essays – Nonprofits

On the Right Path

“If you don’t know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.” – Yogi Berra

I’m a map lover. I can get “lost” looking at maps for hours at a time, especially paper maps.

And if you ask me to be the navigator on a road trip, my heart starts to flutter.

In recent years, GPS and online maps replaced paper maps for me, as it did for most people, and that helped identify “best paths” when I needed to get somewhere within a certain timeframe.

While using computer-aided navigation is useful, it doesn’t dim my desire to look at maps in a more organic way.

It’s not always just about finding the best, most efficient method of getting someplace. Sometimes it’s about the side roads that can get you where you want to go and what you might discover along the way.

I always find something new when I look at a map, but I also try to scope out the best route for the trip based on the weather, if I’m travelling alone or with others, and how much time I really have to get there. Even if I know where I’m going, I check the map app for traffic conditions. I don’t always agree with the recommended route, but it serves as a guide to my choices.

I think of strategic planning in a similar way. It helps provide a road map of where you need to go and the best ways to get there. Like map-reading — at least for me — there are a lot of choices and distractions that can take you off course, so you have to keep focused on your ultimate destination and the resources you have available to you.

Just like we know how to read maps, most of us in business are familiar with organizational planning – determining annual department goals, preparing for campaigns or new projects, or planning for vacations and events. How many of us really know that much about strategic planning, though?

You may think it’s mainly something that big private companies deal with before they go public, or merely an expanded annual planning session held for your Board or staff. But true strategic planning can be worthwhile for groups of any size – especially nonprofits and associations.

SO, WHAT IS STRATEGIC PLANNING?

Strategic planning is just that – planning that uses strategies to define your course of action. Unlike annual planning, which gets you to your regular goals each year, strategic planning charts out a path to your future vision. It may lead you just a little farther down the road you’re already on, or it may take you in a totally different direction in order for your group to become who you want to be in a few years.

It’s also more than just long-range planning; it is a continuing process that directs you to what is truly important for your group, and allows you to respond to changes in your organization’s environment.

In short, it’s a directed effort to “shape and guide what an organization is, what it does, and why it does it – with a focus on the future.” (from Bryson’s Strategic Planning in Public and Nonprofit Organizations)

REASONS FOR STRATEGIC PLANNING

So why does an organization need strategic planning? Here are just a few good reasons:

• Helps your group build on strengths and overcome weaknesses;
• Positions you for the future;
• Determines what resources you need to accomplish your goals;
• Forces you to commit to effective activities;
• Ensures a more focused approach.

Everyone wants to feel they know where they are going and how to get there. A strategic plan can be your group’s roadmap.