The document discusses strategic planning for networks, particularly focusing on the Wikimedia Foundation's challenges and the development of an open, collaborative five-year strategy. It outlines five key principles for effective network strategy: focus on questions, create a space, prioritize people, model transparently, and fail forward fast. The goal is to activate collective engagement and ensure alignment around the vision of freely sharing knowledge globally.

1. Strategic Planning for Networks Eugene Eric Kim <eekim@blueoxen.com> Blue Oxen Associates March 22, 2011

2. About Me Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates

3. About Me Leadership Learning Community Board Member Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates

4. About Me Collaboration! Leadership Learning Community Board Member Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates

5. About Me Collaboration! Leadership Learning Community Board Member Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates Wikimedia Strategic Planning (2009-2010)

6. 1. Wikimedia's Challenge 2. Strategic Planning 3. Strategic Planning for Networks

7. 1. Wikimedia's Challenge 2. Strategic Planning 3. Strategic Planning for Networks

9. 279 Language Versions of Wikimedia Projects

10. Source: comScore, Wikipedia (April 2010) Wikimedia Foundation + 30 independent chapters worldwide Google #5 website in the world 350 million visitors #1 website in the world 920 million visitors 40 employees 20,600 employees $10,000,000 revenue $23,000,000,000 revenue

11. 100,000 Active Contributors Around the World

12. A Slice of the Community

13. In 2009, Wikimedia was a global movement with a vision... Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. That's our commitment. ... but no collective strategy for achieving this vision.

14. Strategic Planning for Networks? How do you develop a movement-wide five-year strategy in a completely open, collaborative way (the wiki way)?

15. 1. Wikimedia's Challenge 2. Strategic Planning 3. Strategic Planning for Networks

16. Where are we now? Assessment

17. Where should we go? Visioning / Goal-Setting

18. How should we get there? Planning

19. Only 5% of the workforce understands their company's strategy. Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton. The Strategy-Focused Organization . Harvard Business School Press: 2000.

20. The Plan Is Not the Point!

21. The Real Goal Is Activation

22. The Real Goal Is Activation Alignment Around Goals Matters Most

23. 1. Wikimedia's Challenge 2. Strategic Planning 3. Strategic Planning for Networks

24. Networks Are People ...

25. Networks Are People and Relationships

26. Working Wikily Working Hierarchically Centralized Firmly controlled Planned Proprietary Transactional Downward communication Working Wikily Decentralized Loosely controlled Emergent Open, shared Relational Two-way conversation Courtesy of the Monitor Institute

27. Strategic Planning for Networks? How do you develop a movement-wide five-year strategy in a completely open, collaborative way (the wiki way)?

28. Decentralized Emergent Relational Loosely controlled Open, shared Two-way conversation Strategic Planning for Networks? How do you develop a movement-wide five-year strategy in a completely open, collaborative way (the wiki way)?

29. Five Key Principles 1. Focus on questions 2. Create a space 3. It's all about people 4. Model transparently 5. Fail forward fast

30. 1. Focus on Questions Why focus on questions? I thought we wanted to figure out the answers!

31. Why focus on questions? I thought we wanted to figure out the answers! 1. Focus on Questions Generative Questions

32. Why focus on questions? I thought we wanted to figure out the answers! 1. Focus on Questions Generative Questions Participation Strategic Thinking

33. Why focus on questions? I thought we wanted to figure out the answers! 1. Focus on Questions Generative Questions Participation Strategic Thinking Ownership Activation

34. 2. Create a Space Where will your network do its work? What will make your space inviting and compelling?

35. 2. Create a Space Where will your network do its work? What will make your space inviting and compelling?

36. 3. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process?

37. 3. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process? &quot;If you want to get something done, ask a busy person.&quot; Patrick Collins CIO, Hewlett Foundation

38. 3. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process? 90 / 9 / 1 Rule

39. 3. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process? 90 / 9 / 1 Rule Our Targets: 700 (1 per project) /  70 / 7

40. 2. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process? 90 / 9 / 1 Rule Our Targets: 700 (1 per project) /  70 / 7 What We Got: 1,000 / 100 / 20

41. 3. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process? Ask!

42. 3. It's all about People Who do you want to participate? How many participants should you target? How will you bring people into the process? Ask! Build Relationships

43. 4. Model Transparently How do you leave room for deliberation about process while also making forward progress?

44. How do you leave room for deliberation about process while also making forward progress? 4. Model Transparently Sharing control , not giving it up

45. How do you leave room for deliberation about process while also making forward progress? 4. Model Transparently Sharing control , not giving it up Do-acracy — Put a stake in the ground

46. How do you leave room for deliberation about process while also making forward progress? 4. Model Transparently Sharing control , not giving it up Do-acracy — Put a stake in the ground Be open to change

47. 5. Fail Forward Fast How will you know if your process is &quot;right&quot; or not?

48. 5. Fail Forward Fast How will you know if your process is &quot;right&quot; or not? Assume it's not. Design for the best case, learn, and adapt.

49. 5. Fail Forward Fast How will you know if your process is &quot;right&quot; or not? If you're not screwing up, you're not trying hard enough.

50. 5. Fail Forward Fast How will you know if your process is &quot;right&quot; or not? Assume it's not. Design for the best case, plan, and adapt.

51. Five Key Principles (redux) 1. Focus on questions 2. Create a space 3. It's all about people 4. Model transparently 5. Fail forward fast

52. Questions?

53. For More Information Eugene Eric Kim / Blue Oxen Associates [email_address] @BlueOxenAssoc / @eekim on Twitter http://blueoxen.com/ http://eekim.com/ These Slides http://www.slideshare.net/eekim/strategic-planning-for-networks http://bit.ly/network-strategic-planning Wikimedia Strategy http://strategy.wikimedia.org/

54. Credits Thanks to Kristin Cobble of Courion Group, Rebecca Petzel , and H. Jessica Kim for their valuable feedback on this presentation and for being thought partners — along with Diana Scearce and Heather McLeod Grant of the Monitor Institute and the entire staff of the Leadership Learning Community — on networks. Thanks to all of the Wikimedians who participated in this wonderful little experiment, especially Sue Gardner , Erik Moeller , and Philippe Beaudette of the Wikimedia Foundation. Many thanks to Amy Wu Wong < http://wordsdesign.com/ > for the design of this presentation as well as her delightful sketches. Attributions  Slide 11: Photographs from Wikimedia Commons by Goldmund100 (GNU FDL), MichaelDiederich (CC-BY-SA 2.0), Lisarlena (GNU FDL), Serenity (GNU FDL), THWZ (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Timur Mamadrzaev (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Alexanderps (Public Domain), Yumolives (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Rovdyr (GNU FDL), Василий Меленчук (Public Domain), Airon90 (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Wuselig (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Maderibeyza (GNU FDL), Ragesoss (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Nikita (Public Domain), Ragesoss (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Ziko (CC-BY-SA 3.0), JCornelius (CC-BY-SA 2.0) Slides 19-22: Photographs from Flickr by Royal New Zealand Navy (CC-BY-ND 2.0) Slide 26: Working Wikily slide from Monitor Institute's &quot;The Power of Networks&quot; < http://www.slideshare.net/workingwikily/the-power-of-networks > All other photographs by Eugene Eric Kim / Blue Oxen Associates (CC-BY-SA 2.0)