Every one in any organisation will at one time or another express a wish that more planning "could have gone into this", as they struggle to respond to the latest set of challenges. In fact of course, no matter how much planning you do it is inevitable that your organisation will need to respond to unforeseen changes and frankly it will always be part of what you do. However, organisations (for profit or not for profit) that are most successful are those that are consistently thinking ahead of their competitors and always seem ready for the next set of changes or challenges. Consciously or otherwise, they are thinking strategically and are planning ahead. They have a Strategic Plan.
My concept of Strategic Planning is not about a frozen plan that will outline what you need to do at any given time, it is about:
• Being clear throughout your organisation as to why you exist at all
• Developing a strategic approach in response to achieving that goal
• Documenting that approach and having all levels of the organisation accept the process
• Have in place a system where it is reviewed and adjusted as necessary
Obviously much work goes to achieving those simple statements. However it is not as time consuming as you might think, but it is about a willingness to embrace a culture of thinking strategically and incorporating that in day to day operations. Often this is left to the CEO or similar to do, but what makes them the only one that can do this? What happens if they run out of ideas or just get tired? Imagine what it would be like if many people were able to think at a strategic level and contribute to this process, wouldn't that would put any organisation ahead of their competitors?
On Luck
How often have you heard people say that they "were just in the right place at the right time", or you know that this is just luck? Well it is true that you can be lucky but I bet it is what they did that bought about that luck. You hear this same thing in relation to organisations what have been successful in for example a large tender. But the fact is they will have:
• Seen an opportunity and gone for it when others may not have
• Known about the potential of this opportunity before most others and planned for it
• Analysed their weaknesses in relation to this opportunity and addressed them by taking concrete action as far as possible in advance
• Gave themselves plenty of time to prepare the submission including if necessary engaging expert help to assist them
In other words they made their own luck. They had a strategic organisation that acted strategically in line with their established goals.
Why not talk to Chris Hobson Consultancy about how you can create a dynamic Strategic Plan. Call 1300 923 992.