Elements of a Strategic Plan to Revisit During Challenging Times

Strategic planning is a process that many organizations undertake to determine their current status and purpose, as well as prepare for and guide their future. Going through such a process brings stakeholders together, creates dialog, and produces a common vision. Organizations that have undergone strategic planning and have completed a plan possess a valuable decision-making tool that contains various components. These components can be used as benchmarks to determine if decisions and actions will divert from or support the organization's underlying mission.

For the strategic plan to fulfill its full potential, it needs to be continually monitored for items such as relevancy and progress on recommended actions. When events of far-reaching impact occur, it is especially critical for organizational leaders and stakeholders to view the components of their plan for guidance and direction.

Mission Statement

A mission statement conveys an organization's values, who they serve, why they exist, and how they intend to operate. When confronted with difficult issues and decisions around items such as funding shifts, limitations on available resources, and future programming, it is important that an organization refer to its mission statement and ask relevant questions.  For example:

• How will this decision enhance or detract from our mission?
• What are the expectations of and/or impacts on our stakeholders?
• Will the results of the decision take away or increase time and resources that are critical to our mission?
• Is our mission still relevant? Does it still represent why we exist?

Organizational Assessment

When strategic plans are developed, organizations normally go through a process that includes an assessment of the organization itself as well as the surrounding environment.  This includes looking at both internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats. It also includes a review of relevant data and trends.  Such a process helps the organization anticipate future conditions around its work and adjust for changes. When major influential events occur, organizations should consider a review of the assessment data the plan was based upon and determine if plan adjustments are necessary. For example, significant funding changes or a change in stakeholder practices or priorities could impact the subsequent goals and action steps included in the plan.  Depending on the degree or applicability of the changes, revisions may or may not be applicable.

Goals/Objectives & Action Plans

Organizational goals and objectives are another critical part of a strategic plan and should be tracked.  They list the specific overall accomplishments that are to be achieved along with the desired timeframes. Such goals help an organization focus on key priorities, and in turn allocate needed resources and search for relevant opportunities.  Corresponding action plans provide the supporting specifics of how the goals will be achieved (who will be responsible/what are the deadlines).

Even with changing conditions, existing goals can still be relevant. On the other hand, they may need revision if they will direct the organization down an unachievable path. In some cases, an existing goal may still be applicable, but the supporting action steps need to be updated due to issues such as funding and policy changes, operational restrictions, or new opportunities. The overarching issue is that an organization will not know if their goals and action steps are currently relevant or not unless they review and monitor their plan. Because of this, organizations that have a strategic plan should have a process in place to:

• monitor consistency in following the recommendations contained in the plan
• report on plan implementation
• document actions and impacts
• determine a need for updates

If a goal (or any part of a plan) is deemed in need of revision, any changes should occur only after a careful review of the current and anticipated conditions surrounding the organization, its underlying mission, and stakeholder expectations.