| Each of the following strategic planning mistakes is | | | | meeting location doesn't have to be fancy. In fact, |
| costly. In fact, committing any one of them could kill | | | | you can assemble a bunch of chairs in someone's |
| your strategic plan. Following the description of each | | | | living room. Just so you get away from the office |
| is an instruction on how to avoid the mistake. | | | | and its accompanying interruptions. |
| Mistake number 1: Arbitrarily selecting your planning | | | | Mistake number 8: Not allowing enough time for the |
| team members | | | | process. |
| Many managers give insufficient consideration to | | | | Some management teams want to get through their |
| choosing their planning team members. They simply | | | | planning process just as quickly as possible. Here |
| select a few senior managers with too little thought | | | | again, they're interested in "getting back to work." So |
| about their potential contribution to building a viable | | | | they run through each of the process steps as |
| strategic plan. Also, they don't consider whether each | | | | quickly as they can. As a result, their thought process |
| team member is positioned to drive the successful | | | | is hardly strategic and their resultant strategies prove |
| implementation of the resultant strategies. | | | | disappointing. |
| How to avoid this mistake: Consider carefully the | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Allow sufficient time. |
| selection of each and every member of your planning | | | | Make sure that each of your discussions goes to |
| team. And keep these two criteria in mind:o Willing | | | | sufficient depth. Remember, planning is a long-term |
| and capable of strategic thought - to assist in the | | | | investment. Properly performed, your planning |
| development of your strategic plan.o Positioned, in | | | | sessions will pay back many times your investment. |
| the organization, to drive the successful | | | | Mistake number 9: Doing it alone. |
| implementation of your resultant strategies. | | | | Instead of retaining a skilled strategy consultant to |
| Mistake number 2: Thinking of strategic planning as an | | | | lead their strategy sessions, some managers decide |
| event, rather than a process. | | | | to lead those sessions themselves. They soon learn, |
| Some managers will set aside time to develop their | | | | however, that they can't effectively lead the process |
| plan. So far, so good. Unfortunately, they'll then adopt | | | | and, at the same time, participate in the strategy |
| - and communicate - an attitude of "let's get it done | | | | discussions. Both process and content suffer. |
| and get back to work." Clearly, they fail to integrate | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Retain a skilled strategy |
| their plan into the day-to-day operation of their | | | | consultant to lead your sessions. You and your team |
| business. | | | | will take responsibility for content; your strategy |
| How to avoid this mistake: Adopt the attitude that | | | | consultant, for process. You'll benefit in both areas. |
| planning is an integral part of the operation of your | | | | And make sure that your consultant has both |
| business. In fact, your strategies, once detailed, will | | | | expertise in the planning process and the |
| become a description of work to be performed. So | | | | interpersonal skills necessary to facilitate your |
| when you and your planning team "gets back to | | | | strategy sessions. |
| work," they'll be working at accomplishing your | | | | Mistake number 10: Stifling communication. |
| strategies. | | | | Unfortunately, some managers stifle team members' |
| Mistake number 3: Not educating your planning team | | | | opinions which differ from their own. The results are |
| members to the strategic planning process. | | | | quite predictable - loss of valuable input plus damage |
| Believe it or not, some planning teams enter their | | | | to team members' buy-in. |
| strategy sessions "cold" - without first learning the | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Allow, in fact welcome, |
| process in which they're about to engage. This is a | | | | input from all. Ask questions to encourage |
| terrible mistake - for two reasons. First, the resultant | | | | participation. Then listen. And ask more questions. |
| lack of understanding seriously affects performance. | | | | Mistake number 11: Keeping your strategy a secret. |
| Thus the quality of the resultant plan - and the | | | | Some decide not to publish a written strategic plan, |
| strategies within the plan - suffer. Second, failure to | | | | but rather keep it private among the few top |
| educate the planning team misses the opportunity to | | | | managers who developed it. But since others must |
| build enthusiasm among the team's members. The | | | | help to implement the resultant strategies, they'll |
| quality of their discussions, the resultant strategies, | | | | certainly need to know "what's up"? Of course, |
| and the implementation of those strategies all suffer. | | | | strategy implementation suffers. |
| How to avoid this mistake: Conduct a Strategic | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Be open with |
| Planning Workshop for your planning team members. | | | | communication of your strategic plan. You'll improve |
| The workshop will not only educate, but also build | | | | the implementation of your strategies - for two |
| your managers' enthusiasm for the process. And | | | | reasons. First, your employees will know what they're |
| make sure that the workshop includes a case study - | | | | to work on, and why. Second, they'll feel more like |
| so your team members will experience building a "mini | | | | "insiders." They'll simply care a whole lot more. |
| strategic plan." While doing so, they'll extend their | | | | Mistake number 12: Putting your plan on the shelf and |
| thinking to your own organization. They'll then be | | | | keeping it there. |
| eager to apply the process "in real life." | | | | Some management teams stop short of defining |
| Mistake number 4: Not involving employees beyond | | | | specific action steps (tactics) to detail their strategies. |
| your planning team members. | | | | And they don't conduct quarterly reviews. They |
| Some managers don't even think about asking | | | | simply assume that once they've developed their |
| employees (beyond the planning team) to help. This | | | | strategies, those strategies will simply happen - |
| mistake guarantees that the organization will miss | | | | almost automatically. No way! As Peter Drucker |
| valuable input. Also, it will squander the opportunity to | | | | wisely advised, "Nothing happens until we reduce |
| build enthusiasm for implementation of the resultant | | | | strategy to work." |
| strategies. | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Detail your strategies in |
| How to avoid this mistake: Consider the many ways | | | | action plans descriptive of work assignments. |
| to include your employees in the process - both for | | | | Conduct quarterly reviews of your strategic plan and |
| the benefit of their input, and to build their | | | | more frequent reviews of your action plans. Thus, |
| enthusiasm. For example:o Providing thoughts | | | | you'll link your strategies to individuals' work |
| (through interview or survey) on issues to discusso | | | | assignments. |
| Assistance in gathering pre-planning informationo | | | | Mistake number 13: Failure to link your strategic plan |
| Detailing resultant strategies through development of | | | | to your budgeting process. |
| action plans (lists of tactics)o Estimating resources | | | | Believe it or not, some actually fail to allocate |
| required to accomplish strategieso Implementation of | | | | resources to their strategies. They simply assume |
| resultant strategies | | | | that the money, people, facilities and equipment will |
| Mistake number 5: Ignoring the question of timing. | | | | automatically be available. Far more often than not, |
| Some assume that any time of the year is as good | | | | this assumption leads to disappointment. |
| as any other for developing strategy. Not true. | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Estimate required |
| Planning out of phase with your budgeting process | | | | resources while developing your action plans. Then |
| will leave you trying to implement this year's | | | | use those estimates to request resources in your |
| strategies with last year's resources. | | | | budgeting process. |
| How to avoid this mistake: Make sure your timing is | | | | Mistake number 14: Reluctance to revise your |
| such that your strategies "feed your budgeting | | | | strategic plan. |
| process." That way, you'll be able to allocate | | | | Some managers consider their strategic plan "cast in |
| resources in support of your strategies. | | | | concrete." No matter what happens "out there in the |
| Mistake number 6: Failing to gather applicable | | | | world," they stubbornly insist on sticking to their |
| information for your strategy sessions. | | | | strategies. This works just fine until something |
| At times, planning teams meet to develop their | | | | changes. Unfortunately, our world - more and more |
| strategic plan without having gathered the | | | | often - is characterized by significant change. So |
| information necessary to strategic thinking and | | | | reluctance to alter the plan "no matter what," can |
| decision making. Naturally, their strategy suffers. | | | | prove a recipe for disaster. |
| How to avoid this mistake: Have the members of | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Remain alert to significant |
| your planning team meet to decide on the | | | | change in the world around you. And if change should |
| information they'll need to gather, and later | | | | occur which might affect your strategy, call your |
| communicate with each other, in preparation for their | | | | planning team together. Ask your team two |
| upcoming strategy sessions. Then, just prior to your | | | | questions: (a) "How is this change likely to affect our |
| strategy sessions, conduct an Information Sharing | | | | strategy"? and (b) "How should we, therefore, |
| Meeting. At that meeting, each person responsible for | | | | change our strategy in response?" |
| information gathering should present to the entire | | | | Mistake number 15: Resistance to change. |
| planning team... hand-outs, viewgraphs, and question | | | | Some resist developing any strategy which calls for |
| and answer all work well. The intent is to build the | | | | significant change. This is understandable, for such |
| knowledge of all on your planning team... giving all | | | | strategies are often met with resistance. But |
| team members a more general management | | | | significant change, at times, is required. |
| overview... preparing each to make more | | | | How to avoid this mistake: Remain open to tough, |
| knowledge-based, strategic decisions at your | | | | though necessary, decisions. Try this - when |
| up-coming strategy sessions. | | | | discussing a problem, ask your planning team to |
| Mistake number 7: Conducting your strategy sessions | | | | consider the following four choices: (a) Is it a |
| at the office. | | | | resource problem? (b) Is it a people problem? (c) Is it |
| Conducting strategy sessions at the office generally | | | | a process or a systems problem? (d) Is it an |
| comes complete with numerous interruptions most | | | | organizational problem? Agreement on the source of |
| disruptive to concentration. Both the quality of your | | | | the problem will bring clarity to your need for a |
| discussions and the quality of your resultant plan will | | | | solution. This clarity, in turn, will go a long way toward |
| suffer. | | | | breaking down resistance to change. |
| How to avoid this mistake: Meet "off campus." Your | | | | |