1. a really clear vision of where you want the business to be in a set time frame
2. a check on how the business is currently tracking towards that vision or goal
3. an objective look at the business and what it does. Why does this business exist?
4. What does this business value?
5. A review of current strengths, opportunities, threats and weaknesses
6. Develop the plan with all this info
It is vital to consider the often forgotten elements in this process, the staff and the customers. It is easy to say you value them, but do you really? Do you include them in your strategic plan? Your plan should aim for total stakeholder satisfaction. You should involve your staff in the process, get their input, value it, as they are the true experts at their job. They know what happens day to day, what works what doesn't. If you get them involved they will appreciate it, they will engage with the process and be an 'owner' of the process and really work with you in a unified sense of direction.
If you embrace this you will be amazed at the results that can be achieved. I have been privileged enough to have a business mentor (Monty Sacher) who took me through this process in a series of workshops with team members developing their own mini strategic plans for their departments, which all contributed to the overall business goal. The process started with identifying the outputs of the job (or business), that is what the department or business produced, measures (how to measure the output) and targets to stretch the team and business to greater achievement. The enthusiasm and camaraderie at those workshops was some of the most rewarding I have been involved in over my 20 year career in management. The results have been beyond expectation both from a financial point of view but a human growth and satisfaction point of view. This is a transformational process for your business if you implement it properly.
This has been a very brief summary and introduction to this philosophy, to find out more about implementing a strategic management plan that works stay tuned for more from me and visit my mentor's website here: Sacher Associates.
Let me know what you think below. Let's start a business revolution from the ground up!
Bye for now.
Geoff
I could not agree more Geoff. I can add to your view with a somewhat different perspective. I am very much an organic manager. I guess I could be classified as “New Age”. Many times in my career I felt as though I had these fool proof plans/ideas, however, although they had been successful they never really matched up to the grand vision I had from the start. Now I am not going to give Monty full credit here, however, without his
ReplyDeletesystem I would have been right there in the same old pattern.
The real work and change has taken place at the middle management level. Monty’s Micro CEO Course was the final step in our growth process. My team has completely shifted their focus. I now employ a team of forward thinking results driven leaders. My time is now free to develop business and not manage the daily task as I once did.
Hi Again,
ReplyDeleteWondering if you used Monty's surveys? If so did they prove to be benificial in defining your project...
Let me know.
Thanks
G'day Chris,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the question, yes I have used the surveys and they definitely did reveal information that I was unaware of. This info did mean the actual project took on a different direction to where I thought it was going, but really did deliver a tailored system and stunning results.
All the best,
Geoff
G'day Chris,
ReplyDeleteSorry I forgot to put the link for the surveys:
click here for employee surveys
Geoff
Thanks Geoff,
ReplyDeleteI will have a look.
C