During the last months of a year and the first of the new, organizations carry out reflection and planning exercises that they call "strategic" in order to build the different lines of work of the following periods (eg months, quarters, semesters, years) towards a state that is assumed as desired.
In our experience, there are various factors that must be considered for Strategic Planning to be Successful:
1. Establish the Objective of the Planning Workshop
The planning workshops are the means to an end. Therefore, top management must determine the objective and purposes of the Planning Exercises to be carried out by answering the question: What do I want?
2. Definition of Deliverables and Expected Results
Although it seems trivial, one element of success is having defined the products that you want to obtain from the activities carried out. From the report or memory, formats, signing of agreements, support material (audio, video, photos), among others that demonstrate that the proposed purposes were achieved and also the implementation of the agreements and work programs is guaranteed.
3. Selection of Participants
The participants represent the planned domain and scope of the system and it is necessary to select them to ensure that the actors possess the required authority in the workshop and in subsequent actions. The number should not be a limitation since there are methodologies for both small groups (ie less than 20 people) to large groups (eg hundreds or thousands of people).
4. Understanding of Internal Relations between Participants
A correct design of a Planning Workshop must consider the interpersonal relationships between the actors, especially if there will be sessions in work teams in order to avoid destructive and extraneous discussions at the end of the exercise, and on the contrary, allow equity in everything moment.
5. Selection of the Methodology to Use
The General Planning M arc is the same in most of the methodologies and ranges from the exploration of the environment, the diagnosis of the system, the definition of the desired state, the definition of proposals or lines of action and their development.
However, depending on the purpose sought (see point 1) the Planning model must be different. A Budget Planning Exercise vs. an exercise in the search for new organizational paradigms is not the same, or a session with 15 people vs. the high consensus to build a federation like that of South Africa with the participation of all ethnic groups.
6. Design of the Work Agenda or Phases of the Workshop
Every Planning Exercise must have a program of estimated times for each stage, dynamics, plenary, session, among other elements to guarantee that in a period of time the deliverables and consequently the expected ends are achieved.
7. Make the decision to do it alone or with external facilitators
It is always advisable to hire external experts to carry out the Planning Workshops since it is the means of accessing different methodologies, but more importantly, the participants of the company can focus on the discussion and construction of their plan and leave a third, carry out mediation and facilitation activities, as well as documentation of deliverables and results.
8. Preparation of Materials to be Used in the Workshop
With the design approved by the organization, it is necessary to design and carry all the materials required in the workshop, not only the basic stationery and audiovisual materials, but visual materials (eg posters, guides), formats (eg paper or electronic), media exchange of information (eg networks, USB sticks), among others, both for plenary sessions and, where appropriate, for sessions in working groups.
9. Documentation of all the information and results generated
The Planning Workshops generate diverse information, whether verbal, written or even in body language, which in most cases is not documented as part of the file.
Good workshop design considers the topic of electronic, photographic, videographic documentation, audio recordings, standardization with formats or records of each and every phase of the planning exercise.
10. Generation of immediate work programs "30-100"
A risk of any Strategic Planning exercise is the late execution or simply the omission of the actions and therefore, it is recommended that all participants have clear responsibilities for the next 30 and 100 days after the workshop to execute immediate, corrective actions, team building and initiation of actions that will bear fruit in the following quarters or semesters.
A good planning exercise is measured in two dimensions: The first in terms of euphoria and liking for carrying out a satisfactory planning event and the second dimension measured according to the degree of implementation of all the proposed actions and, of course, the achievement of the goals and objectives set.
Finally, all the results of a planning exercise should be reviewed periodically (at least quarterly) and should be modified when required by the organization to face its environment and improve its response capacity.
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