Shall we create a Strategic Plan?

You’re probably wondering if we’re going to talk about planning again at this time of year, and the answer is yes!

And we will likely continue to talk about it a lot, as it is extremely relevant for an organization. Without it, a company doesn’t really know where it’s going, doesn’t have goals or objectives, and even if it does, it has no idea how to reach them.

Is this a problem? Even if you say it’s not a problem for you, we consider it a problem! Without planning, your company won’t reach its full productive potential, won’t explore all its business opportunities, among many other things.

Types of Planning

There are different types of planning that can be used according to the needs of your company.

– Business Strategic Planning: This type focuses on specific businesses and may aim to gain competitive advantages in a specific market sector.

– Corporate Strategic Planning: More commonly used for general plans within a corporation, it serves as a guide for the other area plans and is directly related to the company’s mission. Its main goal is to ensure the company keeps aligned goals to achieve its objectives and remain at the top of its market niche.

And speaking of other types of planning, there is also Tactical Planning, which aims to support strategic planning and provide the necessary backup for what has been planned, containing specific plans to put the Strategic Plan into action.

On the other hand, the Operational Plan is focused on the functions that need to be carried out and is usually developed by supervisors, team leaders, and even facilitators to support Tactical Planning.

This doesn’t mean your company will need to implement all types of planning, but it’s important to be aware of the available options in case of need, right?

Tools to Facilitate Strategic Planning

In addition to understanding the types of planning, it is essential to have supporting tools to construct an effective organizational plan.

Although it may not seem so, the company’s Mission, Vision, and Values are extremely important and should be defined before starting the planning process, as they are considered the foundation.

If your company has not yet defined these three initial steps, here’s a tip to simplify:

• Mission is the purpose and the motivations for the company’s existence.

• Vision refers to where the company wants to go and the planned timeline to get there.

• Values represent the company’s ideals, ethical positioning, attitudes, and beliefs towards the market and its target audience.

Once this is done, there are other tools that can contribute to the effectiveness of the planning process, such as the SWOT Analysis, which provides a precise diagnosis by considering all aspects of the business.

This SWOT methodology identifies the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, which should be considered in the Strategic Plan and the overall business environment.

The Five Forces of Porter can also be used in developing the Strategic Plan, with the goal of evaluating competition, as it takes into account the threat of substitutes, threat of new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, and competitive rivalry.

BSC (Balanced Scorecard), on the other hand, is a widely used and respected methodology, also applied here at Interact Solutions. It considers four fixed perspectives to provide a balanced view of the entire company, taking into account the strategic objectives and the cause-and-effect relationship between them.

The perspectives considered by BSC are: financial, customer, learning, and internal processes.

To simplify the creation of objectives, the OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) methodology can significantly contribute, as it guides the creation of objectives based on three factors:

• Objective – a detailed description of the company’s goals.

• Key results – metrics and established targets that will ensure the objectives are achieved.

• Initiatives – the actions required to achieve the objectives.

If OKRs are not a good fit, there is also the SMART methodology, which helps define intelligent, measurable, achievable, and relevant goals, ideal for those that need a set deadline.

Everything Becomes Easier with Software

Many tools can be used in the development of an organization’s Strategic Planning; however, when all of them are grouped and available in a single software, the process becomes much easier.

Additionally, it makes the constant monitoring of goals and actions throughout the planning period more practical.

Among the main benefits of using software, we highlight the sharing of information, integration of tools, real-time updates, ease of use, and, one of the most important: data security.

For example, Interact Suite SA allows the planning to be accessed by all users, as well as action plans, ensuring that updates are always up to date. It also enables real-time tracking of goal progress, while offering tools based on planning methodologies such as BSC, OKRs, SWOT Analysis, among many others.

Visit our website to learn more about Interact Suite SA and the available modules to boost your planning.

Bonus: Common Mistakes in Strategic Planning

To make next year’s planning even more effective, we’ve listed some of the most common mistakes made, so you can relate them to the tips mentioned above and build a successful Strategic Plan!

– Not involving the team in the process: When employees are not included in the planning, they do not feel part of it, and consequently, they won’t be committed to the goals and actions.

– Lack of transparency: Both in the planning process and in goal setting, a lack of transparency is a key factor in demotivation. Transparency gives the organization more trust and seriousness in its deliverables.

– Not tracking progress: It’s useless to create a plan and not follow up on the progress of actions and proposed goals. A plan created just for protocol and stored away in a drawer will not generate results. Regular monitoring allows you to identify improvements and implement them in time to positively impact results.

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