Strategic Planning Part 3 – Objectives, Goals, and Tasks
Anthony Dickerson
CEO | COO | ED | Board Member | Keynote Speaker | Author - "Unstuck and Unstoppable", "Transforming Organizations", "The Nonprofit Board", coming soon - "The World's Worst Supervisor"
Welcome back to part 3 of the 4 part series on Strategic Planning. Two weeks ago, we started with Strategic Planning Part 1 - Discovery
?Following up last week with Strategic Planning Part 2 - Mission, Vision, and Values
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Some have asked why I am going into such great detail on how any organization can do its strategic plan. If I thought I would lose business.?
?Answer = ABSOLUTELY NOT.?
?In a good year, our company will work with about a dozen clients out of the 30 million small and medium-sized businesses in the US. We are passionate about strengthening the operations of every business we can. Hopefully, these articles help.?
?Let’s get to it.?
?For those interested in tackling some of the heavy work of strategic planning, once the Mission, Values, and Vision are complete, the next step in Strategic Planning is developing Objectives, Goals, and Tasks which lead to the Programs/Departments necessary to achieve them.?
?Today's article is NOT sexy. Some leaders see today's work as “getting in the weeds” or “too much detail!”?
?I will lay out each step so that any organization can do the work itself and if you need help, let’s talk. I may be able to help.
?We begin this series with the Objective Statements:?
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Objective Statements
?Objective Statements are typical of where most organizations want to start the Strategic Planning process. At almost every training I have conducted, someone in the room gets agitated with SWOT or defining the mission and want to start with, what the organization wants to “DO!”
?Some organizations are so ready to go out and change the world that they never stopped to examine exactly how the world needed changing and if they are the ones to facilitate those changes.
?Everything that has come before Objective Statements acts as a filtering mechanism. In the first article, we spoke about how strategic planning is like a funnel, wide at the top and narrower as we move further into the process. Each step acts as a filter. If there is no filter, then one person’s opinion is as valid as the next. This is why some businesses are based on the passions of individual team members, rather than incorporating what you are built to do.?
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■ Definition of Objectives
?NOTE:?Objectives, Goals, and Tasks have lots of definitions. One definition of an Objective is how someone else defines a Goal or Task. Here is the Objective definition we will use.
??Objectives are idealistic statements of future outcomes.
??Objectives:
A. Describe a future state of being or outcomes.
B. Focus on outcomes and impacts.
C. Are not measurable or achievable.
D. Are idealistic and ambitious.
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Objectives tell where you want the organization to go. Goals, tell us how to get there.
?Remember, create no more than 25 Objective statements. You won't use them all, but you can choose from among the most inspiring of them. Objectives MUST inspire the team. Really, if they do not inspire anyone, it is time to start over, don’t force bad objectives on the team.?
?The Objectives are the wish list, so dream big!
?Based on what has already been discovered through the Strategic Planning process, let everyone on the leadership team be a part of putting the Objectives together.
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Here are some questions to get you started with your team.
1.?Where will the Business be in three to five years if the mission and vision are fulfilled?
2. What is happening in the Business at this time?
3. Who is serving in the organization?
4. What is it like to work there?
5. What are you most proud that the organization has achieved?
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?■ Practically speaking, When Defining Objective Statements
?1. Ask questions that relate to the ideal future you dream of.
Give every team member a chance to write down their responses.
?2. After the writing is completed, have the pairs interview one another. Ask clarifying questions. Practice Active Listening, so each team member understands what their partner is saying and dreaming.
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3. Have each pair choose five to ten Objectives to write down and bring to the whole group.
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?4. Remember, Objective Statements are unique to the organization. Choose Objectives that are unique to your organization and in cooperation with your Vision.
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5. Once complete, ask someone to write the Objective statements based on the sentences agreed on by the group.
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If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them. – Henry David Thoreau
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Goal Statements
?Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. -?Lucius Annaeus Seneca
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Definition: Goals are specific results that the organization uses to measure how well the Vision is being implemented.
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SMART GOALS or SMT GOALS
?Most of you are very familiar with SMART Goals. So much so that I am not going to spend a lot of time on them.?
?I will say this. For many, SMART Goals are HARD to put together. Frankly, they are difficult enough for so many that I have considered eliminating them altogether. However, the benefits generally outweigh the confusion.?
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SMT GOALS
If SMART GOALS are a challenge, here’s a cheat that may help. Concentrate on the M = Measurable. If a goal is measurable you are well on your way. What are you trying to measure? What amount are we trying to obtain to know that we have won? And by when do we expect to be able to achieve that number?
?I have found it much easier to concentrate on one thing, M, rather than five things SMART.?
?Practically speaking, in my experience, SMT goals have proven to be just as effective in the long run.?
?If you have those three things figured out
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1. Goals are Specific
Narrow, focused. State in the shortest possible terms what is to be accomplished.
?2. Goals end in a Measurable result
Measure the result, not an activity.
How will team members know that Goals have been achieved?
?3. Goals are Timely
A time frame can keep team members from putting off what needs to be done. Often if we give ourselves a way out, we will take it. No completion date for the Goal gives us a license to ignore it.
??Goals help better orient the team. Writing them down records our past performance and points us to where we are going.
?The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.?-?President Franklin Delano Roosevelt?[He never gave this speech. He died on the day before it was to be delivered].
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■ Anticipating Potential Obstacles
?Once Goals are attached to the Objectives, you can be confident that everything will NOT go smoothly. When plans go wrong, do not be surprised as though some strange thing has happened to you. Instead, spend some time anticipating potential obstacles and thinking about potential solutions. Develop specific steps to implement the Goals.
?One way to prepare for obstacles is to write down the anticipated obstacles. Once on paper, the team can figure out ways to overcome them and write down possible solutions to help them stay on track.
?Even if the obstacle or the solution seems minor, write it down. Chances are it will not be minor once you face it.
?Some common obstacles are a shortage of money, lack of training, lack of buy-in, shortage of space, etc.
?Don’t spend tons of time on this but make some preparation.
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Tasks
?Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work.?–?Peter Drucker
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■ Developing Tasks
The next step in the Strategic Planning process is to develop Tasks that will bring the Goals into reality.
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1. Answer this question for each goal. What specific tasks must occur to make this goal a reality?
Each Goal needs to be analyzed and broken down into manageable Tasks. Because many Goals may be new to your context, many of the Tasks may also be new. While developing these Tasks, the organizations will likely discover areas where training is needed.
Tasks advance the Goal from one stage of completion to the next. What decisions are involved in the way work is completed?
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2. Challenge: Try this. List one Goal of the organization and write down the Tasks that need to occur to satisfy that Goal.
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3. Each Goal should have no more than seven Tasks.
Of course, there are hundreds of little steps, but your mission is to develop an outline of the process.
?If there are more than seven written tasks, your process is too complicated and your organization is probably having trouble in that area.
?If the task is already being done, have the team member who performs that task writes down how that task is performed.
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4. When all of the?tasks for each Goal have been fleshed out, write them on a larger chart. This will outline how the steps work together.
This challenge can help the team understand how each part affects the whole by uncovering where processes are unclear or where improvements are needed to implement the vision. Keep an eye out for problems in how the organization performs.?
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?■ Here are 12 questions that may help you analyze the Tasks
1. Why is the Task performed?
?2. When is the Task performed?
?3. Where is the Task performed?
?4. Which team members perform the Task?
Who should have been involved that was not? What can be done to get them involved?
?5. How much time does it take to perform the Task?
Too much time? Or should it have taken longer?
?6. What is the cost to perform the Task?
Is the cost too much? Do you have adequate resources to make the Goal as successful as originally expected? If necessary, how can you get the funding to implement it?
?Could the organization's resources be used differently to produce the same activities at lower costs? How costly is the process compared to the benefits? What is the ROI? Would another process accomplish the same Goal at a lower cost?
?7. What is the quality of the product that is produced by the Task?
What sorts of changes should occur for a better-quality product?
?8. How does this Task affect customers?
?9. How does this Task affect other departments or team members in the organization?
What went well in doing the Tasks that should be continued?
?10. What did not go well that should be discarded?
What anticipated side effects occurred?
?11. Did you meet the Goals the team set? If not, why not?
Are the Tasks Big and Bold enough to achieve the Goal?
Were the Tasks carried out? To what extent has the Goal been met and the goal achieved?
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Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small. The difficult things in this world must be done while they are easy; the greatest things in the world must be done while they are still small. - Sun Tzu
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■ What Tasks are involved in Each Goal?
Congratulations! This is hard work to do it well. ??.?
?Remember, whatever the process, it is important to note the interactions of departments and personnel it takes to get the Goal accomplished. There is an overall need to develop a plan rather than doing tasks haphazardly without a game plan.
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■ As Your Organization Experiments and Redesigns:
?Write down what is happening.
This is an important step so that you can carefully analyze the results and answer such questions as:
Are we doing what we said we would do and the way we said we would do it?
What new resources or information do we need?
How did we feel about the experimentation? What was the general reaction to the change?
Should someone plan a total implementation? Should the effort be abandoned? Should a new design that would better serve our Goal be planned?
What could be done to make the process more effective?
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?One last thing. As you implement Tasks for the first time, you will make mistakes.
It’s ok to experiment and redesign tasks that may not work.?
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Fail fast, fail frequently, and most importantly, fail cheaply.?
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Mistakes mean that you are trying. They are to be expected and learned from by redesigning.
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It's a bad plan that admits to no modification. - Publilius Syrus
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Next time we will conclude our articles on Strategic Planning. As always let me know if I can help.
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?Anthony Dickerson
Foundations Business Consulting