In general, most strategic plans include several essential components as well as some optional components.

Essential Components

The essential components that make up the structure of a strategic plan include an organization’s mission, vision, values, goals, objectives, and actions, and performance measures.

• Vision statement. A future-oriented declaration describing what an organization aspires to achieve in the long term. It answers, "where do we want to go?"
• Mission statement. A concise description of an organization’s purpose, including what it does, who it serves, and how. It answers, "why do we exist?"
• Value statements. Core principles or beliefs that guide an organization’s actions and decisions. They answer, "what do we stand for?”
• Goals. Goals are broad, long-term outcomes. Most strategic plans contain between three to six strategic goals.
• Objectives. Objectives are the more specific, measurable steps or milestone that should be achieved to reach the goals.
• Actions. Concrete tasks that should be undertaken to achieve the objectives.
• Performance measures. Output, outcome, or milestone measures that can be used to evaluate progress toward goals and objectives.

Optional Components

In addition to the essential elements listed above, strategic plans can include a wide range of other information. These optional elements can add depth and context, enhancing a plan’s relevance and utility by helping stakeholders better understand the strategic direction and rationale.

For example, many organizations include an overview of current conditions or a market analysis that provides a snapshot of the internal and external environment, including data related to industry trends, competitive analysis, and stakeholder or client needs.

Other common optional elements include an overview of the community, customers, or stakeholders that are served by the organization; summary of the strategic planning process; and a history of the organization.

Key Steps to Develop a Strategic Plan

Developing a strategic plan is a coordinated effort that involves detailed planning, research, collaboration and communication, and ongoing monitoring to achieve a valuable, practical resource for your organization.

Plan and Coordinate

You can start by developing a comprehensive project plan to address the full scope of work that outlines the major steps, roles, and responsibilities for developing the strategic plan. Typically, the senior management team and board are involved in scoping the work to ensure alignment around the major priorities for the plan development.

Fact Finding

Next, conduct an environmental scan of the organization through interviews, surveys, and document reviews.

Strategic plans also often benefit from a needs assessment—like a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis. This provides a foundational understanding of the organization's current internal and external environment.

A thorough market analysis can also help to assess industry trends, competitor positioning, and customer needs, allowing for more informed decision-making.

Collaboration

Using the information gathered through fact finding, you can then begin developing the formal elements of the strategic plan. This is often done as a collaborative process where input from a variety of stakeholders is synthesized into a unified plan.

Depending on the nature of your organization, stakeholders may include:

• Staff and management. Consider conducting one-on-one interviews, all-staff surveys, staff open house events, and planning sessions with senior leaders.
• Board. Conduct one-on-one interviews and planning sessions with the board of directors or your governing body.
• Key partners. One-on-one interviews, focus groups, or partner surveys can be used to engage key partners.
• Community stakeholders and customers. Conduct focus groups, surveys, and open house events to collect input from community members or clients.

Launch

The final strategic plan can then be produced and published. At this point, organizations often develop annual operating plans where they select key priorities from the strategic plan to focus on within the upcoming year.

Strategic plans are distinct from operational plans because they lay out the long-term roadmap for the organization’s overall direction and focuses on what to achieve. In contrast, annual operating plans are typically more detailed, short-term plans that specify the day-to-day activities, processes, and resources needed to implement elements of the strategic plan.

Communicate and Report on Your Strategic Plan

To effectively communicate a strategic plan, organizations must create a message that’s clear, structured, and regular; and fosters alignment among planning, performance, and people.

This involves establishing a communication rhythm that often includes an annual meeting to review the strategic vision, quarterly updates on results, monthly departmental briefings, and weekly team sessions. By keeping employees informed about how their roles contribute to organizational goals, organizations can enhance engagement and performance.

Regular communication not only clarifies expectations but also helps prevent surprises, particularly when tying compensation to performance, ultimately driving the organization toward its strategic objectives.

Adapting Your Strategic Plan

A strategic plan is not just your roadmap for future actions, but also a decision-making framework to evaluate emergent initiatives, projects, and ideas. By using your mission, vision, values, and goals as the basis, you can ask:

• Will this initiative help us to achieve our vision for the future?
• Does this initiative align with our mission and the scope of our work?
• Does this initiative align with our values?
• Does this initiative help us achieve any of our strategic goals?

In this way, the strategic plan can help your organization maintain focus, while also adapting to address emergent needs.

When to Work with a Strategic Planning Consultant

Organizations should consider engaging a consultant if they want support to navigate the planning process. Strategic planning can be a time-consuming endeavor and a skilled facilitator can create a streamlined process that engages participants, reducing the drain on staff resources, and effectively synthesizes various needs and ideas into a unified plan.

What to Look for in an External Partner

When selecting an external strategic planning consultant, look for experience in facilitating planning sessions, a proven track record of successful outcomes, and the ability to conduct thorough environmental scans.

Additionally, ensure the consultant can effectively communicate with and engage stakeholders throughout the process.

The right consultant will work with you to develop a tailored planning process that suites your needs, timeline, and organizational culture. They should be a true partner to help you create a plan that can move your organization forward.

We’re Here to Help

To learn more about developing a strategic plan that supports long-term success for your organization, contact your Moss Adams professional.

Additional Resources

• Strategy & Operations Consulting Services