Strategic Planning Made Simple | AddressTwo University

We have big plans for 2013. I know we aren't going to get there doing things the way we did them in 2012, so I took the team off-site for a strategic planning session.

When I was in corporate, we would carve out two whole days for strategic planning. While we would be very productive for the first few hours, we would quickly run out of steam. By the time we got to the?issues?on the second day, we were more focused on getting things finished so we could get out of there than we were on really solving the problems at hand.

?To avoid strategic fatigue, I divided our strategic planning process into three sessions, each with a different focus. This first session focused on stepping up our lead generation activity. We will repeat the process two more times in the first quarter, with one session focused on refining our processes and the second on other ways to bring value to our customers.

?With the narrower focus, we could spend four hours talking about our business and brainstorming ways to increase our lead generation?activities. ?At the end of the session, everyone walked away with specific action items. In the weeks to come, we will flesh out those plans, set deadlines and start crossing things off our list. Then we will be ready to work on the next topic.

?Strategic planning is worthwhile exercise for any business. The process?doesn't?have to be long and complex. We used a simple two page planning document to keep us on track. If you would like a copy, you can download it here or create one that makes sense for your business. Regardless of the tool you use, follow these steps to build your plan:

• Define Your Current State ? Take a snapshot of your business. Don?t just look at sales, but look at the factors that indicate if sales will occur. This might include things like web traffic, proposals, the number of active clients, the number of leads or referrals as well as sales volume per customer or profit per transaction.

• Set Specific Objectives ? Once you identify your key business indicators, set goals for the next year. Each of these goals should be measurable. It's not enough to say you want to increase sales; you have to define by how much. Without a goal post, how will you know if you made it? Select four to six goals to focus on for this year.

• Narrow Your Focus and Outline Actions - Business improvement can come from many areas: Increasing sales to individual customers, reaching new customers, revitalizing old ones, improving profit per sales transaction or reducing overhead will all improve your bottom line. But you can?t work on all of them at the same time, so select several which will move you closer to accomplishing your most important objectives.

• Set Timelines and Responsibilities ? When you're sitting around a table brainstorming, it's easy to come up with things that could improve your business.?The trick is to actually make those changes. For each action item, assign a person responsible for making it happen and a specific due date. Follow up and make sure it happens.

• Year at a Glance ? Finally, look at the whole year. Be realistic about how much you can actually accomplish each month, keeping in mind you still have the challenge of running your day-to-day business. Spread out the tasks throughout the year.

• Progress - When you're done with your plan, don't put it on a shelf or in a drawer. Pin this document to the wall of your office.? Refer to it often and make sure you are completing the tasks which will really move your business forward. Monthly or quarterly, update your progress. Are you getting closer to reaching your objectives? If not, maybe you need to update your action plans. Don't wait until the end of the year to make changes--adjust as you move along.

Source: http://u.addresstwo.com/2013/01/strategic-planning-made-simple.html

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