As a leader, we need to bring together a range of ideas and issues in a complex environment to help make these choices and decisions and to help our teams make sense of our strategies.

Strategic thinking is the hard work and glue necessary to brings ideas and issues together to enable planning, decision-making, and communication.  Strategic thinking is necessary to create smart strategies and identify what needs to change.

Strategic thinking is not an easy skill to develop.  Most leaders emerge from fields that demand detailed analytical thinking.  However, the role of a leader demands that we complement this analytical thinking by considering our issues and a range of other issues and ideas as part of a broader picture and from different perspectives.

This course is designed for people looking to do be introduced to strategic thinking and to start to develop this skill.

Content
  • A model for considering strategy and change and how different types of thinking affect our strategic approach
  • The ABC strategy /approach (approach, brand and change)
  • An introduction to different perspectives of looking at an organisation.
  • The distinction between strategic planning and strategic thinking.
  • How to apply strategic thinking as part of planning and policy development and the different types of intelligence that contribute to strategic thinking.
Outcomes
  • Understand key concepts underlying strategic thinking.
  • Understand a range of different perspectives on thinking about organisations.
  • Access models designed to assist you in strategic thinking.
Who Should Attend

This course is designed for people looking to develop skills in strategic thinking. It will suit managers, team leaders, and supervisors for whom planning is an essential ingredient to the smooth operations of their unit and the optimal utilisation of their resources.

Benefits to You and Your Organisation
  • You will be introduced to models that you can apply to evaluate and enhance your strategic thinking.
  • You will gain a broader approach to problem-solving by applying strategic thinking.

This course is also available online here.

Learn about our speakers

Mark Priadko

Principal
ABFA

Mark Priadko helps his business clients think clearly through complex situations and opportunities.

Mark has worked for over 15 years as a freelance contractor and consultant based in Adelaide, South Australia.

Clients include organisations from all levels of government (state, federal and local), Universities, and other for-profit and not-for-profit organisations. His love of learning, his experience and understanding of finances and strategy, and his curiosity lead him to insights into how organisations and their various functions and projects can be progressed or improved.

Mark Priadko works with his clients to more clearly understand their organisations helping them make quality decisions often in complex situations. Mark is engaged by his clients in a range of ways including:
• Independent thinking - to perform detailed organisational and financial analysis and deliver reports containing findings and recommendations and to produce business cases, proposals or business plans designed to improve the organisation
• Training and Development - to develop and deliver training in courses on topics like Financial Management, Strategic Thinking, Constructing Business Cases, Critical Thinking and Problem Solving and Analysing and Presenting Data.
• Facilitated thinking - To facilitate the thinking and planning necessary to help an organisation develop strategic and business plans, business cases/proposals and approaches to reporting.

Mark has developed and delivered a range of training courses for publicly offered programs and tailored courses specific to client requirements. Tailoring of training takes into account specific organisational requirements, processes and reporting formats as well as the development of case studies relevant to the organisation.

Courses and training materials have been developed for:
• Financial Management (including managing budgets and financial plans)
• Strategic Thinking
• Preparing reports and business cases
• Analysing and presenting data
• Critical thinking and problem solving
• An Introduction to Project Management
• Innovation and Creativity.

Clients include public sector Departments (State and Federal), Local Councils, Universities, Large Infrastructure Companies and not-for-profit organisations.

The first half of his professional career led him to Executive roles in South Australian Treasury and Finance. He has a deep knowledge of government decision-making processes and public sector financial management. The second half of his career has seen Mark work with a range of clients, largely public sector, on initiatives to improve their organisations or develop their staff. Mark has public sector clients based in Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart.

Mark’s former responsibilities in Treasury and Finance included providing advice on the State Government’s financial strategy, legislation and policies, overseeing whole of government banking, financial reporting and related financial systems and working with agencies as part of the annual budget process and weekly Cabinet processes.

Mark also worked for in BHP Billiton as a team leader involved in establishing teams in the Shared Service Centre in 2000 and 2001.
Mark has an Honours Degree in Economics and a Graduate Diploma in Marketing.

Mark is married (to Gemma for over 24 years) and has three adult/teenager children. He also serves as a volunteer board member for Arid Recovery Pty Ltd (conservation and research organisation) and as a trustee for the Julie Farr McLeod Benevolent Fund (supporting services to the disability community).

Upcoming course availability

In person

February 2025

Friday, 14 February 2025

In person

May 2025

Monday, 19 May 2025

Format
Face-to-face

Duration
1 full day
9:00am - 4:30pm (8:45am registration)

Competency framework
Middle Manager Core (ASO5-ASO8)

(This competency framework is provided as a guide only)

Inclusions
Workbook, resources, lunch, morning tea and refreshments

Location
Adelaide CBD, SA 5000
(please visit registration links for further information)
View map

Costs
Personal Member $575
State Govt Employee Member $615
Corporate Member $625
Non-Member $725

This course can be delivered In-Agency. Contact us to discuss the delivery of this course within your department.

  • “Mark was one of the best trainers I have had in a very long time. I like how he has split this course over the two days - it really helped bed down the information and concepts. Nothing went over my head in technicality and I really liked the examples he used as they were all very relate-able.”

    Ketrah

    RAH Research Fund

  • “Regardless of people's current experience, everyone would gain some new understanding from this course and the way it's presented. “

    Jo

    Department of Human Services

  • “This course exceeded my expectations. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect but came away armed with a lot of new techniques to try.”

    Ketrah

    RAH Research Fund

  • I gained an understanding that all skills can be learned and that strategic thinking is actually very logical and easy to follow, not mysterious and complex. The trainer was brilliant at getting the concepts across and had an excellent understanding of the topic.”

    Jo

    Department of Human Services

  • “The facilitator delivered the course to the highest standard giving sound and relative context and examples which brought more meaning to the learning.”

    Paula

    Office for Cyber Security DPC, SA Government