Many team leaders ask: “Don’t we all somehow 'know' this intuitively? Aren’t these just nice-to-haves?”

No. Again and again, we see teams gain new focus and purpose when their strategic plan is spelled out. They open up and come alive with enthusiasm when they both see this level of structure and help to build it.

What is In a Strategic Plan?

The deliverables of a strategic plan come in two phases. Phase One describes direction; Phase Two enables action.

Phase One:

  • Guiding Principles—values that guide the decisions of the entire team, now and throughout the execution of the plan.
  • Vision—what the organization or market will look like if you are successful. Your definition of success, and how your actions will impact your customers or the world.
  • Mission—what you do to make your vision a reality.
  • Key Themes—the 2 or 3 concepts that will guide your team in re-prioritizing throughout the year.
  • Goals—long-term items that describe what you want to accomplish in order to achieve the Vision.
  • Objectives—measurable, attainable actions that correspond directly to Goals.

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Phase Two:

  • Critical Conditions—the assumptions and enabling factors that make the accomplishment of each Objective possible.
  • Opportunities—the events and conditions that your team can leverage to reach its Objectives.
  • Risks—the things that may get in the way of reaching your Objectives, but that you do not control.
  • Obstacles—the challenges your team will face along the way.
  • Strategies—the large-scale efforts you will put into place to create Critical Conditions, leverage Opportunities, overcome Risks, and break down Obstacles. Some common strategies and resources to help you.
  • Tactics—the bottom line of the plan, where Strategies are broken down into specific tasks, which are assigned to team members, with deadlines.

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