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Plan Design and Timeline

 

While there is not a required order of events in a planning process, here is a sample suggestion for your consideration.

The Basic Planning Process

  1. If available, review your organization’s previous strategic plan and/or final reports. Look for lessons learned, goals which might be carried over, or other strategic directions.
  2. Assemble your organization’s main planning team – it should be representative of the makeup of the organization and include members of organization leadership. If your organization involves working with students, include them as well.
  3. Design or update your Mission and Vision statements to guide your planning process. Distribute to key stakeholders for approval. (Mission, Vision, Values section)
  4. Consider the broad themes (or “priorities” if you prefer) for the organization’s plan. (Note: These themes are generally reflected in your organization’s Vision statement.) Try to keep the list of themes to five areas or fewer. Make sure all your organization’s functional areas (i.e. departments, divisions, schools, programs, centers, institutes, et al) are engaged in this process. If your organization develops more than five areas, this may be an indicator that the efforts are focused more on completing tasks than on enacting meaningful change.
  5. Based on these themes, define Goals for your organization over the next plan cycle. Goals should illustrate the positive changes for which your organization will strive and should reflect the aspirations in your Vision statement. Limit yourself to 4-5 distinct Goals that do not overlap in intent. You may consider a process such as SMART to define your Goals. Consider assigning each Goal to a subcommittee for an elaboration phase. (SMART section of goals tab)
  6. For each Goal, identify relevant Objectives (3-4 max per Goal). Objectives are the various initiatives and processes that build towards the achievement of each Goal. Once you have outlined your Objectives, create Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) which illustrate progress towards each Objective. (Measures section)
  7. For each Objective, identify Strategies (again, 3-4 max per Objective). Strategies are the specific tasks that must be completed to achieve an Objective. Then, craft Metrics for each Strategy. Metrics are progress measures towards the completion of each Strategy. (Measures section)
  8. Establish baselines for KPIs and Metrics. Determine how your organization will track progress towards the targets for each.
  9. Create a timeline for implementation and personnel assignments for completion of the Strategies. (Implementation section)
  10. When the plan is complete, have the organization’s major stakeholders review the plan.
  11. After receiving feedback, make any necessary edits, publicize your plan internally, and begin implementation. (Implementation section)
  12. Report progress to your organization and its stakeholders and solicit feedback and recommendations. Adjust plan accordingly.
  13. Enjoy your organization’s evolution, improvement, and change!

 

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