Facilita

The Founder Challenge

Susanna Durston, founder of Facilita, leads a consultancy that helps large organisations navigate complexity through strategic facilitation and tailored consulting solutions. With over 350+ years of combined industry experience across her associate team, Facilita has earned a strong brand reputation across industries such as energy, resources, and government sectors.

Heading into a fresh 2026 year, Susanna was ready to design her next chapter of growth and evolution of her brand within the domestic and international market. 

Growth was happening, but the business needed dedicated space to explore opportunities and structure. Facilita was increasingly seen as a trusted delivery partner, but Susanna wanted the business to evolve into a strategic consulting partner within the industry, not just a facilitator.

She reached out to TMF to run a half day strategy validation workshop: space to slow down, reflect on the year, and get clear on the decisions, priorities, and positioning that would shape the business moving forward.

The TMF Approach

TMF’s goal was to help Facilita move from operational responsiveness to strategic alignment and direction.

Rather than diving straight into tactics, we created a space for structured reflection, using design thinking techniques, visual and facilitated canvases, and guided prompts to explore every layer of the business: from brand foundations to governance, offerings to growth opportunities.

Susanna came prepared with deep insights and questions. Together, we explored what worked in 2025, what still felt fragmented, and what Facilita needed to stabilise and scale with intention. Each conversation contributed towards a clearer strategic position supported by Facilita’s strengths and future direction.

We aligned on a roadmap of priorities across four core areas: revenue and commercial model, associate ecosystem, marketing direction, and digital positioning. With every theme, we kept the focus on making grounded, confident decisions not adding complexity with a flood of ideas.

What We Did

The session was both reflective and practical, focused on surfacing insights, testing assumptions, and aligning on next steps. Together, we mapped Facilita’s current brand strengths and identified what was needed to better reflect its maturity and value.

We explored where the business was ‘naturally’ growing and where systems and focus needed to catch up for success. We clarified the vision for Facilita’s future: not just more work, but better fit clients, higher value contracts, and a business model that balances growth with sustainability.

Using TMF’s facilitation approach, we created space for big picture thinking and grounded decision-making. The result? A refreshed vision, refined offerings, and strategic initiatives for the year ahead, all built to strengthen Facilita’s credibility and commercial foundations.

The Result

By the end of the workshop, Susanna walked away with:

• A clearly prioritised 2026 roadmap
• Refined vision, mission, and purpose statements that reflect Facilita’s maturity and value
• Strategic direction for transitioning into consulting and resourcing offers
• Clear next steps for refining Facilita’s digital presence and brand positioning
• A plan to improve internal processes, associate collaboration, and client experience
• Confidence in where the business is heading and how to lead it there

“Siobhain expertly guided a full strategic planning day that was both structured and deeply insightful. From clarifying vision, mission, and purpose through to governance and offerings, she brought momentum at every stage. I left the session with confidence, alignment, and a practical plan that was business ready.”
_{- Susanna Durston, Facilita}

Why It Matters

Facilita isn’t just growing, it’s evolving in a changing and complex market. For seasoned founders like Susanna, the challenge isn’t a lack of ideas, it's choosing which ones to act on, and how to move forward without losing momentum.

The business was already known for its strong facilitative expertise, but the session was a turning point from ‘operational responsiveness’ to ‘strategic direction’ and moving forward with new offerings. It allowed Susanna to pause, reframe the big picture, and make decisions that support not just growth, but sustainable business offerings.

Partnering with businesses like Facilita is what TMF strategic sessions create space for founders to do; slow down, zoom out, and lead their next chapter with focus. Many service-led businesses are at turning points starting a new year and the real work is often about pausing and being considered in that next step.