A company’s true value is largely determined by its long-term performance potential as shaped by management’s decisions made today. These decisions guide the translation of the company’s mission, its purpose for existing, into the products and services it provides and hopefully the market wants.
Strategic planning is an iterative, ongoing process consisting of:
- Analysis: assessment of the internal and external factors effecting the organization’s ability to achieve its mission
- Alternative Development: detailed assessment of the costs, benefits, and risks associated with strategic alternatives including both major, ongoing and newly proposed activities
- Alternative Selection: identification of the current portfolio components and proposed activities that will be pursued and the time frame for execution
- Resource Projections: aggregation of the personnel, financial, physical, and technological needs including an assessment of the ability to acquire these resources within the needed time frame
- Plan Development: final validation of the organization’s mission and compilation and approval of its long-range and annual business plans
Execution of these iterative processes takes place throughout the year with a frequency dictated by the pace of market change.
Focus of the Strategic Planning Forum
This forum will focus on the principles, best practices, and warning flags associated with the leading practices of companies that successfully execute strategic planning processes to define objectives, drive alignment, and enhance performance. The following articles, podcasts, documents, and resources cover those topics critical to an exceptional strategic planning program.
Articles
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Principles
- Why Do Organizations Need Strategic Planning [SL]
- How Much Should Organizations Spend on Business Planning? [SL]
Best Practices
- Best Practice – Make the Mission Measurable
- Best Practice – Prioritize the Mission
- Best Practice – Strategic Discipline
- Best Practice – Ongoing Planning and Execution
- Best Practice – Defined Program
- Best Practice – Focus on Strength
- Best Practice – Shared Accountability
- Best Practice – Results First, Actions Second
- Best Practice – Avoid Using Jargon
- Best Practice – Future Focus
- Best Practice – One Priority List
- Best Practice – Planning for the Best and the Worst
- Best Practice – The Use of Calendars
- Best Practice – Never Be Satisfied
Warning Flags
StrategyDriven Podcasts
StrategyDriven Podcast
- Introduction to Strategic Planning
- Making the Mission Measurable
- Prioritize the Mission, part 1 of 2
- Prioritize the Mission, part 2 of 2
- Your Leadership Off-Site is Wasting a Lot of People’s Time
StrategyDriven Podcast – Video Edition
StrategyDriven Podcast – Special Edition
- An Interview with John Leonetti, author of Exiting Your Business, Protecting Your Wealth, part 1 of 2
- An Interview with John Leonetti, author of Exiting Your Business, Protecting Your Wealth, part 2 of 2
- An Interview with Steve Steinhilber, author of Strategic Alliances
- An Interview with Ken Blanchard, author of Leading at a Higher Level
- An Interview with Nilofer Merchant, author of The New How
- An Interview with Robert Kolb, author of Corporate Boards
- An Interview with Robert Morison, author of Analytics at Work
- An Interview with Robert Simons, author of Seven Strategy Questions
Documents
Whitepapers
Models
Resources
Books
- Essentials of Strategic Management by J. David Hunger and Thomas L. Wheelen
- Good to Great by Jim Collins
- The Accountable Organization by John Marchica
The StrategyDriven Team
Headquartered in Acworth, Georgia, StrategyDriven provides insightful business performance improvement advice to business leaders in Atlanta, the Southeast, throughout the United States, and around the World. Our world class experts are recognized leaders in their chosen fields.
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