Step 6. Formulate Strategies to Manage the Issues
Strategies are developed to deal with the issues identified in Step 5, so that the organization can better fulfill its mission, meet its mandates and achieve its issue-specific goals. Strategy is a pattern of purposes, policies, programs, projects, actions, decisions, and resource allocations that defines what an organization is, what it does and why it does it. Strategies can vary by level, function and time frame. Strategies may be of several different types:
Strategy for organization, network or community, for organizational subunits, program, service, product or business process strategies.
These strategies can be used to set the context for other change efforts aimed at reengineering the department, organization or division, for example, Total Quality Management, competition or collaboration, etcetera.
Worksheet Directions for Plan Development
Even if you do not prepare a formal strategic plan, consider developing a set of interrelated strategy statements describing:
Grand Strategy
Organization subunit strategies
Program, service, product, project or business process strategies
Functional strategies
Employ a structured process to review strategy statements and formal strategic
plans. The people you have selected to assist you with strategic planning for
your division should be engaged in several review sessions, which may be
structured around the following agenda:
- Overview of plan
- General discussion of plan and reaction to it
- Brainstorming of plan strengths and weaknesses
- Brainstorming of plan opportunities and threats
- Brainstorming of modification that would improve on strengths and opportunities and minimize or overcome weaknesses and threats
- Agreement on next steps to complete the plan
Five Key Questions for Identifying Strategies
______________________________________________________________________Do separate worksheets for each issue
______________________________________________________________________
Strategic issue:
Issue-specific goals:
What are the practical alternatives, dreams, or visions we might pursue to address this issue and achieve our goals?
What are the barriers to realizing these alternatives, dreams or visions?
What major initiatives might we pursue to achieve these alternatives, dreams
or visions directly, or else indirectly through overcoming the barriers?
What are the key actions (with existing resources of people and dollars) that
must be taken this year to implement the major initiatives?
What specific steps must be taken within the next six months to implement the
major initiatives, and who is responsible for taking them?
| Step | Party responsible for step |
Strategy Statement
What is the purpose of the strategy?
What are the strategy’s key elements?
How does the strategy address and achieve issue-specific goals?
What parts of the organization are required to implement the strategy?
o Whole Organization
o Department(s)
o Division (s)
o Unit(s)/Function(s)
