PESTLE Analysis - Free Template

The six areas on one page - Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental - each with a line on what it covers and examples of the forces to look for, so a team can work through them in one sitting rather than as a loose conversation.

A one-page summary: when to use PESTLE, the steps for running it - from getting a mixed group in the room to judging each factor for impact and uncertainty and picking out the two or three that will shape the strategy - and the traps to watch for, like collecting factors instead of prioritising them.

It's a PDF, so you can print it for a workshop wall or use it as the structure for a shared working document.

Run it as a team exercise, not a solo one. The people closest to delivery see external forces first, so involve them alongside leadership - and for charities, a trustee in the room adds a governance perspective and a useful outside view. Different perspectives surface factors you'd miss on your own, and they're the best defence against the subjectivity that's PESTLE's biggest weakness. Don't try to cover everything: focus on the factors most likely to affect your specific context.

Then do something with the output. Pick out the small number of forces with the highest potential impact and the highest uncertainty, feed them into your planning and your risk register, and revisit the analysis regularly - especially when the external landscape shifts. If you want to go further, the 2x2 Scenario Matrix is the natural next step for exploring how the forces you've identified might combine.