Increase operational efficiency with a contemporary strategic plan

In the modern workplace, smart and effective employees (regardless of where they sit in the organisation) must be able to identify how their role contributes to organisational goals. This not only engenders personal job satisfaction but ownership of a progressive organisation.

If your organisation is losing valuable employees, or experiencing a decline in productivity, it could be because people can’t see where they fit and how their role contributes to achieving the goals of the strategic plan.

As a result, it might be time to review whether your plan is entirely strategic and how it’s being communicated to staff.

Articulate strategic positioning

There is no doubt that developing a contemporary strategic plan that is supported by realistic measures can be challenging. All too often CEOs lament that board members are too involved in operational matters. One reason for this may be because the strategic plan isn’t entirely strategic and contains operational elements that really belong in a business plan. A strategic agenda should define a unique position, make clear trade-offs and tighten organisational fit.

To work out where your organisation fits within the broader community, you need to identify the organisation’s unique value proposition and then determine whether it caters to the broad needs of a few customers or the few needs of many customers. Being clear on these points will help cement the organisation’s true role in the landscape and its capacity to deliver.

Recognising these factors also raises questions about whether there are any trade-offs as the organisation must also decide what not to do. This is a question many not-for-profits struggle with as it affects long held views or unspoken beliefs that we need to be all things to all people.

Organisations that identify their unique assets as the essence of their strategy experience a transformation in growth while those that don’t place themselves in fierce competition for a share of
the market.

Clearly define roles

Understanding the roles of board members and the CEO in the process is important and should be straightforward; board members govern and offer strategic counsel while the CEO manages the everyday operations. Together with the executive and leadership team they strengthen the strategic position rather than broaden or compromise it. They are also responsible for increasing organisational uniqueness while strengthening the fit among activities, and they must have the discipline and courage to set boundaries and direct communication.

Ultimately, a strategic plan not only keeps the organisation on course but also affords the board members and executive time to build strategic awareness.

Review the plan annually

When it comes time to undertake an annual review of the plan, commit to the task with the same energy as you did during the initial planning phases.

A meaningful review should consider whether the vision is still valid and if any issues encountered during the year hindered the organisation from realising its vision. Opportunities that emerged should also be considered and a forecasting should be made of potential risks and opportunities for the year ahead.

Ensure the plan is accessible

Once the plan has been discussed by the board members and executive, it’s critical to get the buy-in of staff. This is really important as staff can sometimes fail at delivering on a plan simply because they can’t see how it relates to their day-to-day job.

Get your staff engaged by taking a vertical slice of the organisation and bringing them together in workshops. Ask them to interpret in their own words what they see in the plan and then collate this feedback and use it to prepare an alternate plan that is written in language that the staff understand and
engage with.

Make the plan visible in the workplace

Having your plan easily accessible makes it a living document, encouraging discussion and serving as a reminder to staff that what they do is relevant and important to organisational sustainability. For this reason, it’s a good idea to have copies of this staff-friendly plan displayed around the workplace. Additionally, clearly place your organisation’s vision and mission at the top of all meeting agendas to keep it top of mind.

Really use your strategic plan and don’t let it be one of those office documents left to gather dust on a book shelf. Smart organisations embrace their planning. They use it as a framework for reporting and a means to maintain transparency, and they reference their plan constantly to keep on track and keep goals in sight.

Sarah Harding

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