The Swedish Athletics Federation consists of 950 clubs, nine districts and a national office. The federation brings together the entire spectrum – from elite sports to grassroots activities, from traditional arena athletics to recreational activities.
Svenska Friidrottsförbundet - A national strategy anchored at all levels
This is how the Swedish Athletics Federation works to make its strategy real and alive – together with the entire movement. How do you reach out with a strategy to 950 clubs – and make it feel meaningful for everyone, regardless of role, level or resources?
How do you reach out with a strategy to 950 clubs – and make it feel meaningful for everyone, regardless of role, level or resources?
Athletics is a grassroots sport with many disciplines, cultures and organizational layers. Previous strategies have been broad but difficult to use in everyday life. In preparing for the next strategy, the Swedish Athletics Federation chose to prioritize both anchoring and implementation – with a focus on involving the entire movement from the start.
About the Swedish Athletics Federation
"Vocean is both a process tool and a relationship tool. Being able to communicate directly with the whole movement is super valuable."
The Challenge
The 2021–2025 strategy was developed with ambition but was perceived as difficult to prioritize in everyday life. With the next strategy, the aim was to create clarity, participation and direction from the start and give everyone the opportunity to contribute. How do you make a strategy feel relevant for everyone – from the federation and districts to clubs with completely different conditions? Previous collection of input took place via forms and meetings, which took a lot of time and yielded varying results. There was no effective way to analyze free text or provide feedback directly, which limited engagement. There was a lack of an effective way to collaborate broadly within the organization.
The Solution
With Vocean, the Swedish Athletics Federation has gained a new hub for strategic work – a platform for co-creation that saves time and increases engagement. They can now collect input from clubs and districts via QR codes, ask low-threshold questions and analyze responses using AI. Vocean has so far been used both before and during physical meetings, allowing for direct feedback. With a collaboration tool, the focus shifts from writing ideas on post-its to actually solving important challenges together.
"We used to spend hours putting together post-it notes. Now we get everything in place immediately - understandable and immediately useful."
Results & Impact
Over 3000 free text responses were collected from members, boards and activists in the clubs during more than 100 club processes. Many expressed appreciation for being involved in a larger context and for having their input made visible. The approach has also continued to live on – Vocean is now used for several different things in the organization.
The strategy is anchored throughout the movement
More time for collaboration and reflection – less administration
Dialogue is enabled at all levels of the organization
Direct feedback to participants increases engagement
AI-generated reports provide new insights and lead to action
"Being able to quickly show the results of our workshops on the spot makes a big difference. There's not that feeling of 'what happened to our answers?'"
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