This document provides an overview of Catalyst Strategies' strategic planning framework. It discusses key elements of developing a strategic plan such as defining a vision, mission, situation assessment, goals, strategy, and strategic priorities. The framework is intended to guide organizations through the strategic planning process from assessing their current situation to developing long-term goals and priorities to achieve their vision.

1. 1
Catalyst Strategies
Make Growth Happen
www.catalyststrategies.com
2014
Strategic Planning Framework

2. 2
Michael Porter
“Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it's about deliberately choosing to be different.”

3. 3
Situation Assessment
Catalyst Strategies’ Planning Framework
Vision
Strategy & Strategic Priorities
Mission
Long-term Goals
Monitor and Refine
Strategic Plan
3-5 year horizon
Core Functions
Initiatives
Budget
Annual OperatingPlan
12-month horizon
Short-term Priorities
Annual Goals

4. 4
Focus of Presentation: Strategic Planning
Situation Assessment
Vision
Strategy & Strategic Priorities
Mission
Long-term Goals
Monitor and Refine
Strategic Plan
3-5 year horizon
Core Functions
Initiatives
Budget
Short-term Priorities
Annual Goals
Annual OperatingPlan
12-month horizon

5. 5
How to build your strategic plan…

6. 6
Define Your Vision
Vision
Aninspirational statement that describes the end statethat the business is striving to attain. It can be an end state for the company or for the company’s stakeholders.
In the case of an operating or functional group, the Vision supports broader business or corporate goals.
Should be:
•Concrete
•Futuristic
•Constant
•Motivational
•Realistic
From 1980s
“A PC in every home running Microsoft software”
“The world’s information to be organized, universally accessible, and useful”
“Being Within an Arm's Reach of Desire”

7. 7
Characteristics of a Good Vision
Vision Checklist…Is Your Vision:
Future focused?
Describes a desired end state for the organization?
Where you want to go and/or what you want to achieve in 5+ years?
Concrete?
Clear? (would be understood by customers?)
Memorable? (repeatable in an elevator by employees?)
Bold?
A daring statement or goal?
Challenging to the organization
Credible?
Achievable?
Alignedwith organizational values, culture, and structure?
Constant?
Relevant for 5+ years?
Built for inevitable change in the market or organization ?
A compass in stormy markets or organizational crisis?
Motivational?
Inspirational?
Promoting creativity, focus, and persistence?
Opening employees’ and customers’ eyes to what is possible?

8. 8
Articulate Your Mission Statement
Mission
The mission helps companies to focus their strategy by defining boundaries within which to operate.
It describes:
•Who the organization serves (customers, markets)
•What it does (products / services)
•The purpose of the organization (why it exists, beyond just to make money)
Should be:
•Clear
•Concrete
•Inspiring
•Actionable
•Credible
“Maximize financial returns by providing totally reliable, competitively superior, global air–ground transportation of high priority goods and documents that require rapid, time-certain delivery.”
“To make a contribution to the world by making tools for the mind that advance humankind.”
From 1980s
“Provide the world's best communications solutions that enable businesses to excel.”

9. 9
Characteristics of a Good Mission
Catalyst Strategies’ mission acid test. Is the mission…
Clear?
Clearly describing what you do (products/services), who you serve (markets, customers), why you do what you do (i.e., the value you deliver; purpose)?
NOT describing how you do it or how well you do it
Concrete?
Clear? (would be understood by customers?)
Memorable? (repeatable in an elevator by employees?)
Inspiring?
Connected to the Vision? Can help make the Vision a reality?
Actionable?
Useful in deciding where to allocate resources?
Specific enough to be clear but broad enough to allow flexibility in tactics?
Transferable to individual action?
Credible?
Achievable for the organization?
Aligned with organizational values, culture, and structure?

10. 10
Study and Summarize Your Situation
Situation
The environment in which the organization operates to ensure your strategy is anchored in reality.
Assessing the situation helps distill the few key issues that you will need to address in your plan.
Your situation can be summarized:
•SWOT Analysis
•Strategic openings
•Strategic issues
Strengths
[internal assets and capabilities to leverage]
Weaknesses
[internal challenges to work on]
Opportunities
[external possibilities to explore]
Threats
[external threats to address]
Strategic Openings…
Sources of potential value. Where to focus your up-side investment.
Strategic Issues…
Key issues, if left unaddressed, will get in the way of achieving your long-term vision

11. 11
Sample Categories of Analysis for Situation
External Situation
•
Macro trends (economic, political, technological, regulatory, social, etc.)
•
Buyers and prospects
•
Direct and indirect competition
•
Suppliers
Internal Situation
•
Company performance
•
Product/service portfolio
•
Customer profile
•
Employees
•
Assets, intellectual property
•
Go-to-market capabilities
Strengths
[internal assets and capabilities to leverage]
Weaknesses
[internal challenges to work on]
Opportunities
[external possibilities to explore]
Threats
[external threats to address]

12. 12
Articulate Your Long-term Goals
Long-term Goals
A short list (3-5) of quantifiable financial or non-financial objectives that are used to measure progress toward achievement of the vision or strategy over a multi-year period.
Each should focused on business value and be regarded as critical to the success of the organization. May be built from bottoms-upor defined top-down.
Should be:
•Specific
•Measurable
•Attainable
•Relevant
•Time-based
Use the following model to write a SMART goal:
“By _______we will ________ as demonstrated by _______.
Example Goals:
•
By the end of 2017, we will achieve greater market penetration, as measured by reaching $200MM in revenue for the ABC product.
•
By Q2 2017, we will achieve higher customer satisfaction as measured by an improvement in Net Promoter Score to 65 from our current score of 55.
•
By the end of 2018, we will improve our profit margins, as measured by a reduction in cost of goods by 5%.

13. 13
Characteristics of a S.M.A.R.T. Goals
Catalyst Strategies’ goals acid test. Are your goals…
Specific?
Stated simply, concisely and explicitly?
Clearly answering the whatand the whenfor each goal?
Measurable?
Expressed quantitatively?
Able to be evaluated factually? Whether on a scale (1-10, x%, $ over or under), or binary (yes/no, success/failure)?
Attainable?
Realistic, given current situation, resources, knowledge, and time available?
Relevant?
Clearly related to Vision, Mission and Strategy?
Focused on business value such as revenue growth, margin, sustainable competitive advantage (rather than progress toward business value)?
Time-bound?
Bound by an appropriate end date / deadline?

14. 14
Define How Your Organization Will WIN
Strategy
Strategy is a competitive game plan.
It describes how your organization will win, whether vs. competition (i.e., competitive advantage –see next page) or in the internal battle for resources (why the corporation will invest in your programs vs. others)
The strategy is developed from a clear understanding of the situation, the organization’s core competencies. It is also guided by the Vision and Mission.
“Operate independently by focusing on our independent networks to meet distinct customer needs.
Compete collectively by standing as one brand worldwide and speaking with one voice.
Manage collaboratively by working together to sustain loyal relationships with our workforce, customers and investors.”
“To win by offering trusted and convenient face-to-face financial advice to conservative individual investors who delegate their financial decisions, through a national network of one-financial-adviser offices”

15. 15
Potential Competitive Advantages
Sources of Competitive Advantage
Description
Cost Leadership
Driving costs lower than industry norms based on efficiency, size, scale, scope, and cumulative experience
Product Superiority
Distinguishing product or portfolio from others in the industry in a compelling way for target customers (e.g., superior quality, function, features, design); often based on strong R&D or IP
Offering Breadth
Offering an unmatched range of relevant products and services to target customers to allow for buying convenience (one stop shop)
Distribution Dominance
Creating distinctive access or availability to company products via unique or exclusive distribution relationships, channels, or capabilities
Service Differentiation
Providing a superior service (as defined by the customer) based on streamlined, proactive, context-aware, consistent or other better delivery
Niche Market Dominance
Concentrating on a narrowmarket segmentand achieving narrow competitive advantageinservicing levels, product, or business model, etc.
OwnableNetwork Effect
Havingcontrol of a large network that increasesinvalue as more users are added
Operational Effectiveness
Consistentlyleading,controlling, and improvingbusiness functions or process, such as supply chain, data analytics, product development, marketing,sales, etc.
Barriers to Entry
Blocking access to a market based on fixed cost leverage, ownership of capital equipment, access to restrictedlicenses, ownership of patents, etc.

16. 16
Pinpoint Your Strategic Priorities
Strategic Priorities
Strategic priorities are the top 3-5 areas where the organization’s limited resources will be focused to attain the vision and achieve goals.
They:
•Are a significant shift from ideas to action
•Often require multiple years to complete
•Are grounded in the strategic openings and issues defined in the situation assessment
Should be:
•Clear
•Discerning
•Market driven
•Implementable
“Improvespeedandaccessibilityto the Internet.…shorten the distance between any activity and the Internet.”
“Maintain a solid capital base to support the risks associated with our diversified businesses.”
“Drive employee engagement.”

17. 17
Characteristics of a Good Strategic Priority
Catalyst Strategies’ acid test. Do your strategic priorities…
Clear?
Clearly describe the method (tools, skills, systems, products, services) you’ll use to win and when necessary, the staging of those moves?
Discerning?
Reflect actions required to take advantage of any strategic openings and/or resolve key issues identified in the situation analysis?
Reflect tough choices (we’re turning right, not left) vs. “do it all”?
Guide where and how to invest scarce resources?
Market Driven?
Fit with what’s going on in the environment?
Respond to current and/or future market needs (customer, channel, supplier, etc.)?
Implementable?
Align with internal skills, capabilities, and assets?
Have enough resources or investment funds allocated to be pursued?

18. 18
Create a Summary of Your Strategy and Spread the Word
Vision
text
Mission
text
Goals
•X
•X
•X
•X
Strategy
text
Vision
text
Strategic Priorities
1
2
3
4
5
text
text
text
text
text

19. 19
Sun Tzu
“All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.”