Strategic planning: Say NO to the annual one night stand
Creating strategic advancement through planning
For many companies, strategic planning has become a regulatory “one night stand.” It HAS to be done, let’s get it over with. An outside consultant is brought in and you engage in a painstaking planning marathon. Unfortunately, the dedicated planning resource is uncommon in most companies. Rather than helping companies design a meaningful, ongoing planning process, most consultants are looking for the engagement. Ultimately, this is damaging to the company as they will likely be unable to derive maximum value from the direction created.
Ask yourself this: What does our company do with the strategic direction created at the executive / board level? How is it cascaded to “the people?” Canada’s top companies are those whose employees feel connected to the strategy, and understand how their job contributes to the success of the organization.
How can you make this a reality? It begins with creating an ongoing planning process that makes strategy an ongoing conversation, and not a one night stand.