In many people’s minds, a strategic plan is an organizational workplan. However, we believe that you can’t plan an organization’s future work until the board and staff are on the same page about two things: the current reality (see current state) and how your organization will achieve its intended outcomes (see theory of change). Once these foundations are solid, we find that the process of creating a workplan with our clients becomes surprisingly straightforward.
Work planning begins with reviewing your theory of change and identifying a set of strategic priorities that the organization must accomplish in the next few years to be successful. Next, you determine the major steps necessary to achieve these goals, plot them on a reasonable timeline, and assign them to the appropriate implementors. This is your organizational workplan!
Examples of channeling a strategic priority into a workplan include:
- Starting, expanding, or winding down a program: the steps may require hiring or retraining staff, finding partners to take on new roles, and strategic communications about the change
- Diversifying staff, and attracting and retaining top talent: this could entail redesigning recruitment approaches, conducting a compensation survey to ensure pay is competitive, upskilling staff on people management, and clarifying career paths to support professional growth and retention
- Strengthening operational infrastructure and data security: this may involve conducting a comprehensive systems audit, implementing new cloud-based tools, upgrading cybersecurity measures, and training staff on security protocols and best practices
Sometimes organizations find this part of the process frustrating, saying that they don’t want to “make a plan for a plan.” The art of leadership, however, ultimately comes down to breaking down big visionary ideas into concrete initiatives that teams and individuals can execute. More often than not, we find our clients have already begun to tackle their immediate priorities while they finish refining their workplan because they are clear and aligned on strategy – and what feels better than checking things off the list! Ideally this process becomes embedded into a cycle that teams and individuals continuously engage in throughout the strategic plan’s term.