Effective strategic planning is a sequential process whereby one element leads to another in an integrated manner. The following outlines the key elements of the strategic planning process in the order that they need to be undertaken. It should be noted that only a summary of these elements is offered in this section.
1. Environmental Scanning
The strategic planning process begins with an assessment of the factors in which shape the environment in which the association and its members operate. This assessment process is referred to as environmental scanning. For some associations, the environmental scanning process may be as simple as undertaking an opportunities and challenge assessment during the actual day(s) of the planning session. In other instances, associations carry out specific member program-related research to feed into the planning process. An important element of the environmental scanning process is to assign some form of priority to those issues which have been identified as having an impact on the association and/ or its members.
2. Mission Assessment
The process of environmental scanning sets the stage for an association to revisit the appropriateness of its mission statement. For example, the environmental scan may identify new issue areas which are perceived to be a high priority in terms of the impact on the membership but fall outside the current mission statement of the association. A good example might be the growing need for associations to address self-regulatory responsibilities for their respective sectors.
3. Objectives and Strategy Development
Once an association has re-affirmed or revised its mission statement as part of the strategic planning process, it needs to develop objectives and strategies that translate priorities into action. Objectives define the broad areas of impact that the association needs to address in response to the priorities coming out of the environmental scan. Strategies go a step further and articulate a series of related initiatives or processes which incrementally achieve objectives.
4. Performance Indicators
The articulation of objectives and strategies must be followed by identification of performance indicators that can be used to assist in association performance evaluation. However, the development of such indicators is often the source of methodological problems. Where some association objectives such as “increase membership” obviously lend themselves to evaluation, others do not. This challenge notwithstanding, effective strategic planning requires that such indicators be developed.
5. Governance Assessment
The strategic planning process offers an association the chance to assess whether or not it has the kind of governance approach to provide the staff and key volunteers with the direction and policy guidance they require in order to achieve their mission and objectives.
6. Implementation Assessment: Staffing and Financial Issues
Once objectives and strategies have been developed, the strategic planning process focuses upon major staffing and financial issues related to implementation. At this point, it should be noted that the strategic planning process should not focus upon a level of detail business planning. Rather, it is the role of those responsible for strategic planning to provide the chief staff officer with guidance in relation to staffing and budgetary matters.
7. Ongoing Performance Evaluation
Finally, the strategic planning process should include measures which ensure the ongoing evaluation of current performance relative to performance indicators. At the board level, this could take the form of ongoing strategic plan updates where the chief staff officer and/ or key committee chairpersons update directors on the status of strategic plan implementation. At a staff level, the staff evaluation process is another means by which ongoing performance evaluation is achieved.
