Category Archives: Strategic Planning

Continuous Improvement, Strategic Planning

Planning Matters!

strategic planning

According to data from the Project Management Institute (PMI), at least 40% of the ideal project life-cycle consists of planning!

Yet in too many instances, and often with good intentions such as ‘zeal for getting started quickly,’ people fail to effectively plan their improvement efforts.

As a result, if strategic plans do not deliver expected results it leaves senior leaders wondering what happened — was it a flawed strategy or poor execution?

To be successful, strategic planning requires a mix of imagination and realism — often referred to as Imagineering. Imagination to describe an innovative product or service, or a way to market for which there is little or no competition, and realism to make sure that there is a practical way of executing the strategy — i.e., engineer it back to reality.

Other steps for effectively crafting a strategic plan before launching an improvement project include:

  • Assess current reality and opportunities, both external and internal
  • Develop and communicate mission and vision
  • Define the gaps between “is” and “needs to be” and set the right goals
  • Develop, assess and select strategic alternatives
  • Compare best practices to ensure the strategy can be executed
  • Convert strategy into action, using strategy maps and a balanced scorecard
  • Launch and build high performance teams and work groups to execute the strategy
Strategic Planning

Your New Year Strategic Plan?

As a new year begins, many organizations will formulate and launch a strategic plan, which is essentially a high level description of what you intend to do, what you do not intend to do, and how you will move from where you are to where you want to be. Naturally, the goals of these plans will vary; and while some of these plans may be designed for completion or goal achievement within the year, others may target longer periods of time.

But regardless of objective or time span, all too often, strategic plans do not deliver expected results and senior leaders wonder what happened — was it a flawed strategy or poor execution?

To be successful, strategic planning requires a mix of imagination and realism.

  • Imagination to describe an innovative product or service, or a way to market for which there is little or no competition
  • Realism to make sure that there is a practical way of executing the strategy

A few best practices that can help leaders formulate and execute strategic plans include:

  • Assess current reality and opportunities, both external and internal
  • Develop and communicate mission and vision
  • Define the gaps between “is” and “needs to be” and set the right goals
  • Develop, assess and select strategic alternatives
  • Compare best practices to ensure the strategy can be executed
  • Convert strategy into action, using strategy maps or similar tools
  • Launch and build high performance teams and work groups to execute the strategy
  • Maintain robust communication throughout the execution phase, including regular interactions with all stakeholders
  • Measure both progress and results
Continuous Improvement, Process Improvement, Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning Part 2: The Beginning

Our previous post focused on best practices for executing strategic plans. Taking a step back, this post will focus on the formation of those plans.

To begin, a strategic plan is a high level description of what you intend to do, what you do not intend to do, and how you will move from where you are to where you want to be. A typical time horizon is 3 – 5 years, but may vary depending upon the industry.

These plans should not be confused with long-term budgets or “wish lists.”

Instead, the strategic plan links the mission, vision, goals and objectives. The strategy also needs the buy-in from those expected to deliver. For that reason, they need to be involved from the outset.

Further, to be successful, strategic planning requires a mix of imagination and realism.

  • Imagination to describe an innovative product or service, or a way to market for which there is little or no competition.
  • Realism to make sure that there is a practical way of executing the strategy.

Here are some of the specific steps for formulating your plan:

  • Assess current reality and opportunities, both external and internal
  • Develop and/or communicate mission and vision to ensure alignment
  • Define the gaps between “is” and “needs to be” and set the right goals
  • Develop, assess and select strategic alternatives
  • Compare best practices to ensure the strategy can be executed
  • Convert strategy into action, using strategy maps and a balanced scorecard
  • Launch and build high performance teams and work groups to execute the strategy
  • Create an accountability plan so that people at all levels are held accountable for taking the action steps outlined above and for staying-the-course