Category: Strategic Planning
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Tips for “Virtual” Meetings
This blog was originally drafted in 2016. A lot has changed on the virtual meeting front since them, although many fundamentals remain the same. I periodically update it to reflect…
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What makes something a “strategic” plan?
What do we mean by strategic planning in the nonprofit context? In my mind, there are three key distinguishing characteristics. First, it’s long term. Certainly more than a year. It…
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A goal is not an activity
Public service announcement: A goal is not an activity, it’s an outcome. The activity of educating people is not a goal. More educated people could be a goal, with educating…
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To follow your dreams, learn to say no
Learning to say no is one of the most important skiils for any organizatonal leader or organization. Oliver Bremerton recently wrote and illustrated a compelling explanation for how this plays…
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A riddle about 5 frogs – updated
About 15 months ago I created a blog entry: 5 frogs sitting on a log. Here’s an updated version. The riddle: Five frogs are sitting on a log. One decides…
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Why don’t groups do strategic planning
Instead of thinking about all the reasons groups can benefit from strategic planning, a friend recently asked me: why do some groups fail to do strategic planning? Here are the…
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Connecting fiscal management to strategy
I recently published a guest article for 501Commons on the importance of building a fiscal management system that connects with strategic decision-making. The main point: you should track revenues and…
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Have you sharpened your axe lately?
A friend was recently describing to me a challenge he faced as a new board member of a relatively healthy organization, but one that seemed to have a frenetic culture.…
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Evaluating on two levels
When talking to organizations about evaluation, I often find myself explaining evaluation on two levels. These levels ask two related, but different questions. 1. Did the organization take the specific…
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Thinking about triggers in work plans
I’ve previously written about the importance of generating work plans once wrapping up strategic planning. One of the most useful tools in a work plan is the concept of triggers.…