Breakthrough Sprint™
A focused space to listen deeply, think bravely, and move together.
Some challenges don’t respond to more pushing, more meetings, or more willpower.
They’re the ones that touch people’s hearts, histories, and hopes for what comes next.
For the work that feels heavy to carry on your own.
Some challenges are more than projects. They touch people’s energy, trust, and sense of direction.
A Breakthrough Sprint™ is a focused space where you and the right people can lay things out honestly, feel what’s at stake, and think clearly together. We slow down just enough to see the pattern, then decide on a few real next steps that everyone can stand behind.
What is a Breakthrough Sprint™?
A Breakthrough Sprint™ is a time-bound, facilitated conversation built around one real
challenge you’re carrying.
It’s Not
A training
A keynote
A consultant disappearing to fix things alone
Instead, it’s a working space where:
People can say what’s actually going on
Not just what sounds good in the room.
Facts and feelings both come in
Hard data and what people are actually carrying, side by side.
Enough structure that you don't get lost
Clear shape so the conversation moves with purpose.
Enough space that something new can emerge
Room for fresh insight, not just a tidy report.
You bring the context, the people, and the courage.
I bring the container, the questions, and the tools.
We work it through together.
Along the way, people are practicing collaborative problem-solving, clearer decision-making, and more honest, skillful conversation about hard issues.
* Under the hood, I draw on the FourSight® process and tools to give the group a clear, simple path through the conversation.
When a Breakthrough Sprint™ Helps
A Sprint is usually the right thing when:
A piece of work is important, visible, or stuck.
You feel responsible for the outcome, but don’t have capacity to design and and hold the process.
The issue has emotional weight — fatigue, frustration, tension, or fear.
You sense there’s wisdom in the team, but it’s not surfacing in ordinary meetings.
You want to move forward in a way that doesn’t burn people out or shut them down.
If you read this and a particular situation comes to mind, that’s probably the one.
How a Breakthrough Sprint™ Works
We’re not trying to control everything. We are giving shape to how you move through it.
Arrive & Name — What’s Here
Step 1 of the Breakthrough Sprint™
We start with a conversation between you and me.
We:
- Name the challenge and where it’s showing up
- Acknowledge how it’s impacting you and others
- Clarify what a useful shift would look like
- Decide who needs to be in the room and how much time we have
Together on Purpose — Gather the Group
Step 2 of the Breakthrough Sprint™
Then we gather your group (online or in person) for the Sprint itself.
My Part Is To:
- Set up a space where it’s safe to tell the truth
- Use questions and simple frameworks that help people see the whole picture
- Bring in creative and visual tools when they help things click
- Keep us anchored on what matters now, not every possible angle
Your Part Is To:
- Show up as a leader and a peer
- Listen more widely than usual
- Let other people’s insight shape the path, not just confirm it
Clear Next Steps — Land in Decisions
Step 3 of the Breakthrough Sprint™
Insight is only useful if it changes what you do on Monday.
We Close the Sprint By:
- Naming the decisions that have been made
- Agreeing on what you’ll do next, and who will take which steps
- Checking the plan against capacity and reality
- Capturing it all in plain language everyone understands
You Leave With:
- A shared understanding of where you are
- A small number of concrete next moves
- Enough clarity that people can act without another big meeting
What You Can Expect to Walk Away With
Most teams describe having:
No hype, no promise that everything will be easy. Just a more honest picture and a way to move.
Different Depths of Breakthrough Sprint™
The heart of the work is the same. What changes is how deep we go and how long we stay with it.
QuickStart
Breakthrough Sprint™ — QuickStart
For one clear pinch point
- One focused day, or a few shorter virtual sessions
- Geared to one specific, stubborn issue
- Best when the right people are easy to gather and you’re ready to act
Deep Dive
Breakthrough Sprint™ — Deep Dive
For layered, cross-team questions
- A series of sessions over days or weeks
- Space to hear from multiple groups and levels
- Weaving those voices into a shared story and direction
- Well suited to strategy shifts, culture questions, and cross-functional work
Held Transition
Breakthrough Sprint™ — Held Transition
For big changes that unfold over time
- An extended engagement over several months
- Regular Sprint-style sessions plus check-ins and course corrections
- A mix of facilitation, thinking partnership, and light coaching
- Designed for high-stakes transitions you don’t want to hold alone
How This Tends to Feel
Underneath the agendas and whiteboards, people often say things like:
The Work Rests On
Integrity
Letting your actions line up with what you say you care about
Courage
Bringing hard truths into the light with respect
Care
For your people, your impact, and yourself
Curiosity
Being willing to see the situation differently
Togetherness
Remembering you don’t have to carry this alone
With Janice's help, we were able to navigate a genuinely collaborative strategic planning process, leveraging everyone's expertise and insight so that we could meet our mandate. The team gained a new appreciation for the progress of our project and increased confidence in our ability to move forward.
Birches Group is extremely pleased with our work with Janice. It was a true collaboration effort, from identifying our core issues to brainstorming solutions and executing on an interactive workshop with our marketing, sales and client service teams. She gave everyone the guidance and perspective to rethink our existing processes.
Janice kept us focused on the right things and guided a process that helped us overcome the constraints we were facing. This helped us turn a complex change initiative into a clear, step-by-step plan that allowed us to get stakeholder buy-in quickly.
Is a Breakthrough Sprint™ Right for You?
It’s probably a fit if:
You’re holding something too important to work through without a more deliberate process.
You don’t want to pretend it’s just business when it clearly affects people.
You’re willing to let others into the process, not just deliver a decision.
You’re open to listening, learning, and adjusting, not just defending.
If That Sounds Like You
We’ll likely work well together. The Sprint is built for leaders who want to face hard things openly and move forward without burning their team out.
Related Paths
If, after a Sprint, you’d like your team to learn the same tools and thinking process themselves, our Team Performance Services are a natural next step.
For a broader, end-to-end engagement around major change or innovation, the ThinkUp Framework™ may be the better fit.
What Happens Next
We start with a call and a simple conversation. On that call, we can:
- Talk about what you’re carrying and why it matters
- Get clear on what a realistic shift would be for you and your team
- Decide whether a Breakthrough Sprint™ is the right shape — or if something else would help more
You’ll leave with more clarity either way.
Prefer email? Contact Janice at janice@touchpointslearning.ca