SOAR Mini-Template

What Is SOAR?

SOAR is a strategic analysis framework developed by Jacqueline Stavros and Gina Hinrichs as an appreciative alternative to SWOT. Where SWOT focuses on Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, SOAR replaces Weaknesses and Threats with Aspirations and Results — shifting the frame from deficit-analysis to possibility-building.

This doesn’t mean SOAR ignores challenges. It means challenges are addressed through the lens of “what are we building toward?” rather than “what do we fear?” This shift in framing reliably produces more energized, creative, and ownership-rich strategic conversations.

SOAR is particularly well-suited for:

• Team planning sessions and offsites
• Department or organization-level strategy conversations
• Leadership team alignment meetings
• Mid-year reviews and course corrections
• New team formation or post-merger integration

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The Four Quadrants

S — Strengths

What do we do best? What are our most valuable assets, capabilities, and differentiators?

Strengths include:

• Core capabilities and skills
• Unique processes or approaches
• Cultural attributes (what makes this team or organization distinctive)
• Relationships and network advantages
• Track record and reputation
• Resources and infrastructure

Key question: What would we be most proud to tell a new stakeholder about who we are and what we’re capable of?

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O — Opportunities

What external possibilities are available to us? What could we leverage, build, or create?

Opportunities include:

• Market or sector trends we are well-positioned to address
• Unmet needs of our customers, stakeholders, or community
• Partnerships or collaborations that could amplify our strengths
• Emerging technologies or approaches we could adopt
• Gaps our competition isn’t filling
• New contexts where our strengths could create value

Key question: Given our strengths, where are the most compelling external possibilities for us to pursue?

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A — Aspirations

What are we called to be and do? What future are we most inspired to create?

Aspirations include:

• The vision of what this team or organization could become
• The impact we most want to have
• The values we want to embody more fully
• The culture we’re building toward
• The legacy we want to leave
• Bold possibilities that energize us even if they’re not yet certain

Key question: If we were at our absolute best, consistently, 3 years from now — what would be true that isn’t true today?

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R — Results

What measurable outcomes will show us we’re achieving our aspirations?

Results include:

• Specific metrics tied to each aspiration
• Milestones for the next 90 days, 6 months, and 1 year
• Leading indicators (how will we know early if we’re on track?)
• Success criteria that the full team can observe and verify
• Accountability structures

Key question: How will we know we’re succeeding? What will we see, measure, and feel?

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The Mini-Template: Facilitation Guide

Setup

Time: 90 minutes for a team of 6–15 people Materials: Sticky notes, large wall space or digital board, markers Preparation: Brief the group on SOAR in advance. Ask each person to come with one example for each quadrant.

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Phase 1: Strengths (20 min)

Individual (5 min): Each person silently writes their top 3 strengths observations on sticky notes. One idea per note.

Share and cluster (10 min): Post all notes, read aloud, cluster by theme. The facilitator names the emerging clusters.

Synthesis (5 min): As a group, identify the top 3–5 strengths that are most distinctive, most relevant to the work ahead, and most energizing to build from.

Document:

Strength	Why It Matters	How We’ll Build From It

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Phase 2: Opportunities (20 min)

Same process: individual → share and cluster → synthesis.

Linking prompt: “Given the strengths we just named, what external opportunities are we most uniquely positioned to pursue?” The connection between Strengths and Opportunities is the heart of SOAR — resist identifying opportunities that don’t connect to your actual capabilities.

Document:

Opportunity	Connection to Our Strengths	Priority (1–3)

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Phase 3: Aspirations (15 min)

This phase benefits from a moment of generative imagination. Ask participants to briefly close their eyes and picture the team or organization at its absolute best, 3 years from now.

Prompt: “Describe what you see. What is this team known for? What has it created? How do people feel about being here?”

Share responses and extract the 3–5 aspirations that generate the most energy and resonance.

Document:

Aspiration	Why This Matters	The Change It Would Represent

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Phase 4: Results (15 min)

For each aspiration, define what measurable success looks like.

Document:

Aspiration	90-Day Result	1-Year Result	Success Indicator

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Synthesis and Handoff (20 min)

Review the completed SOAR canvas as a group. Ask:

1. What is the most important insight from this conversation?
2. What single action, if we took it in the next two weeks, would create the most forward momentum?
3. Who owns what?

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SOAR vs. SWOT: A Quick Comparison

	SWOT	SOAR
Frame	Problem identification	Possibility generation
Energy	Protective, risk-aware	Generative, forward-leaning
Best for	Crisis analysis, risk management	Culture change, visioning, team alignment
Ownership	Often consultant-led	Inherently participatory
Outcome	Gap list and risk matrix	Shared aspiration and committed action

Neither is universally superior. Use SWOT when you need to rigorously assess external threats. Use SOAR when you need people to own the strategy they’re building.

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Quick-Reference Card (Print and Distribute)

S — Strengths: What do we do best?

O — Opportunities: What’s available to us?

A — Aspirations: What are we called to become?

R — Results: How will we measure success?

“Start with what’s strong. Build toward what’s possible. Measure what matters.”