Last
modified October
13,
2010
Strategic
Planning:
An Essential Tool
It
is always the right time of the year for strategic planning.
Now, more than ever, leaders of organizations must consider ways
of reaching their audiences and planning for the future. In order
to survive, compete and prosper, entities must design stages
with importance and value leading the way. This disciplined effort
helps with decision-making, change, budgets, seasonal market
fluctuations and other proactive measures that guide organizations
to reach goals.
Strategic planning is
all about what an organization is inside, where you want
to be and how you plan to get there.
There are ten steps
in the process:
- Agree on the process
- Develop organizational
consent
- Identify everyone
involved and refine mission and values statements
- Prepare a SWOT analysis – Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats
- Identify and frame
strategic issues
- Devise strategies
to manage the questions and issues
- Review and adopt
the plan with active participation
- Institute an effective
organizational vision for the future
- Develop an effective
implementation process
- Re-examine strategies
and the process continually
By using this format,
your organization has the opportunity to reach specific goals
quickly and effectively. Drive your strategic planning by results
so you will achieve your desired outcomes.
At MCS, we work through
the process every year to make sure we are on-track with
trends, realities and new thoughts. Constant improvement is an
indispensable
part of any group, both fundamental and necessary.
If you have
any questions about any of these steps – give us a call.
Book Review
Winning
Decisions: Getting It Right the First
Time
Authors:
J. Edward Russo and Paul J. H. Schoemaker
Do you ever have to make decisions?
Of course you do. Every organization revolves around making
decisions, some big and some small. Many
of them are precarious decisions. Do you ever have enough
information? Usually not. Many decisions have to be made quickly
in order
to take
advantage of an opportunity.
People at every level of an organization
are confronted with decisions they are not prepared to make.
J. Edward Russo
and Paul Schoemaker
are seasoned leaders who have created models that can help
anyone make a critical decision. This must-read guide to
decision making
is for leaders everywhere, at every level of the spectrum.
The authors believe that decision making is
a practiced art that requires training. It describes the steps
that
take you through
to a logical conclusion and how to improve your chances
of making the
right decision, the first time. The case studies include
companies like British Airways, NASA and Pepsi.
By framing
a decision correctly, you can see the options and weigh the
specifics to make successful, essential
choices. The
authors
refer to the steps needed when making choices as:
1.
Framing
2. Gathering Intelligence
3. Drawing Conclusions
4. Learning from Experience
Many people are faced with the same
sorts of decisions daily, yet depending on the day they make
decisions
more by feel than
by reason – guess that’s
why getting a second opinion before surgery is a good thing!
There
are lots of reasons to have a blog…
Getting
started with a blog may seem difficult and time consuming, but
once you’ve posted a few comments, quotes, book reviews,
pictures or video and so on, you’ll find out just how easy
it can be. One of the best reasons to have a blog is to let your
customers know you are alive and well and care about them. This
doorway to your organization is important because people get
to know you and your capabilities.
Reading
a newspaper or industry newsletters, stories and links can
be thought-provoking and provide blog post ideas. If you are just
starting a blog, drop us a note and we can get you started… (this
is timely because we have just re-designed ours). Keep in mind
that everything you write can be used or quoted, so be sure
to remember who your target audiences are.
Your
audience will primarily be looking for helpful tips and information.
They tend to scan post titles and read what sounds interesting.
Keep paragraphs short, highlight quotes, use numbered lists
and bullet points.
Original
information from you or someone at your organization shows
personality; but don’t hesitate to include inspirational quotes and
exciting industry information from other sources – just
remember to give them credit for their words.
Be sure
to include trends, research, industry news, conferences, seminars,
tips, tactics and tools to help your customers with challenges.
All of this terrific information makes you look like an industry
expert. You will be a valuable resource.
Be sure
to get your audience involved by asking their opinion, share
information and get them to comment on your topic.
This
information should get you started. Please feel free to share
your best blog writing tips and let us know what you are doing….
