“Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world.”
— Joel A. Barker
Strategic Planning
The status quo is not an option. Nonprofit leaders need a guiding strategy –a roadmap– that helps them anticipate change and focus resources on what is most important. Our strategic planning process guides your team to collaboratively identify critical obstacles to achieving your nonprofit’s mission and develops a comprehensive set of coordinated actions that work together to overcome these obstacles and advance your organization’s mission.
Our strategic plans identify high-priority strategic directions and goals, strategies for meeting those goals, and indicators for measuring success. They are adaptable plans that typically span the next 3 to 5 years. Our strategic planning processes are centered in antiracism and intersectionality, allowing our collaborative work to advance toward equity and with equity.
Once a nonprofit’s strategic directions and high-priority goals are clearly defined, its resources can be allocated more efficiently. And just as important, its leaders’ vision of the future is clarified, the staff and board team share a more solid purpose and direction, and partners and constituents become more engaged. With a clear picture of its desired future, the organization is in a strong position to navigate expected and unexpected obstacles and realize that future.
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We use many tools and processes for strategic planning, including landscape analysis, organizational assessment, SWOT analysis, competitive advantage analysis, program evaluation, visioning, mission, vision, and values and DEIBA principles development, theory of change, strategy development, scenario planning (see our blog on Scenario Planning), board and staff retreat facilitation, partnership development, strategy screen and decision matrix design, implementation planning and performance dashboards.
We also often integrate strategic fund-development planning, business model development (see our blog on business model development), negotiation strategy and training (see our blog on nonprofit negotiations), coalition building, and strategic partnership development into strategic planning projects.
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Elements of our strategic planning processes include:
Clarifying your organization’s mission, vision, values, and theory of change, which ground its identity and pull the organization forward, guiding all subsequent decisions.
Deepening engagement among staff, board members, volunteers, partners, program participants, donors, and other stakeholders while building a shared understanding of who the organization is and where it is going.
Anticipating upcoming challenges by examining your organization’s internal strengths and weaknesses, scanning its external environment, preparing for possible future scenarios, and identifying and troubleshooting obstacles.
Creating a plan for action including a strategic framework with priorities, goals, and strategies, and a decision matrix to guide your day-to-day decisions.
Providing a fundraising and marketing document to use with funders and other constituents that articulate your organization’s aspirations and needs for support.
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Our strategic planning services build your organization’s capacity to focus resources on what is most important and proactively adapt to change. In the strategic planning process, we work with you to anticipate, plan, and create your organization's future. Together, we identify core capabilities the organization should build to strengthen leaders' abilities to seize opportunities, overcome obstacles, and respond to a changing environment.
Together we create an intentional roadmap for your organization’s future by clarifying who you are, identifying your essential priorities, and aligning your board, staff, and the communities you serve.