Consulting Tips and Tools

Strategic planning has become an annual ritual for many organizations.  The value of this effort seems obvious:

In a quickly changing global environment, organizations need a systematic check on environmental conditions and trends, customer needs, and their own ability to meet those needs.  Based on assessment of past results, current trends, and future opportunities, leaders can affirm or re-define top-level outcomes and goals, and re-align resources to achieve desired results.   Strategic plans form the framework for operational and business plans that set target objectives for a given period of time, and describe how the organization intends to achieve these objectives.

So what’s wrong with this picture?  In the words of an anonymous military leader:
“Strategy is like rain in the desert:  It evaporates before it hits the ground.”

Despite significant investment of leadership time, staff energy, and organizational resources, a high percent of strategic plans will sit on the shelf after development.  Execution of the plan is the critical issue.

What characterizes plans that work (those that support effective execution and guide on-the-ground action toward strategic outcomes)?  In the process of facilitating a wide variety of strategic planning sessions with government, non-profit and business organizations, we have found that five elements must be present:

(1) Customer Outlook and Alignment

The strategic plan must clearly define and align organizational strategy with customer needs and priorities. As companies evaluate their vision. mission, and goals in light of current realities, the customer’s voice is an reliable guide.  Organizations that tether top-level priorities to what their customers want build relevant plans that are more likely to produce effective action.

(2) Organizational Insight and Alignment

Assessing organizational capability and re-aligning resources to  achieve strategic outcomes is key to success.  A well-structured planning process enables participants to develop internal business and operational plans that support and enable execution of overall strategy.  This process includes specification of SMART objectives as targets for operational plans.  Target objectives that are Specific, Measurable, Aligned, Resourced, and Time-bound are the cornerstone for:

(3) An Effective Feedback System

Without feedback, a complex system can quickly get off track.  Building metrics, tracking tools, and a check-in system into strategic and operational plans enables progress reviews and greater flexibility in identifying and meeting challenges during implementation.  This keeps all contributors focused on how to best achieve operational targets and strategic goals.

(4) People Power

The people who will carry out the plan must be committed to its success.  People Power is the energy that puts plans into action.  Engaging stakeholders from all levels of the organization in plan development can build investment in implementation.  Additional benefits of participatory planning include front-line perspectives on customer priorities, organizational procedures, and resource needs.

(5) Continued Leadership Commitment and Focus

If the organization is to harvest the full pay-off of strategic planning, leaders must maintain their commitment and focus during execution.  When new priorities or requirements surface, it is critical to weigh investments and anticipated reward of on-going Plan initiatives against the benefit of change.   In many instances, new operational priorities can be aligned or coordinated with the efforts already underway.

Want to learn more about how to develop a plan that guides action and gets results?  Go to http://www.aligned4results.com and select “Facilitate Plans and Team Achievement” for information on how we link team development to a systematic, results-based strategic planning and implementation process.

Susan and Randy

© Aligned for Results, LLC

In consulting, as in Chinese calligraphy, “change” can represent both crisis and opportunity.  Imagine this:  After you have worked with your consulting customer to establish a well-constructed outcome and target results for your work, your client’s needs change.   Are you required to change your approach or services to match new needs?

The specter of “scope creep”  haunts many consultants when they find that initially proposed services may no longer be relevant.   Scope creep refers to the addition of new consulting services that were not specified in your original contract.

Of course, when the proposed change is a high priority for your client, and significant extra time will be required, it will be prudent to discuss and agree with your consulting customer on specific changes in your deliverables or cost.

From another perspective, change gives you the opportunity to add value by customizing service to meet the client’s new situation or by including that extra option or parameter into what you are creating for them.

Because each of us exists in business, home, or community settings that continually evolve, you can be certain that your client’s needs will shift.  Agree at the outset of your engagement on how you will communicate and handle changing requirements.  This will prevent scope creep, and give you a framework for periodic check-ins to insure that your services are still on target to deliver high value.

Randy and Susan

© Aligned for Results, LLC

The research phase of consulting, commonly called assessment, is usually designed to reveal organizational trends, patterns of behavior or opinion, and points where action could be taken to make a productive difference in desired results.  With a little advance planning, research can also promote buy-in among the people who will later be called upon to ‘be the change.’  Engaging key stakeholders in participatory research can reduce resistance and promote collaboration in planning and practicing new ways of doing business.

Here are three research methods that can help you build participant buy-in:
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