Cheetahs, primarily found in the African bush, are widely thought to be the most agile members of the animal kingdom. They can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in just three seconds. They’re also very adept at making sudden and speedy changes in direction, particularly useful when pursuing their prey. It’s their lightweight body, long legs, and flexible spine that confer them extraordinary agility, as well as their ability to support rapid oxygen intake. Agility is also a much-prized attribute of community financial institutions (CFIs). Strategic planning is central to every organization’s ability to navigate evolving market conditions and capitalize on opportunities for growth. Most institutions put a lot of time and effort into formulating a strategic plan, yet industry experts agree that many plans fail to deliver the desired outcomes. Research by the Gartner Group found that 61% of corporate strategists point to strategy execution as the main reason that new growth initiatives fail. They identify three common barriers to successful strategic execution: ambiguous responsibilities, inability to convey objectives to teams and individuals, and a lack of clear priorities.Here are some top tips to ensure your team develops an effective strategic plan that delivers on your organization’s objectives.
- Get the fundamentals right. Aligning all stakeholders around clearly articulated and data-driven goals is key.
- Define and communicate a clear vision and mission that reflect your institution’s values and aspirations. This may seem obvious, but a Gallup study found that only 22% of employees feel their leaders have a clear direction for the organization.
- Base your plan on a comprehensive analysis of external and internal factors. Be sure to include market and economic trends, the regulatory landscape, the competitive environment, and technological innovations, as well as the institution’s strengths, weaknesses, risk exposure, and financial performance.
- Foster a culture of change. A critical mindset and adaptability are key when taking on a new initiative, and employees need to be given ample space to experiment while having safeguards in place to ensure they are motivated by change, not frustrated.
- Establish a strong governance framework with clear roles and responsibilities. According to Gartner, two-thirds of employees do not understand their role in new growth initiatives, leading to a slower and costlier implementation.
- Make it actionable. A pragmatic approach ensures a strategic plan can be successfully implemented.
- Prioritize initiatives to ensure the most important ones have sufficient financial, human, and technological resources. Make sure you adopt a structured approach to the prioritization process by defining key criteria against which to assess and rank each initiative.
- Consider breaking down complex goals into bite-sized activities with measurable outcomes and a clear timeline. This can help reduce risks, deliver insights to inform next steps, and avoid costly errors.
- Avoid overwhelming internal departments with multiple initiatives that compete for attention. Consider enlisting external help to fill capacity and knowledge gaps.
- Keep it living. A strategic plan should be dynamic, enabling institutions to be agile. Successful organizations are twice as likely to adjust their plans in response to key performance indicators (KPIs), according to Gartner.
- Regularly monitor KPIs to measure progress on each strategic initiative. Leverage data analytics and real-time insights from reporting systems and be sure to update forecasts and conduct scenario planning that reflects the latest data. Update your strategic plan accordingly.
- Establish solid decision-making frameworks that allow you to pivot rapidly in response to evolving market conditions, customer demands, regulatory changes, and technological advances.
Strategic planning is vital to a CFI’s ability to understand and make the most of growth opportunities in the market. When done well, it helps align the organization around agreed priorities, deploy resources efficiently, and increase market share and profitability. Too often, strategic plans are not implemented properly or become obsolete as time goes by. If the fundamentals are right, and if it is actionable and adaptable, a strategic plan can be a crucial tool in achieving long-term success.
