Most strategic planning efforts surround the hiring of a facilitator trained in the area who takes a group through a standard planning exercise. There is nothing wrong with this approach but it may hide some weaknesses in terms of pre-planning preparation by the participants. If chosen carefully and if participants are prepared in advance with materials to consider, the quality of their input will be immeasurably higher. It is safe to say, however, that the first condition (choosing the right participants) is usually well done; the second (preparing them) is not.

The plan will be much more effective if the group of participants are given materials that fit the following categories:

1. Varied Input: This refers to the process of gathering and presenting to the participants information on the “state of the organization” as seen by board members, employees, unions (if there are unions), budget figures, retention rates of clients, employees, number of new clients and/or new initiatives etc. In other words, give the participants as much information as you can about the organization as it stands on the threshold of its new planning exercise. This can be in the form of existing reports, client surveys etc. There is likely no need to assemble new data. It probably already exists in the system’s information gallery.
2. Internal Capabilities Analysis: There is no use putting together a plan that is built upon certain factors that the organization has no hope of realizing because it does not currently have the resources to do so. It is all very well to propose a greatly expanded agenda but that presupposes the existence and availability of those two precious commodities: increased staff and increased revenue.  Above all, the plan must be created within the concept of “do ability” (i.e. the assurance that the organization has the resources it needs to implement the plan). A beautifully crafted plan that sets out a whole range of possibilities is all very good… but if those possibilities cannot be brought to fruition, strategic planning will sow the seeds of disenchantment and disillusionment. Aim for creativity and new initiatives but remember to be practical.
3. Environmental Scan: This refers to the world outside the organization. It could be competitors, new arrivals in the same field as the organization, economic factors in the areas served, new policies from the government et al that are likely to impact the organization. The pace of life in both the public and private sectors changes rapidly. A new plan must be based upon new information that will cause the organization to examine itself in that light.
4. Competitive Advantages and Disadvantages: This is really a sub-set of the Environmental Scan but it is more focused in nature. It looks at similar organizations and tries to determine what advantages and disadvantages the organization has in comparison. For instance, it may be that there is a new “niche” that has not been identified by competitors that the organization could fill. On the other hand, it may be that a planned initiative that the organization was hoping to include is already too common among competitors and moving into this aspect of offerings or services will likely fail because other organizations are well into a level of sophistication in those discrete areas which the organization cannot, for the time being, hope to overcome.
5. Early and Active Involvement of Implementers: Whatever the plan, staff will be faced with the task of implementing it. Research on levels of implementation of programs and services continuously stresses the need to involve in the planning the people who will be required to deliver the products or services. If staff is involved in the planning, that involvement will engender an enthusiasm and a willingness to “make it happen.” In addition, staff involvement in strategic planning adds a dimension others may not have – the skills and knowledge to determine if certain aspects of the work can be done. Staff are the practitioners and their input will help planners understand from a very practical point of view what can and can’t be done with the time and resources available.

In summary then, choose the right people to be part of the process. Make sure they represent a cross section of the individuals and groups with whom the organization interacts. Don’t bring them to the planning process without a fair degree of knowledge and understanding about where the organization is now. Make sure they are all reasonably knowledgeable about the organization and give them as much information as you can before that actual planning exercise begins. Check out the general and specific environments in which the organization finds itself and give them that information in advance as well if you can. Finally, involve the worker bees. You’ll need them to implement the plan and you can’t put together a plan that is feasible without their participation and the expertise it brings.

Next Week’s Blog (March 18th): What an effective plan looks like!

Dr. Dan