Here’s your cheat sheet to ensuring a great strategic planning session (and not an epic fail).

1. REASONS WHY
STRATEGIC
PLANNING
FAILS
8

2. WRONG TIMING
Timing is everything
In order to get the most out of your time together as a team, it
is important to approach the session with a sense of purpose,
anticipation, and strategy.

3. UNDEFINED LANGUAGE
Defining the parameters and key aspects
of the plan
It is easy to overlook the fact that our language and
understanding of different terms can lead to confusion and
even disagreement. Having clearly defined terms during a
strategic planning session can
mean the difference between failure
and progress.

4. CHOOSING THE
WRONG PEOPLE
A variety of board members who bring diverse
perspectives and skills to the table
Strategic planning works best when participants are eager, open-minded, and
when they have various strengths and backgrounds. A team that can think
strategically, but also think differently, will work together to create a
thoughtful and useful strategic plan.

5. SHORT-TERM
PLANNING
Focus on more than the immediate goals and
needs of an organization
Looking ahead three to five years helps the team stay focused on long-term
goals and not day-to-day tasks. If the conversation and plan are limited to
immediate needs, the plan will fail before it is ever implemented.

6. A CONFINING
MEETING SPACEA space for everyone to feel at ease and creative
Find a meeting space that is open and comfortable, bright and conducive to thinking
creatively. There should be enough space for everyone to feel at ease, as well as
room for whiteboards or flip charts, and enough tables for everyone to find their own
creative—and strategic—space.

7. SETTING UNREACHABLE
GOALS
Rendering them unreachable just
by the sheer number
Trim your goals down to the key five or six that will have
an impact on your organization over the next five years.

8. IGNORING THE BUDGET
Budget goes hand-in-hand with choosing
achievable goals
If the resources are not available to accomplish the strategic plan, then the plan will be
impossible to implement. Discussing the budget is a key aspect of your board, so
reminding them to approach the strategic plan with the budget in mind shouldn’t be a
strain on the participants.

9. DELAYING ACTION
Without action, every strategic plan would be
a strategic failure
Implementing the plan is essential to seeing it benefit your organization for years to
come. As you wrap up your strategic planning session, clarify when each participant
will receive a report. Establish a time to discuss setting up committees to
accomplish the aspects of the plan. Encourage follow-up conversations and even a
quick post-session review of the strategic plan.

10. BOARD PERFORMANCE
SELF-EVALUATION FORM
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11. FOR MORE INFO:
@npospecialist
www.amcnposolutions.com
@AssociationManagementConsultants
prosper@amcnposolutions.com
+1 604-669-5344