insights. Discuss: How can we combine our dominant school with the underused ones? What experiments could we run?

Materials needed

• Ten schools wall cards with descriptions
• Dot stickers for self-assessment
• Small-group discussion guides
• Flip chart for integration notes

Pitfalls & common mistakes

• Reducing strategy to one school. The point is that all ten have value. Dogmatic adherence to one school is a blind spot.
• Academic overload. Keep descriptions practical, not theoretical. One sentence per school is enough.
• Not connecting to reality. Each school discussion should reference real organizational decisions, not abstract theory.
• Dismissing non-analytical schools. Power, Cultural, and Learning schools are often dismissed as "not real strategy" — but they describe how strategy actually happens.

Inclusion & accessibility

• The exercise values multiple perspectives — there is no "right" school.
• Include strategists and operational people alike — different schools resonate with different roles.
• Use visual cards and physical placement for engagement.
• Provide school descriptions in advance for those who need preparation.

Variations

• Strategy Safari for a specific decision: Apply all ten lenses to one strategic decision.
• Historical Safari: Map which schools dominated at different eras of the organization.
• Competitor Safari: Guess which schools your competitors use.

When NOT to use this

• When the group needs to make a specific strategic decision now, not explore frameworks.
• When strategic thinking is not the current priority.
• When the group is too small for the diversity of perspectives the exercise needs.

Source & further reading

• Mintzberg, H., Ahlstrand, B., & Lampel, J. (2009). *Strategy Safari: Your Complete Guide Through the Wilds of Strategic Management*. 2nd ed. FT Prentice Hall.
• Mintzberg, H. (1987). "The Strategy Concept I: Five Ps for Strategy." *California Management Review*, 30(1).
• Whittington, R. (2001). *What Is Strategy — and Does It Matter?* 2nd ed. Thomson.