Currently, nearly 63% of entrepreneurs only use a plan during the first year. Indeed, strategic planning remains very underestimated by companies. However, it plays an essential role in their growth.
Although it seems intimidating, strategic planning is a great way to ensure a successful business. This is a plan based on research and documentation, not assumptions. The objective is to define the development direction of your company in the long term. Therefore, your strategic planning must be able to evolve over time . Although the process can take time, the perceived benefits are well worth it.
What is strategic planning?
Strategic planning is a process by which companies establish their direction. It must contain the objectives to determine the path your company will follow. It is a powerful strategic development that allows you to anticipate possible obstacles and identify the opportunities that will present themselves to you. In order to guarantee the success of your plan, it is necessary to integrate each member of your company and ensure that they take part in your vision. Furthermore, successful strategic planning relies on teamwork between you, your employees and other external partners.
Indeed, rigid planning can lead to failure. Therefore, it must be flexible. As your company evolves over the years, your strategy must follow suit. Moreover, market needs also often change. After a certain time, it is possible that your product loses effectiveness for your customers. Therefore, to avoid being overtaken by the competition , you must regularly make improvements to your sales strategy. In addition, strategic planning can serve as a benchmark for your business to help you achieve your set goals.
Why do strategic planning?
At first glance, strategic planning may seem complex, but the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages. Not only does it provide a better vision of your goals, but also allows your business to identify the path to follow to achieve them. Through this process, you will have the opportunity to determine how to grow over the next few years and face new opportunities as well as market challenges. Additionally, when you communicate your plan correctly to your team, they will feel more engaged in your projects. Consequently, this process can allow an increase in productivity, thus contributing to the success of your company.
Strategic planning prevents your business from collapsing after a few years by minimizing risks . Indeed, as part of the process, you will be required to examine your project in depth . This analysis will then allow you to determine the capabilities of your business and optimize them. You will also have the opportunity to dissect your strengths in order to exploit them as well as your weaknesses in order to improve them. As this is generally anticipatory work, you will be able to prevent possible obstacles to your development for the first 5 years now. However, when a goal takes longer to accomplish, it is sometimes necessary to review the plan and adjust it .
Steps in the strategic planning process
1. Strategic position
This part involves identifying internal and external sources by gathering various data about your industry. To do this, you must collect feedback from your customers in order to obtain a clear image of your brand as well as your position within the market. Additionally, it is also necessary to review your company's core values to determine how you should go about achieving your goals. With input from executives, customers and external market data, you can categorize your results into a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat) diagram. This tool helps document ways your organization can grow to meet needs that the market is not currently meeting.
2. Objectives
First of all, you need to know that it is imperative that your objectives are in line with the mission and vision of your company. They must be distinct and measurable to help you achieve your long-term strategic targets and initiatives. To do this, you can use the SMART mnemonic . This technique is useful for determining and identifying the resources necessary to achieve objectives. It also allows you to identify the key performance indicators (KPIs) capable of making your success measurable. Once the objectives and initiatives have been identified, you must prioritize them. This will include determining who will have the greatest impact on realizing your vision and improving your position in the market.
3. Make a plan
This step involves creating a strategic plan to achieve your goals. Therefore, you must determine the tactics needed to achieve your goals, establish a calendar and clearly communicate responsibilities. To achieve this, the strategic mapping remains the best way. Indeed, it makes it easy to visualize operational processes and identify gaps to be filled. Furthermore, truly strategic choices generally involve a trade-off in opportunity cost. So be prepared to use your values, your mission statement and established priorities. Know how to say “no” to initiatives that do not strengthen your long-term strategic position.
4. Execute and manage the plan
Now that you have the plan, it's time to implement it. First, you need to communicate the plan to the organization by sharing relevant documentation . And only then can the actual work begin. In order to achieve optimal results, it is necessary to organize regular examinations. This helps determine checkpoints that tell you if you are on the right track. Additionally, use KPI dashboards to clearly communicate the responsibilities of each team member.
5. Review and revise the plan
This final step gives you the opportunity to reevaluate your priorities and make adjustments based on past successes or failures. On a quarterly basis, you are required to determine which key performance indicators your team has successfully achieved and how you can continue to achieve them, adapting your plan as necessary. On an annual basis, it is important to re-evaluate your priorities and strategic position to ensure you remain on a path to long-term success. For example, you can track your progress using balanced scorecards that provide an overall view of your business's performance.
Even today, many companies decide not to implement strategic planning. It is therefore not surprising that many of them collapse before their third years, which are the most decisive. Therefore, it is fundamental for the prosperity of your business ofdevelop strategic planning.
