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How do I execute my Strategic Plan?

Tactical planning will follow to flesh out the details that will enable successful execution of the strategies.

What is everyone’s role in creating and executing the Strategic Plan?

The planning process needs to be owned by the leadership of the association. Usually, this is the board of directors and senior staff. Insights relayed from the frontline staff can prepare the volunteer leaders to be grounded in the members true needs, so that they can plan on the basis of more than just their own perspective.

How do I get buy-in from stakeholders?

A standard two- or three-day strategic planning retreat can be effective to focus attention on strategy each year. Increasingly, though, strategic planning conversations are broken down into the component parts and spread over a much longer period. For example, environmental scanning data may be shared in the first meeting, with discussion on what the data means for the organization.

What should our Strategic Plan focus on?

Most associations cannot continue to do all the things they have been doing and then pile on new direction-setting initiatives. Being “strategic” implies that choices will be made so that the association will become more relevant, more competitive, or will achieve a desired positioning in the global marketplace. Strategic planning naturally involves, you guessed it, strategy. It is a form of planning and evaluation.

Where should we start?

Most associations start with a charter (or purpose) presented in the articles of incorporation and serves as a constant reminder of the original intent. A mission statement describes the primary purpose of the organization. This should be carefully crafted, concise, and unambiguous. It defines why the association exists. The vision is an aspiration of what the world will look like when the association is successful.