Strategic Planning “Plans are nothing; planning is everything.”

– Dwight D. Eisenhower

“If you don’t know where you’re going, you might end up somewhere else.”

- Casey Stengel

Course Outline and ObjectivesSession 1: • Strategic planning tools, language and models being used today• Case study: Ann Storck Center, Ft. Lauderdale• Small group discussionsYour Strategic Plan: • Work one-on-one with instructors• Instructors are available for individual consultation throughout the week and

via phone and e-mail.Session 2: • Review required readings• Short presentations• Conducting performance measurements and a balanced scorecard• Taking what you have learned back to your organization

An Outside Set of Eyes

Case Study:

The Ann Stork Center

Servicing the developmentally disabled Located Ft. Lauderdale

The Ann Storck Center• Hired the FIU Florida Institute of Government as a

consultant

• not necessary to hire consultant to get “big picture perspective”

• Goal: to develop a strategic and marketing plan

• What we do and how we do it; fundamentals and means

An Outside Set of EyesCentral Issue:

• Senior management and board’s perceived need to review “the big picture”• Most felt like they were facing a pivot point

• Disengagement of board

• Appointed accounting firm recommended getting an “outside set of eyes"

• Operating deficits required offsetting contributions

What was accomplished:

• Developed a strategic planning tool that lead to a business plan rather than a marketing plan• A 3-5 year plan is realistic; no more than that

• Provided a document that no one could “avoid” • Sometimes it is easier to accept coming from the “outside”

An Outside Set of Eyes

Why Are You Here?• Do you have a formal strategic plan?

• Do you step back regularly and evaluate WHAT YOU DO & HOW YOU DO IT? Is the BIG PICTURE clear?

• Where are you in the lifecycle of your organization: adolescence, middle-age, decline?

• Do you see a pivot point or change on the horizon?

• Think about what you want to get out of this course

Words of Wisdom The Future Comes Quickly

“You know, at one time there must have been dozens of companies making buggy whips. And

I'll bet the last company around was the one that made the best goddamn buggy whip you ever

saw.”

- Danny DeVito, Other People’s Money, (1991)

Planning is fun and

productive

Exercise I: Following 5 questions are the basis of the Peter Drucker

book series that you have in front of you

Take 10 minutes and answer the 5 questions in terms of your own organization

• WHERE ARE WE NOW?

• WHAT DO WE HAVE TO WORK WITH?

• WHERE DO WE WANT TO BE?

• HOW DO WE GET THERE?

Strategic Planning for the Future

• Provides Common Game Plan

• Sets Direction

• Helps Gain Commitment

• Enables Managers and Leaders to Make Informed

Decisions

• Determines How Resources Will Be Used

Why Plan?

Major Elements of A Strategic Plan

• Assessment of the Current Environment • Vision and Mission • Strategy • Goals and Objectives • Action Plans • Implementation • Evaluation and Modification

Strategic Planning Features

• It is a focused process that concentrates on

selected issues most important to a nonprofit

organizations vision

• It realistically assesses an organization and its

strengths and opportunities while considering

other elements in the environment

Strategic Planning Features, con’t.

• It explicitly considers resource availability and how resources can be used most effectively

• It considers major events and changes occurring outside the organization and the impact they can be expected to have on the organization

• It is action oriented with a strong emphasis on implementation and achievement of practical results

Benefits of Strategic Planning

• Helps to accomplish most important things

• Helps educate members of the organization about plans and builds consensus about important issues and actions necessary to address these issues

Benefits of Strategic Planning, con’t.

• Can position the organization to seize opportunities

• Can shed new light on important issues through rigorous analysis

• Helps to identify the most effective use of limited resources

Guidelines for Strategic Planning • Set broad policy directions based upon the values

and goals of the organization

• Analyze global, national, regional, and industry trends that affect the organization

• Identify local strengths and opportunities, particularly in relation to other NPO’s –what makes your NPO unique? What is your competitive advantage?

Guidelines for Strategic Planning, con’t.

• Select key issues

• Conduct further analysis of external and internal factors after key issues are identified

• Develop a plan of action

• Evaluate, modify, and update the plan

Strategic Planning: Cyclical and Continuous

How to Develop and

Implement a Strategic Plan

within a Committee or Task

Force Structure – or alone

The How to……

• Develop a base of Information

• Identify Major Issue Areas

• Identify and Map Assets

• Identify Favorable and Unfavorable “SWOT”

Factors

• Develop a Vision Statement

SWOT Analysis• Strengths

• characteristics of the organization or team that give it an advantage

• Weaknesses • characteristics that place the organization at a disadvantage

• Opportunities • external chances to make greater sales, profits or impact

• Threats• external elements in the environment that could cause problems

Exercise II:Take 15 min. and do a mini-SWOT analysis on your

organization

The How to……

• Develop a mission statement (write a statement of purpose to guide activities)

• Prepare a Goal Statement (establish a list of goals and purposes)

• Develop Specific Objectives Under Each Stated Goal

• Form Committees of Task Forces (5-8 members) to address Specific Objectives

The How to……

• Each Group or Task Force Develops Tactical Strategies for Implementation of Each Objective in an Action Plan

• The Task Force Presents a Report to the Whole Group, Advisory Board or Committee for Evaluation and Feedback

The How to…

• Tasks Force Representatives Present Reports to Key Decision Makers (stakeholders) and the Public as Deemed Appropriate

• Progress Reports are Due at Appointed Times (3-6 months)

Strategic Planning Can Be Used To

Determine Organizational Mission, Vision,

Values, Goals, Objectives, Roles and

Responsibilities, Timelines, etc.

Strategic Planning Is the First Step In the Development of a Results-Based Accountability

System

Strategic Planning Questions Can you add anything to your first response?

• Where are we now?

• What do we have to work with?

• Where do we want to be ?

• How do we get there?

Strategic Planning Assumptions

• The Organization must Be Responsive to a Dynamic, Changing Environment

• Decisions Must Ensure the Organizations Ability to Successfully Respond to Changes in the Environment

Strategic Planning and Strategic Thinking

• Strategic Planning is only Useful if it Supports Strategic Thinking that Leads to Strategic Management

• Strategic Thinking “Are we doing the right thing?”

• Definite Purpose

• An Understanding of the Environment in Particular the

Forces that Affect or Impede the Fulfillment of the Purpose

• Creativity in Developing an Effective Response to those

Forces

Strategic Management • Strategic Management is the Application of

Strategic Thinking to the Job of Leading an Organization

• Strategic Management continually asks “Are we doing the right thing?”

• Strategic Management focuses on the “Big Picture” and the Willingness to Adapt to Changing Circumstances

Elements of Strategic Management

• Formulation of the Organizations Future Mission in Light of Changing External Factors (i.e. regulation, competition, technology, customers, etc.)

• Development of a Competitive Strategy to Achieve the Mission

• Creation of an Organizational Structure that will Deploy Resources to Successfully Carry out the Strategy

The Five Most Important Questions You Will Ever Ask About Your Organization

1. What is our mission?

2. Who is our customer?

3. What does the customer value?

4. What are our results?

5. What is our plan?

What is Our Mission? • What is the current mission? • What are our challenges? • What are our opportunities? • Does the mission need to be revisited?

Relationship to Elements of a Strategic Plan• Assessment of the Current Environment • Vision and Mission Assessment

Who is Our Customer?

• Who is our primary customer?

• Who are our supporting customers?

• How will our customers change?

Relationship to Elements of a Strategic Plan

• Considers events and changes occurring outside the organization & the impact they can be expected to have on the organization

• Helps educate members of the organization about plans and builds consensus about important issues and actions necessary to address these issues

What Does the Customer Value?

• What do we believe our primary and supporting customers value?

• What knowledge do we need to gain from our customers?

• How will I participate in gaining this knowledge?

What Does the Customer Value, con’t.?

Relationships to Elements of a Strategic Plan

• Can shed new light on important issues through rigorous analysis

• Sets broad policy direction based on the values and goals of the organization

• Helps to accomplish the most important things

What are Our Results?

How do we define results?

Are we successful?

How should we define results?

What must we strengthen or abandon?

What are our results, con’t?

Relationship to Elements of a Strategic Plan

• It is a focused process that concentrates on selected issues important to a nonprofit organizations vision

• It realistically assess an organization and its strengths and opportunities while considering other elements in the environment

What is our Plan?

• Should the mission be changed?

• What are our goals?

What is our Plan, con’t? Relationship to Elements of a Strategic Plan

• Develop a base of Information

• Identify Major Issue Areas

• Identify and Map Assets

• Identify Favorable and Unfavorable “SWOT” Factors

• Prepare a Goal Statement & Establish A list of Goals and Purposes

What is our Plan, con’t?

Relationship – con’t……

• Develop Specific Objectives Under Each Stated Goal

• Form Committees or Assign those Responsible to Address Specific Objectives

• Those assigned will Develop Tactical Strategies for Implementation of Each Objective in an Action Plan

• Monitor, Evaluate, Report, and Modify Action Plans as Necessary

Exercise III:Take 15 min. and answer the following:

1. What is our mission?

2. Who is our customer?

3. What does the customer value?

4. What are our results?

5. What is our plan?

Strategy is Only One Ingredient:A Balanced Scorecard

Having the “game plan” requires vision…but there are other

components.

Other Critical FactorsAre you a “learning” organization?

• Per Drucker—is dissent encouraged?

• Can you learn from mistakes?

• Are personnel given timely and meaningful feedback on performance?

• Can you recruit and retain qualified personnel?• Salary issues• “Politics”

Other Critical Factors II• Do you have scheduled “customer” feedback

on outcomes and processes?

• Can IT provide the necessary information on a “need to know basis”?

• Does the reward structure (financial and “other”) send the signals that foster productivity?

Other Factors III

You need to understand strategy…but…

• It is one of many factors regarding organizational health

• It may not mean much without the means for execution

• Staying connected with an ever-changing environment requires “eternal vigilance”

On to the BSCPer Drucker: Do you have a plan?

• Great…but how do you track performance?

• The dominant performance indicators are financial• Scarcity applies to all organizations, public, private and non-profit

• We tend to be a short-term oriented culture; the next quarter or year is

what counts

• Financial metrics are easy to design and generally accepted

Norton and Kaplan’s Paradigm Shift

• Harvard Business Review article of 1992 may be on of the most influential in history

• Financials are critical but…

• They are lagging (i.e., rear view)

• They tend to be short-term

• They ultimately reflect a wider range of qualitative factors (both strategic and tactical)

• Hence the need for a “Balanced Scorecard”

So, We Need Balance• Financials in the non-profit/public sector: tend to

emphasize cost-effectiveness

• Customers: are we listening to needs and wants

• Internal Business Processes: how do we process people, data, etc., rapidly and cheaply?

• Learning and Growth: Human capital drives success and adds value

Generally Accepted Framework

• Has become the basis of many “dashboards”

• Is not viewed as perfect but certainly plausible

• Forces decision makers to see indicators outside of the financial box

• Places human capital at the forefront of value added in an organization

Exercise IV:Take 15 min.

What a balanced scorecard would look like for your organization?

What are your key performance indicators?

• Financials• Customers

• Internal Business Processes• Learning & Growth

References: Excerpts from the following articles and book were used to develop this presentation:

• Strategic Planning Process: Steps in Developing Strategic Plans By Diane Schilder, Harvard Family Research Project

• What is Strategic Planning; The Nonprofit FAQ, Idealist.org

• Module 2 – Strategic Planning for Nonprofit Organizations, Improving Boards and Organizational Effectiveness

• The Five Most Important Questions you will Ever Ask About your Organization; by Peter F. Drucker et.al., Leader to Leader Institute