Strategic Planning: 4 Key Elements of an Effective Strategic Plan [VIDEO]

Imagine looking forward to a week of vacation with your extended family. You certainly wouldn't expect them all to show up at the right place and the right time if you didn't provide them with a destination and a clear plan of how to get there.

As one French writer put it, “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” -Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

It's surprising how many organizations lack a clear strategic action plan. The two main reasons smart leaders fail to do effective strategic planning are 1) they are just too busy or 2) they don't know how to go about it. In fact, one study from Harvard Business Review showed that only 8% of leaders are good at both strategy and execution (2015).

In our experience helping businesses, nonprofits, and churches develop strategic plans, we have found that there are four key elements to an effective strategic plan.

1. Solicit Broad Input

First, it's important to solicit broad input. You want to know how a broad spectrum of your stakeholders feel about the organization – what its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats are.

2. Gain Leadership Team Alignment

Second, it's important to gain leadership team alignment. It's critical that your key leaders believe these are the right goals and the right way to get there.

3. Develop a Plan-on-a-Page

Third developed on actionable plan on a page. It's important that you have the right metrics, milestones, and owners in place so that you can hold your team accountable to accomplishing the plan. Try to get it on one page. It doesn't help to have a thick, glossy binder with a strategic plan that just sits on the shelf and collects dust.

4. Use a Good Facilitator

And finally, be sure to use a good facilitator. Some teams already have someone that can help them with this, but many find it beneficial to hire an outside facilitator who can help them with the process, challenge their assumptions, identify gaps, etc. In fact, just this week we got a call from an organization that was doing a strategic plan. And even though they had a consultant on their board of directors, they wanted our outside assistance to help them with the process.

As you think about your organization, remember, “Rowing harder doesn't help if the boat is headed in the wrong direction,” Kenichi Ohmae.

So the question is, how do you keep your boat headed in the right direction? Comment below!

Contact us if we can be of any help as you develop your plan!

Gray Wirth has served more than 30 years as a leader in corporate, nonprofit, small business, and military contexts. He has successfully led organizations ranging from 100 to 3,100 employees. Gray has lived and worked in five different countries, been a CEO, and accumulated more than 25 years of experience on nonprofit and for-profit boards. He brings experience in executive coaching, strategic planning, and advising boards of directors and business owners. As a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®), Gray helps business owners plan in advance for future transitions to ensure that their business, personal, and financial objectives will be achieved. Gray is a U.S. Army veteran and holds a B.S. from Cornell University, an M.B.A. from Harvard University, and an M.A.R. from Westminster Theological Seminary.