I have written before about the First Five Percent. That’s my approach to strategic change management that says the quality of the first five percent determines what happens in the rest of the process.
I was in Los Angeles last week, working with a large association, on a strategic plan for their organization. It was the beginning the a process to create a high-performing organization in less than a year. A definite procedure of the First Five Percent is to enlist as many individual feasible from the very start.. You never know who has the good ideas. The more people you engage early on, the quicker you can identify the best thinking and the hidden resources.
There were 300 people in the room, including board members, chapter leaders, and local officers. The agenda was flexible. To ensure people would be involved, I was prepared to go into a number of directions, depending on the results from the first exercise. The first question I asked was: “Think about two years down the road and where you want the association to be. Tell me the specific changes you want to see and your measures of success.
They worked on this question for 60 minutes and wrote down their responses on flip chart paper. Each group then reported out. I then asked them: What did you hear yourselves say? Did you have a meeting of minds?
Everyone called out what they heard. “Increase membership.” “Fill our vacancies,” “Make a new product..”Their juices were flowing.”
“How would you measure success”? I inquired. They shouted out what they’d heard. I listed four specific measures of success. I asked if they all agreed. Everyone raised their hands.
They left for a quick lunch break. I planned my next step, while the room was silent.. I examined all their briefs, and concluded all I have to do is to take advantge of their drive.. I indexed 12 goals in my catalogue. The aims touched on subjects in relation to “recruit more members” or ” escalate our presence in the political arena.. I posted these goals on the walls of the room. When they got back from their lunch break, I said: “Now look around the room. These are your aims. Find the goal you feel most passionate for. Go stand by that goal. If you feel passionate about another goal not listed, there are blank pieces of paper.
The group divided itself into teams around each goal. I required every group to execute a procedure for every goal to be followed by a demonstration.. While the reporting is in progress, I made remarks about major points to be settled and expedited an exchange of ideas for each.. When people drifted off topic, I invoked the two-minute rule Anything important can be said in two minutes and they got back on course. We wrapped it up at 4 p.m.
I asked people to tell me what they liked about the meeting. ” I was thrilled,” somebody said.. “Wonderful ideas” A lot of people made observations. ” Your conduct,” somebody said. “The two minute rule!” Several shouted. “We are very glad to start our group,” a woman said..
“And what would you like to change?” I inquired.
That we have to depart!” a man shouted. Everyone laughed.
About the Author: Eric Douglas is LRI’s senior executive business consultant with expertise change management, leadership development, and strategic planning. His latest leadership book is called Leading at Light Speed.
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Strategic planning is something all businesses should participate it if they want to improve results. Strategic planning is a process of defining goals or outcomes, then developing a plan of action to reach those outcomes. A review process should be implemented in order to measure results and make course adjustments as needed.
The video link below gives an overview of three components of strategic planning. It is a helpful video for anyone new to strategic planning.
Click on this link: What are the three components of strategic planning?
For additional resources on strategic planning, visit http://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/
Summary:
The economic crisis experienced over the past couple years has forced most management teams to focus on the present and manage by crisis. However, crisis management doesn’t prepare your organization for future growth and opportunity. Planning your business’s future is no longer a discretionary decision. If you want to control the destiny of your business then you need to create it!
Strategic planning is a multi-step process encompassing vision, mission, objectives, values, goals, and specific action steps. Once the work of creating the plan is complete, action must be taken to ensure it succeeds.
Leadership should be fully behind and support the plan before presenting it to the organization. Conviction that the plan is going to add value to the company and presenting it in a positive light is essential. However, management needs to be clear to employees that this is the direction leadership is taking the company and it is everyone’s responsibility to do their part to see the plan to completion. Not only will this increase accountability from individuals, but it also fosters as sense of ownership in the company and its ability to thrive and outshine the competition.
Article Quote:
“Take a moment and be honest. Do you have an actionable strategic plan for your business? Do you know where you want to take your business one year from now, five years from now? Do you want to learn how to better manage the inevitable fires while focusing on growth opportunities? Make the commitment with your management team to develop a strategic plan now as your future results depend on it!”
Link: http://www.resourceassociatescorp.com/blog/2010/03/strategic-planning-is-no-longer-a-discretionary-decision/
Executing a strategic plan requires the objectives of the plan to be measurable. Leadership should continually review progress updates and decide if adjustments need to be made. It may be that additional resources are required for specific objectives or that parts of the plan really aren’t adding the value originally hoped for. The ability to make timely course corrections will ultimately save the business from wasting valuable resources.
For more on strategic planning, see http://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/
Summary:
Strategic planning methodologies are like shoes – one size does not fit all. Some companies use an autocratic approach, in which the plan gets created by a small group of senior managers and handed down to the rest of the organization. Others prefer a more democratic approach, with employees at all levels contributing their ideas and input to the plan. However, most companies employ a hybrid of these two models.
There are several factors to consider when deciding which approach you choose, such as company size, culture, type of workforce, and management style. However, every strategic plan should include the following five “must-haves”:
1. Mission. This defines why you exist as an organization.
2. Guiding principles. Also called organizational attributes, these describe how you expect people to behave with each other and with other stakeholder groups.
3. Value propositions. These explain the value you provide to your organization’s different stakeholder groups, both internal and external.
4. Destination points. These identify where your organization wants to go within a specified time frame.
5. Areas of focus/strategies. These define, in a broad sense, how the organization will get to where it wants to go.
Article Quote:
“Effective strategic planning also requires that you set goals and define team and individual accountabilities, as these link the big picture to individual goals and competencies. Ultimately, strategic planning is like a jigsaw puzzle – all the pieces must be in place in order to complete the picture.”
Link: http://www.innovationheat.com/2010/02/26/five-must-haves-for-a-strategic-plan/9160/
Having the best strategic plan won’t get you far if you don’t implement it. Successful implementation requires breaking down, or chunking goals into manageable tasks to incorporate into daily to-do’s. By chunking your work and doing a little at a time, the plan will be worked and your goals will be achieved.
Keeping your strategic plan visible will help to measure your progress and make course corrections if needed. Maintaining flexablility is important so you don’t get caught up in working a flawed plan.
For more on strategic planning, seehttp://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/
Summary:
Strategic planning is a great way to advance your business and achieve your goals. Being a seat-of-the-pants entrepreneur, it might feel challenging at first, but stick with it and you will soon see the reward of using strategic planning throughout every department of your company.
Key to strategic planning is the vision you have for your business. Building from your clearly defined vision, set two to three realistic goals and then develop a plan on how to achieve those goals. Goals should be able to be broken down into timelines that you can integrate into daily or weekly tasks.
Article Quote:
“If you are a seat-of-the-pants entrepreneur, then strategic planning can make you feel like a fish out of water. However, strategic planning is neither boring nor unimportant. In fact, it’s necessary to help you assess where your business currently stands, and how to push forward toward your goals.”
Link: http://www.wahm.com/articles/strategic-planning-for-seat-of-the-pants-entrepreneurs.html
Integrating goals in a way that is manageable and measurable allows for incremental successes that build up and help get the goal accomplished. Develop shorter strategies that range from six to eight months that are also included in the bigger picture.
Working on your strategic plans requires commitment. Finding the right balance between daily operations and incorporation of the strategic plan can be obtained with the use of performance technology.
For more on strategic planning, seehttp://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/
Summary:
Buying an established and profitable business without a strategic plan and seeing it go south is not bad luck, it’s the result of not being prepared. This is exactly what happened to a gentleman after he bought an established business. Right after the purchase, two key employees left and several long-time customers went elsewhere as their loyalty was to the previous owner, not the new owner. Profits plunged and now the owner is working hard just to keep the doors open.
The new owner never stopped and asked “What would happen to the business if a key employee left or if long-time customers left for lack of loyalty to new owners?” In fact, he didn’t have any plan and thought he could walk in and everything would run smoothly.
If you want luck, then make it part of your action plan. Commit your goals to writing. Work your action plan, plan your work. Then see all of the luck come your way – or if you want, believe that you have been lucky.
Article Quote:
“Simply speaking, the failure to plan is planned failure. Without an action plan to begin to guide a business or even an individual, the end result is usually walking down the wrong path along with a lot of spraying and praying going on.”
Link: http://strategicplanning.doodig.com/2010/02/15/strategic-planning-tip-bad-luck-is-the-result-of-not-planning/
An old quote states: “Good luck happens when preparedness meets opportunity.” Strategic planning consists of knowing your market, your organizational structure, purpose and vision, company strengths and weaknesses, and knowing where you want to the company to be in the future. Action is taking that distant future goal, breaking it down into actionable tasks that can be measured, and incorporating those tasks into daily operations.
For more on strategic planning, see http://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/
Summary:
Clearly identifying your vision and communicating it consistently and constantly creates an environment that equips and motivates members of the organization to create positive moments of truth experiences for your external customers. All business processes, management practices, and employee incentives should flow from and be in alignment with a clearly defined strategy in order to achieve maximum success. A good strategy is to get a knowledgeable and objective outsider involved in the planning process to allow for an impartial point of view. This creates an opportunity for fresh eyes and new ideas that can inject creativity into the process.
The first step is to ask yourself where do you want to be in five years and why aren’t you there right now? Asking why you haven’t reached yet that success point can be revealing because the reason might be one that you haven’t realized or been willing to face. Understanding where you want to be and why you aren’t yet there is the first step in developing a strategic plan.
Article Quote:
“Your vision gives you a point of reference for evaluating and planning all aspects of your business. You’ll make better and faster decisions when you evaluate every choice by asking, “Does this take me closer to or farther from the attainment of my vision?””
Link: http://alcorp.net/?p=25962
Clarifying vision, goals, and the tactical planning steps needed to get there are what strategic planning is all about. Once developed, however, there are some elements to address in order for the plan to be successfully executed. Getting everyone in the organization on board with the plan increases involvement, thus increasing the chances for success. To keep your plan active, it needs to be integrated with daily tasks and objectives where results can be measured This increases accountability when tasks are not completed and allows for course adjustments when something is not working. A huge mistake is to create a plan where results are rarely measured, for instance- once a year at the next strategic planning session.
For more on strategic planning, see http://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/
Summary:
This article offers definitions on widely used business terms. Miscommunication on key terminology creates havoc when it comes to implementing a strategic plan. Furthermore, this author explores the question of who should own the definition of terms like objectives, goals, strategies and tactics. Should it belong to the executive in charge or an outside agency?
Objectives, or high level achievements, should sit at the top of the strategic plan. Organizations should have no more than a handful -any more is an overload and may cloud what is really important to business success.
Article Quote:
“Most people use some form of objectives, goals, strategies and tactics for their plans, but get a group of 10 people into a room and you might have 10 different definitions of what those terms mean? That’s why agreeing on their meaning is vital to your plan. Term agreement is a lubricant to productivity.”
Link: http://sclohonet.blogspot.com/2009/12/planning-for-2010.html
Effective communication must start with a clear understanding of what terms mean. Who owns the term is not what is important. What’s important is that everyone understands what’s being said.
Once you’ve moved beyond term definition, and created your strategic plan, it’s time to put it into action. This is another area where clarity in communication helps avoid slip ups. Individual accountablity and follow-up improves with strategic planning technology. Management can have instant access to track projects and people.
For more on strategic planning, see http://www.performancesolutionstech.com/category/strategicplanning/