Don't miss out on the steps necessary to ensure your success… create a strategic action plan!

Don't Miss Out on the Steps Necessary to Ensure Your Success… Create a Strategic Action Plan! By Terry H. Hill 1 Creating a strategic business plan is a great first step. However, if your strategic business plan gathers dust on a shelf, its value is lost. This is where the Strategic Action Plan comes in -- it’s the place where the rubber meets the road. The Strategic Action Plan is the catalyst that transforms your strategic business plan into actionable results. The purpose of a Strategic Action Plan (SAP) is to develop and organize solutions for specific problems, issues, and challenges. The challenge, which many business owners face in this economic crisis, is simply to survive. Strategic planning identifies and prioritizes critical issues (opportunities and threats) that affect a business’ survival rate. Within the SAP, a roadmap is designed which guides a company from its current position to a desired future position. The Strategic Action Plan, or roadmap, specifically outlines the steps and tasks that are necessary to achieve objectives, and establishes the benchmarks by which the progress of these objectives are measured. The SAP transforms ideas into action in order to make things happen. The SAP defines what specific tasks are necessary, how these tasks are going to be done, which resources are required to carry out the tasks, who is responsible for the completion of the tasks, and when should the tasks be completed. The Strategic Action Plan (SAP) addresses the following: • The What? The SAP determines, lists, and describes the specific tasks necessary for achieving its objectives. • The How? Once the overall work plan has been determined, the SAP defines the specific steps that are necessary to implement the plan. • With What? The SAP determines the resources that are required for each task: finances, materials, facilities, and equipment. • The Who? The SAP designates the individual(s) who is responsible for each task. The designated individual(s) does not necessarily have to do the task himself (themselves); however, he (they) is accountable for ensuring that the task is completed. • The When? For each activity, the SAP establishes a clearly defined timeline with specific starting and ending dates. Your Strategic Action Plan sets priorities and describes the specific steps to implement your strategic business plan. The SAP establishes both long and short-term objectives. Define your long-term objectives first, and then set short-term objectives—the baby steps that break the larger goal into easy-to-achieve parts. Terry H. Hill is an author, consultant, trainer, mentor, and the founder/managing partner of Legacy Associates, Inc., a business consulting firm based in Sarasota, Florida. Legacy, http://www.legacyai.com, is the parent company of the online small business, entrepreneurship, and management training website, http://www.TrainingforEntrepreneurs.com.

Don't Miss Out on the Steps Necessary to Ensure Your Success… Create a Strategic Action Plan! By Terry H. Hill 2 The Strategic Action Plan should answer these three critical questions: • Is my Strategic Action Plan complete? Does it list all of the relevant action steps or prior revisions? • Is my Strategic Action Plan clear? Does it state who will do what, when? • Is my Strategic Action Plan current? Does it anticipate and accurately identify potential barriers? Does it recognize possible opportunities? Use your Strategic Action Plan to define how you will operate your business on a day-to-day basis. Address issues such as how and when you will manage research and development, hire employees, serve customers, market your offering, publicize your company, and work with partners and vendors. In other words, your Strategic Action Plan turns your strategic business plan into a game plan that makes it real. To receive your copy of the Strategic Action Plan Worksheet, visit http://forms.aweber.com/form/81/805452881.htm Copyright © 2010 Terry H. Hill, Training for Entrepreneurs.com You may reprint this article free of charge in your newsletter, magazine, or on your website, provided that the article is unedited, and that the copyright, author's bio, and contact information below appears with each article. Articles appearing on the web must provide the following hyperlink to the author's web site at http://www.TrainingforEntrepreneurs.com. Terry H. Hill is an author, consultant, trainer, mentor, and the founder/managing partner of Legacy Associates, Inc., a business consulting firm based in Sarasota, Florida. Legacy, http://www.legacyai.com, is the parent company of the online small business, entrepreneurship, and management training website, http://www.TrainingforEntrepreneurs.com.

Don't miss out on the steps necessary to ensure your success… create a strategic action plan!

by Legacy Associates, Inc./Training for Entrepreneurs.com

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Don’t miss out on the steps necessary to ensure your success… create a strategic action plan! Document Transcript