Download Strategic and Business Planning

STRATEGIC AND
BUSINESS PLANNING
A Learning Outline Prepared by
GCA Productive Consulting
and Training
INTRODUCTION
A critical need exists for any modern organization to stake out its future. Organizations
must plan the strategies necessary to do business in a competitive market that provides
a variety of future challenges and opportunities. As well, a modern organization must
achieve an alignment between the longer term strategic direction it sets and the shorter
term actions required by its’ staff to achieve strategic objectives.
As the organization grows and changes, the Leadership Team of any organization often
requires development in planning expertise. This development is essential to ensure
organizational strategies are successfully developed and implemented.
The Strategic and Business Planning Program can meet these requirements for any
modern organization. This learning will be useful for supervisors and managers, or
anyone preparing to assume these positions. We will involve participants in actually
carrying out planning activities for an organizational unit they are in charge of, or one
they are very familiar with. Participants will leave the workshop with a participants’
manual containing all workshop materials as well as Guides describing the Strategic and
Business Planning processes in detail.
The program can be offered in a variety of formats, including:
1. As an in-class training program. Participants then take the learning and work on
their own to develop and implement Strategic and Business Plans for their
organization.
2. After participants receive training in Strategic and Business Planning, we can
facilitate formulation of a Strategic and Business Plan and ‘coach’ the leadership
team in implementation of the plan.
3. A customized version of this program, after discussion with officials of the
organization.
MAIN LEARNING OBJECTIVE
To equip participants with the critical leadership skills and knowledge to
plan their organization’s future and engage staff in actively carrying out
the plans.
2
ENABLING OBJECTIVES
After completing this training, participants will be able to:
 Understand why Leaders need to engage their people in both Strategic and Business
Planning
 Be aware of the empowering effect on people when they are involved in the
planning process
 Appreciate the difference between the Plan (which is quickly out of date) and the
Planning Process (which keeps everyone engaged in anticipating future
opportunities and challenges)
 Recognize the critical importance of being properly prepared
 Grasp the process required to move ‘back-and-forth’ between a broad strategic plan
and the detailed action planning required to achieve strategic objectives.
 Develop a more flexible approach to providing leadership to their organization
WORKSHOP CONTENT








An Overview of Planning
Questions Answered by Strategic Planning
The PEST Analysis: Understanding the Environment Within Which We Operate!
The SWOT Analysis – Understanding Our Own Organizational Capabilities – Assessing
Opportunities and Threats
Defining Your Strategic Planning Framework
 Establishing Your Direction – Vision – The Starting Point
 What Is Important – Values that We Won’t Violate
 Our Mission – Our Fundamental Purpose
 The Overall Goal (flowing from our Mission)
 Immediate Goals (flowing from our Overall Goal)
 Translating Immediate Goals into Key Result Areas (KRA’s or Strategies)
 Establishing Measures and Follow-Up – Management by Walking Around
Keeping It Real! (Keeping it Simple – Enabling Rapid Reaction to Changes)
The Business Planning Process
 The Link Between Strategic and Business (Action) Planning
 Business Planning Outputs
 Action Planning: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?
 The Human Resource Plan
 Business Planning and the Link to Individual Performance Management
Role of Stakeholder Analysis in Planning
3
BENEFITS
The benefits resulting from this learning are:
1. Participants with the capability to establish a Strategic Plan
2. Strategic Plans that document the decisions and broad strategies necessary to
construct an effective future - a clear direction with specific objectives.
3. Capability to provide effective leadership to all staff and to develop commitment
among staff to contribute effectively to achieving strategic objectives.
4. Achievement of an alignment of priorities from the Leadership of the organization
right to the front line contributors who carry out the plans.
5. Improved anticipation of change by the organization and development of a creative
range of responses to issues.
6. Clear understanding of the Roles, Responsibilities, Authorities and Accountabilities
necessary to implement the Strategic and Business Plans.
7. Improved teamwork amongst key members of the Leadership Team.
4