Strategic planning, whether that be annual or long term planning, use to be an event that established the business plan and financial budgets for the coming period. It was developed into a nice document and often neglected after the huge investment upfront.
In order to be successful, this old approach will not work. Strategic documents, whether long or short term must be a living breathing document that is active and reviewed no less than each quarter to confirm its relevance and amend as necessary.
If we look at the strategic plans for most companies for 2020, we will see that the plan was nothing like the reality. This showed and taught us the art of regularly and collaboratively reviewing the plan to confirm the original plan is still relevant to today’s situation.
Sudden and rapid economic changes both internationally and locally gave rise to economic instability. It highlighted that no matter how solid our plans, financial volatility is something that must be added to all strategic plans.
The emerging leadership trend in strategic workshops is planning for economic instability, knowing that it is a factor that may impact us for some time yet and understanding that a slow reaction may be devastating to both people and the company.
Below are some questions to consider as part of your strategic planning;
