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Resource Center
Planning
Resource Center | Non-Profit
and Management Resources
Why Plan_....What is Strategic
Planning_...
Planning helps an organization
Who_.... What_.... When_....
Common Elements of Strategic Planning
Models
Levels of Strategic Planning
Fundamentals of Local Arts Management:
The Language of Planning
Planning Terminology
Translation
Why Plan_.... What is Strategic Planning_....
Strategic planning is a systematic process through
which an organization
agrees on-and builds commitment among key stakeholders to-priorities
which
are essential to its mission and responsiveness to the operating
environment. (from Strategic Planning for Nonprofit Organizations:
A
Practical Guide and Workbook by Michael Allison and Judy Kaye. John
Wiley &
Sons, Inc., New York, 1997.
The essence of planning rests in the simple principle that board
members,
staff and volunteers need a guide as they develop and carry out
programs. A
good plan provides indicators to evaluate how well the organization
serves
the community and helps you make hard choices when the need exceeds
available resources. A commitment to planning is critical for every
organization. Simply put, it's hard to know if you are headed in
the right
direction if you don't know where you're going.
Planning Helps an Organization:
- Identify whom it should serve with what programs
- Articulate what it may accomplish in the future, what needs
it hopes to
meet, and how it plans to do so
- Communicate the potential impact of its work to funders, potential
funders,
and audiences
- Allocate scare resources to accomplish goals.
To respond to the changing needs, you should have a system to constantly
assess those needs. Every successful organization operates under
a three to five year plan that is regularly evaluated and updated.
Without good planning, a successful organization today can become
irrelevant tomorrow.
Arts organizations can use many kinds of plans. For instance, a
project description and budget, or an annual budget, are considered
plans. More formal plans include long range, strategic and community
cultural plans. There are also numerous planning methods. Some plans
are developed with assistance
from an outside consultant and others are done by the organization
itself. Other types of planning include: Project, Program, or Component
Plans; Annual Operating Plan; Budget; Long-range Plan; Strategic
Plan; Community Cultural Plan.
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Who_.... What_.... When_....
Good planning includes naming the primary contact person, committee
chair or staff member responsible for each item.
The materials included in this section include detailed descriptions
of planning, a sample planning process and a calendar/timeline to
develop an annual workplan. The annual work plan details what activities,
programs and deadlines you are committed to in the next 12 months.
Be sure to include major grant deadlines, regular board meetings,
and annual budget deadlines in your calendar.
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Common Elements of Strategic
Planning Models Include:
- Plan to plan
- Self-study, organizational analysis
- Identify critical issues
- Agree on strategic directions
- Develop plans of action for strategic directions
- Develop measurable objectives to implement plans
- Review progress and revise plan
Levels of Strategic Planning:
The level of our planning effort is likely to be:
- Abbreviated
- Moderate
- Extensive
Time available:
- 1-2 days
- 1-3 months
- 6 months or more
Personnel involved:
- If smaller organization, usually entire board & staff
- If larger, usually entire board & staff representatives
(usually only internal stakeholders)
Some external stakeholders provide input (e.g. clients or funders)
Large number, including extensive input from all major internal
and external stakeholder groups
Depth of analysis/new information to be gathered:
- Little or none
- Some
- A lot: at a minimum includes data from stakeholder and objective
data
about operating environment
Primary outcomes sought from strategic planning process:
- Consensus among board & staff on mission, core future strategies,
list of
long-term and short-term program, and management/operations priorities
- Guidance to staff on developing detailed annual operating plans
- Consensus among board & staff on mission, core future strategies,
list of
long-term and short-term program, and management/operations priorities
- Articulation of program and management/ operations, goals, and
objectives
- Greater understanding of the organization's operating environment
(strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats)
- Some discussion of strategic choices
- Guidance to staff on developing detailed annual operating plans
- Consensus among board & staff on mission, core future strategies,
list of
long-term and short-term program, and management/operations priorities
- Articulation of program and management/ operations, goals, and
objectives
- Greater understanding of the organization's operating environment
(strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats)
- In-depth discussion of strategic choices
- Guidance to staff on developing detailed annual operating plans
(From: Strategic Planning for Nonprofit Organizations: A Practical
Guide and
Workbook, by Michael Allison and Jude Kay, Support Center for Nonprofit
Management, San Francisco, CA.)
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Fundamentals of Local Arts Management:
The Language of Planning
Planning Terminology
- Values and vision
- Stakeholder analysis, needs assessment, and market research
- Mission (or purpose) and goals
- Long-range planning: goals and objectives
- Organizational assessment, program evaluation, assessment of
strengths and
weaknesses
- Environmental scan or SWOT (analysis of strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities, and threats)
- Analysis of opportunities and threats
- Strategic planning and scenario planning
- Monitoring and evaluating
- Flexible adaptation, informed or strategic opportunism
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Translation
- In what do we believe_
- Whom do we serve and what do they need_
- What difference do we want to make in the community_
- What do we want this organization to become and accomplish_
- What do we do well or poorly_
- What is the reality of our situation now, within our organization
and
within our community_
- What external changes are we likely to face_ What if..._
- How can we close the gap between where we are and where we want
to be_
- How are we doing_
- How are conditions changing_ How should we change what we've
planned_
What new strategies are emerging from our successes and failures_
(From Fundamentals of Local Arts Management, from Arts Extension
Service
(http://www.umass.edu/aes), published 1994).
Other Resources
NEA
Publications: Lessons Learned—A Planning Toolsite
http://www.arts.gov/pub/Lessons/index.html
A toolsite with two components: a series of essays about the process
of planning; and actual illustrations of organizational change within
arts organizations.
Strategic
Planning for Non-profits, from the Management Assistance Program
for Nonprofits
http://www.mapnp.org/library/plan_dec/str_plan/str_plan.htm
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