The strategic planning process generally has a goal of developing a document called the “Strategic Plan”. It is important to realize that strategic planning is a journey and the plan document is not really the goal of the planning process. Instead, insight that you gain about your business, your customers and your place in the market are key takeaways. The result of identifying and reviewing this information is a document called the Strategic Plan which is a guide to actions needed to reach your organizational goals. An action plan and an ongoing measurement process ensuring consistent focus on moving towards the goals is the true benefit of a strategic plan.
Creating a Strategic Plan
Creating a strategic plan follows a fairly well defined series of steps. The process can be informal or highly formal, dependent primarily on the number of people involved. Smaller entities may only include the owner or a few trusted advisors, larger entities will want to include the executive team and heads of the major departments. Team members need to be those with a vision for the company. Appoint a leader to control the process and document the information.
Purpose, Mission and Vision
Begin by identifying the purpose, mission and vision for the company. These may already be well thought out, but if not, it is worth spending the time to flesh out the guiding principles of the company. A Purpose statement identifies the reason the company exists. A vision statement what the company hopes to achieve and the Mission statement describes what you are going to do and how you are going to do it.
Market Analysis
A SWOT analysis considers your position in the market, in the industry and in the local business community. Identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats facing your business currently and into the future. Gather information from as many sources as possible, staff, customers, bankers, vendors, advisors, etc. You may want to lay these out in a grid.
Business Review
A gap analysis can be used to identify gaps between where you are and where you want to be. The larger the gap the more a particular issue may need dealt with in a timely fashion. I have a process using 10 carefullly selected statements that help lead business owners to revelations about where to focus time and attention in their business. In a 2-3 hour process I will meet with you and team members and go over the questions. A week or so later we will meet again and discuss your thoughts and concerns. You will be provided with a copy of all the notes that were taken during the session. More information is here.
Compiling the Strategic Plan Document
Using all of the compiled information, it is time to identify those few long and short term goals that are key to the success of your business. The five year goals should derive directly from your purpose, mission and vision statements. The one year goals should lead to the realization of your five year goals. If they don’t they are not part of the strategic plan. Three to five 5 year goals are more than enough to tackle. Each team member should identify their part in the process and then commit to those actions they can take in the next 90 days that will advance the company towards the one year goals.
Document each phase as succinctly as possible. Ideally the plan can fit on one or two pages. One page for the company goals and one for each person or department with assigned activity. Each of the goals should be clearly stated and have a method to measure success identified. This document would be called the Strategic Plan. As noted, the creation of the plan is not the goal of this process. The information gained in the planning process and the implementation of the plan is where the value lies.
Implementation
The devil is in the details. Implementation includes creating reports to measure and monitor attainment of the individual goals, communicating the plan to all departments and staff, regularly meeting as a group to review progress towards the goals and adjusting goals as realities change. Not a one time activity the strategic plan should be reviewed and revised on a regular basis.
I have led the strategic planning process for a number of different entities and would enjoy helping you with yours. I am currently offering the Simple Strategy Session for $299 as an introduction. Call or click below for more information.