Strike gold with effective strategic planning: Getting off to the right start

Effective strategic planning requires traction

Ask ten non-profit board members about strategic planning, and eight will probably say it’s a waste of time. Many non-profit leaders feel the same way. Sums of money, not to mention valuable time, are expended to create plans without traction, destined to sit on the shelf. Effective planning is built on a strong foundation of clearly stated outcomes, shared accountabilities, and access to the resources needed for success.

What is traction, and how do you create it? Without traction, plans are merely a list of hopes and dreams. Traction moves the entire organization from talking about what it wants to do to achieving it. Lack of traction undermines trust and erodes accountability.

Gaining traction goes deeper than creating a list of action items and assigning them. It requires a clear destination to be achieved by a definite time. It also requires a level of transparency that will allow every manager and employee to see how their department or individual actions contribute to reaching the destination.

The traction/trust connection

A planning process is a trust exercise. Board members and senior leaders co-create a plan and trust that each party will do its part. Managers who receive the plan trust that they will have the resources to implement its goals and be fairly evaluated on how well they meet the goals and outcomes. Employees depend on the alignment of their work to make a positive contribution toward achieving the outcome- the destination- presented in the plan.

However, when the plan does not clearly state the desired outcome and gathers the needed human, technological, or financial resources, it’s understandable that employees and managers will not have trust in the plan or the leadership that developed it. When plans are routinely set aside or not properly resourced, a powerful-negative- belief about the organization’s culture and leadership can start to take hold. Low expectations and lack of accountability for results become the norm.

Gaining traction= Getting Focused

Does your organization’s vision statement include phrases like “be the top provider” or “reach financial sustainability” or “every person we serve will achieve X?”  Do you know what it means to achieve this vision? For example, what are the components of being the “top provider”?  Depending on how your organization defines this, you could find yourself wondering if this means client satisfaction, number of people served, most revenue, largest geographic footprint, and on and on.

Until your organization commits to reaching a clear destination, any initiative or strategy could seem appropriate for investment. Many organizations fear narrowing their focus to one or two clearly stated goals. They worry that focusing on one or two things will short-change their ability to achieve their mission. However, there is a paradox that many writers and thinkers have noted: By focusing on one target, the other indicators improve, too.  For example, the number of clients served will be influenced by their satisfaction with the services. A focus on expanded geographic reach will bring new revenue sources to light.

Once your organization’s leadership understands the need to focus, then everyone in the organization can begin to focus, too. When board members or staff propose new ideas or directions, you can evaluate them against a single criterion: will this help us reach our destination, or reach it more quickly? Line employees understand how to prioritize their actions, managers gain clarity on assessing their teams, and the entire organization benefits from a shared sense of purpose and alignment.