essays – Nonprofits

Four Ps

February in Texas always includes at least a few days that remind us that winter does occasionally come to visit.

That reminder is usually accompanied by warnings of the “Four Ps” – Pipes, Pets, People, and Plants – things that need to be brought inside or protected from the extreme cold.

My mind riffed on this today, and, as is my habit, it brought me back to how nonprofits can improve.

It led me to the “Four Ps” of strategic planning.

📝 Preparation – Before you even get “in the room” to plan, you need to: be clear on what you’re hoping to accomplish, collect relevant data to help with decision-making, and set the stage with the needed environment and tools for discussions.

🤝🙋♀️👌🪑✍ People – Who do you need to be part of the process at each stage? Data will come from internal and external groups, so make sure to ask the right people the right questions to get the data that will help you make the best decisions. You also need to gather the appropriate people in the room for those discussions, and include the individuals all along the way who will make sure the decisions get acted upon. Sometimes that means bringing in outside people to help with the process.

⏳ Patience – This is often the hardest one to achieve. Even when things are going well, nonprofits tend to want streamlined solutions and plans to move forward. We’re generally operating on bare-bones efforts as it is, so taking time to step away and focus on bigger picture items is difficult. We want to come up with answers quickly and put things into place ASAP. Time to mull over ideas and try new things is critical, though, if we want to truly assess where we are and how we can have a bigger impact. Planning takes time, and so does implementation. Allow for that.

🎉😁🎆 Party – I’m not talking about galas here, or even photo-ops with giant checks. I believe strategic planning can be enjoyable. We need to celebrate our wins while we’re thinking about ways to improve. I’m big on humor and laughter being a part of the process, too. Otherwise, it’s more like drudgery and something people just want to “get through” so they can go back to their real jobs. Discussion and brainstorming work much better when people are having a good time.

I’ve got some plants to bring in before the cold front arrives, so I’ll leave it there for now. I’ll write more about this later when the temps get back into the 70s – probably next week. (Welcome to Texas.)

❓❔❓ What “Ps” would you add?