Strategic planning provides a blueprint to realizing your organization’s vision. Yet many organizations treat strategic planning as a onetime event hastily completed so that “everyone can get back to work.” It’s no surprise then that the majority of organizations fail to implement key strategies or achieve their strategic goals. For example, it’s estimated that fewer than 10% of organizations achieve the financial goals outlined in their strategic plans.

Organizations that execute strategy well clearly define their plans and then align their key leadership processes for effective implementation. We believe leaders need to view strategic planning as an important step in the ongoing continuum of leadership. Leaders should deliberately structure the process so it results in a plan that makes the right investments at the right time to ensure both short and long term competitiveness. The strategic plan should then serve as a roadmap, or compass that guides implementation and even daily operations.

Consider the following tips for structuring and leading effective strategic planning:

1. Engagement
2. Frame Up
3. Truth Telling
4. Decision Making

Engagement – If top leaders are not personally committed and proactively engaged, then the message is “this is not a priority.”

Frame Up – Set the stage by outlining the strategic planning process and determining what a successful outcome looks like. This will save a lot of time and frustration by setting expectations and boundaries for the process prior to launching the project. Answer questions such as:

• What are we going to use the plan for?
• What questions do we need answered?
• What goals do we expect the plan to achieve?
• What high level guidelines do we need to give our team?

The mechanics of the strategic planning process should also be addressed:

• What deliverables are expected?
• Who will do the work?
• How will the process be run?

Truth Telling – Too often strategic plans do not sufficiently examine the external and internal forces that may influence the future. Planners need to critically evaluate opportunities and approaches in the context of a comprehensive view of external trends and competitors, as well as a realistic assessment of the organization’s strengths and limitations. Leaders may also need to challenge the status quo and catalyze out-of-the-box thinking by asking the following questions:

• How will we be able to keep our customers?
• How might others attract the customers we want?
• What are we good at?
• What have we done poorly?
• What might surprise us?

Decision Making – Strategic plans are not strategic unless they drive active choices about what you will and won’t do. Critical to a good plan is clarity on the “must achieve” goals translated into a prioritized list of strategic planning initiatives that achieve the desired outcomes. This requires defining new investments as well as identifying activities that you need to cancel or revise.

• Translating Strategies Into Plans – Once you have your strategies defined, map out an implementation plan that includes milestones and expected outcomes for all initiatives. This plan should serve as a map against which progress is measured.
• Structuring for Results – Without active management, strategic planning quickly becomes shelf ware. Strategic initiatives should be treated like projects with implementation plans and measures. Clear accountabilities need to be set for all expected results. Implementation should be linked to operations functions such as reviews, budgeting and performance management.
• Bringing Others Along – You can’t get there if no one follows you. Leaders should be inclusive throughout the process to make sure the best thinking is brought to the table and that key staff see their fingerprints on the resulting plans. Additionally, leaders need to identify and align all stakeholders, and continually communicate and champion the planning process and its outcomes.

Given the daily pressures of running an organization, leading strategic planning and implementation is one of the more difficult responsibilities of leadership. By keeping strategy implementation top of mind and deliberately incorporating best practices into your leadership processes, your organizations will be able to plan and implement strategy effectively.

Article Source: sooperarticles.com/business-articles/strategic-management-articles/how-strategic-planning-helps-organization-achieve-goals-402730.html

About Author:

Tim Jenkins is the co-founder of Point B, a leading management consulting firm headquartered in Seattle, WA. For more information about strategic planning, visit pointb.com/ today.Author: Tim Jenkins