Laying the foundation for success: Why you need a strategic plan

You would never think of remodeling your home without a proper blueprint, right? The same holds true for a new CEO and the Board of Directors of an organization looking to create significant change. But in this case, we call the blueprint a strategic plan.

A strategic plan is one of the most important documents an organization can create. We’re not talking about the strategic plans of yore, which were set on shelves to collect dust and promptly forgotten. It needs to be a carefully constructed, living document that articulates your organizational vision, its mission, values, strategic goals - and then provides a clear path toward achieving them.  Strategic planning is the formal consideration of an organization's future course and deals with at least one of these key questions:

1. “Why we do what we do?”
2. "For whom do we do it?"
3. "What do we do?"
4. "How do we excel?"

An advantage of having vision, mission, and value statements is the focus they create. These statements give a sense of direction and future opportunity.  To be truly effective, organizational statements should become assimilated into the organization's culture. Features of effective statements include:

• Vivid and clear pictures
• Clarity and lack of ambiguity
•  Descriptions of a bright future
• Memorable and engaging wording
•  Realistic aspirations and challenges
• Alignment with organizational values and culture

Vision: Defines the way an organization will look in the future. The vision is a long-term view describing the organization's picture of an “ideal world.” It is a source of inspiration and provides clear decision-making criteria.

Mission: Defines the fundamental purpose of an organization, succinctly describing why it exists and what it does to achieve its vision. It defines the customer and the critical processes. It can also inform about the desired level of performance.

Values: Core values are shared among the stakeholders of an organization. Values, beliefs and behaviors drive an organization's culture and its priorities. Values provide the critical framework from which decisions are made.

As a new leader, one of your first tasks should be to review the existing strategic plan – if there is one – and determine how it aligns with your vision of the organization. You just might need a new plan, or at least make some changes to the current one. 

So, how do you come up with a strategic plan? At ACPE, I was fortunate enough to come into place just as the Board of Directors was meeting to discuss the strategic plan for 2012-14. Senior staff members from different departments of the College submitted their input on where they thought ACPE should be headed, and then all of us – board, CEO and senior staff – held a marathon all-day meeting.

The timing in this case was ideal. As a new CEO, there were certainly changes that I believed needed to be implemented in order to help ACPE grow and thrive. Through the strategic planning process, I received the input I needed to make sure my vision was in step with the board’s and it helped better my understanding for how the senior staff viewed the organization. Additionally, this opportunity gave me a platform to introduce everyone to the direction in which I saw ACPE moving.

At the end of this planning day, we all reached consensus on the future direction for ACPE. And we felt better knowing there was now a blueprint for the significant change and new direction we wanted for our organization. Plus, we successfully created a new team-oriented leadership environment as a secondary gain.

If you'd care to check out the fruits of our labor, you can view the ACPE 2012-14 Strategic Plan here. We'd love to get your feedback.

Adjusting to Leadership

So you’ve been newly named to a leadership position in your organization. If you’re anything like me, the experience was at once exciting, humbling and a little overwhelming. Here are a few lessons I’ve picked up about the on-boarding process as I’ve transitioned into my new role as ACPE’s CEO.

What I immediately appreciated is that getting the CEO job is basically a ticket to learn.  A good leader won’t isolate themselves in their offices and make pronouncements from a vacuum. You’ve got to reach out to the people who will help you make good decisions and also help reinforce the importance of those decisions. In my case, I talked to other CEOs, the members of the ACPE board of directors, and the leadership team within the organization, all of whom offered valuable insight as I began my new job.

Next, I began to immerse myself in the organization.  I met with every staff member to learn more about their jobs and solicit ideas on how they would improve ACPE. This not only helped me connect with the staff, it gave me a crash course on the organization’s culture. Recognize this is an ongoing process, however, and I myself am still listening and learning on a daily basis. Using a few visual management tools can be valuable as well – not everyone wants to give you their ideas directly. Indirect methods make it easier for some folks.

By soliciting all of this input, I felt better prepared to develop my vision of ACPE. Communicating this vision is one of the most important things a new leader can do. It gives everyone a common purpose and helps set priorities. It also ensures everyone is working on the same page.  Be sure that your vision is clear and compelling…some say it needs to provide a sense of urgency as well but that will depend on your own situational needs. Nonetheless, it’s hard to rally the troops around a lackluster message.

In implementing your vision, there are bound to be changes. Even wildly successful companies have areas that need improvement. But it’s important not to get too carried away. A good CEO recognizes an organization’s success stories and seeks to preserve them. Make sure that you don’t get so overzealous in throwing out the bad that you inadvertently jettison the good parts, too. Keep listening…

Remember: Change is scary. It just is. But it’s also necessary for any company that wants to grow and improve. By now, the staff knows your vision for your organization. So it’s not going to be a surprise that change is coming. But the more you can do to prepare them for these changes and include them in the implementation process, the smoother the transition will be. Reinforcing the importance of change should also come from your leadership team. This helps everyone recognize it is not just one talking head but that others are supporting the change process and this will contribute to success.

It’s also important to take things slowly. No matter how eager you are to start implementing your vision, it takes a while to get everyone on board. It’s better to ease into the transition instead of rushing ahead and expecting everyone else to catch up. Yes, you have a honeymoon period but everything does not need to happen in that proverbial “first 100 days” – take your time.

The process doesn’t stop once you’re officially “on-board.”  Ultimately, every organization is about people, and you want your people working with you. That means keeping the lines of communication open.  Be aware of what your staff is thinking and be clear that you’re willing to listen to their concerns and ideas. Continue to reinforce the vision you’ve outlined so that everyone has clear expectations.   Never stop listening; never stop monitoring.

Those are just a few of the things I’ve learned since becoming a CEO. What lessons have you learned about the on-boarding process? What advice do you have for those of us who are assuming leadership roles?