Getting Started

Purpose

Diagnose why results stall and identify where to focus first. In 15 minutes, get a shared view of constraints and candidate goals across Technology, Product, and Organizational domains. This surfaces the highest-leverage opportunities without launching a full program.

Execution

Triggers:	Initial kickoff to identify candidate TOP Goals
Time:	15 minutes
Who:	people who feel the pain and can influence it
Outcome:	shared picture of the real constraints + candidate TOP Goals across all three domains, and one concrete next step

Event Agenda

This agenda is the HOW. It structures a 15-minute conversation so you surface pains, constraints, and potential in your organization and leave with solid candidate TOP Goals. A seasoned operator familiar with TOP keeps the discussion crisp and turns potential into outcomes.

Activity	Purpose
Invite	Gather the right people: 3-7 people who understand the situation, and can change things.
List pains & constraints	Silent write for 2 minutes, then share. Capture what's hurting and what limits your options.
Identify potential across domains	For each of the three domains (Technology, Product, Organizational), identify potential improvements. Consider what would change outcomes fastest in each area.
Draft candidate goals	Use the scaffold below to draft candidate TOP Goals for each domain (keep them solution-neutral). All three domain goals need to be achieved, they can't be ranked against each other.
Decide the next event	Choose your next step: Formation (to form the coalition) Mission Launch (if the coalition already exists)

Operating Manual

Quick Checklist

Inputs: current pains, constraints, any existing priorities, recent signals (if available)
Outputs: candidate TOP Goals for Technology, Product, and Organizational domains (solution-neutral), next event booked

Goal Draft Scaffold (for the facilitator)

Use this scaffold to capture candidate goals from the discussion. It helps you keep the wording solution-neutral and make sure Technology, Product, and Organizational goals fit together instead of competing.

  Technology Goal:
  We will improve [the intent/problem area] so that [who/what improves]
  is evident by [initial time horizon], as shown by:
  • Success Signal: [primary metric/trend]
  • Exception Signal: [trigger that demands action]

  Product Goal:
  We will improve [the intent/problem area] so that [who/what improves]
  is evident by [initial time horizon], as shown by:
  • Success Signal: [primary metric/trend]
  • Exception Signal: [trigger that demands action]

  Organizational Goal:
  We will improve [the intent/problem area] so that [who/what improves]
  is evident by [initial time horizon], as shown by:
  • Success Signal: [primary metric/trend]
  • Exception Signal: [trigger that demands action]

  Notes: [constraints, dependencies, side effects to watch, synergies between goals]

Tip: keep goals solution-neutral (no tools/reorgs in the goal text). All three domain goals need to be achieved. They work together in multivariate optimization.

Examples

Example TOP Goals across the three domains:

Technology Goal: Sustainable operations (Quality → Issue Prevention)
Product Goal: Increase market penetration (Money → Boost ROI)
Organizational Goal: Efficient meetings (Scope → Eliminate Waste)

Note: These goals work together. The coalition collaborates to accomplish all three simultaneously. In cases of apparent conflict, the coalition determines how to turn a 'Wicked Problem' into a win-win scenario.

Next Step

With candidate goals for all three domains in hand, run the full Goal Setting Event (45-60 minutes) to finalize the TOP Goals, then proceed to Formation and Mission Launch.