Note: We will reference MyStrategicPlan throughout this post, but in doing so also acknowledge our great customers using MyNonprofitPlan and MyChurchPlan.

Before	After

Let’s dig into what this means.

Much thought and collaboration has been invested in each aspect of the new design. We are confident that MyStrategicPlan is now more efficient and intuitive than it was before, which is what you want from a business process tool. There are several new changes and based on initial response to our new design, we know that you will like it.

Throughout the redesign of MyStrategicPlan.com, we kept four criteria in mind; including:

1. Improving the look and feel of MyStrategicPlan with a new, fresh and very professional facelift.
2. Streamlining the user interface to reduce clutter and complexity.
3. Accessing high priority actions/tasks with fewer clicks thereby improving the efficiency of the system and our users.
4. Increasing our customers’ success rate through the strategic planning activities into the execution stage. The customer feedback from our annual survey helped us understand the need to simplify the strategic planning process. We want you to be successful!

You may experience a very short “re-familiarizing” period with the new design! We assure you that with a little “re-acquaintance” time, you will be more efficient and productive. We encourage you to give yourself some time to acquaint yourself with the new workflow and within a short time, you will also find benefit in the improved and efficient transition to operationalizing strategy.

Later in this post, I will highlight the changes in greater detail. As we move you through the design keep in mind the many resources that are available to you to improve your ease of use and application, provide you with guidance through the process and to keep each of you current with all system updates.

We are very happy to finally have MyStrategicPlan updated in response to requests. This redesign touches every single page. There is still more work to do over the coming months to improve the design and functionality of secondary pages so we aren’t completely done, but we are well on our way. We hope you will fully optimize the new design to fully engage your team and grow your company by converting strategy into action.

Thank you,

Erica Olsen

Learn more about the redesign in the short 5-minute video.

For a complete review of the changes, please read further.

Guided Home Page: The new home page redesign not only offers our users a new, fresh and professional feel, it offers a system by which to implement and execute your strategies. This new landing page does a better job of providing you with both information and next steps. The home page now implements a level of intelligence in two stages:

• Increased guidance through the process. The “tiles” will help guide users through the key “strategic process” steps (intelligence based). This provides more of a “system guide.” As the system monitors your activity, it will propose your next actions. It will also provide direct resources to the respective item.

• Assistance through the performance management phase offers our users constant updates to navigate through their plan. Quicker access to execution tools and reports improves the effectiveness of using a management tool. For example, using the scorecard approach provides quick access to the number of actions/goals you have that are on target vs. off target. This perspective offers the busy executive, as well as all managers and team members, a “60,000 ft.” level view of plan accomplishments. The home page also offers Tips box that provides general strategic planning tips, thought provoking questions, jokes, and more; a view of upcoming free trainings; and best practices from the M3 team.

Before	After

Navigation changes: Besides the design changes, you will find some of the most noticeable changes are in the navigation at the top of each page. These changes provide you with tools that will most noticeably increase efficiency and productivity. Take your time exploring during your “re-acquaintance” period! We have streamlined the process and removed a number of clicks to get to key pages. Please note: Some of the top navigation tabs will have drop down links. Once on a section the secondary navigation will be moved to “side” navigation. This workflow more closely follows a typical strategic planning process and meets the request that many users wanted to see incorporated.

Before
After

Site-wide Appearance: We have taken the new design and incorporated it throughout the rest of the website. The space is better positioned taking advantage of white space to make the system easier on the eyes. It also provides more room for data entry, as well as more information to help you on the specific topic. The changes speak for themselves. Here are a few additional changes applied to many of the “interior pages” that we want to highlight:

• Tips box: Process pages will include a new “Tips” box to provide specific and important information to the task on that page.
• More Info box: Process pages will include a new “More Info” link to dig deeper into information on the section including examples and videos. More details on this below.

Before	After

More Info Link: Many of you will notice the iFrame box is no longer there. We have given our users full control of assessing the information and tips they individually need! This change provides you with greater control of available resources and allows you to decide if you want more details. If you do want more information and assistance, we offer many more examples + direct link to Virtual Strategy Guide via one quick click! You decide. We are also implementing organizational specific resources. To start, the examples provided will be different depending upon whether you have a MyStrategicPlan, MyNonprofitPlan or MyChurchPlan account. We will continue to build this out over the next year, but this is a great start. These “More Info” tabs will also link you directly to the Virtual Strategy Guide if you want to dig deeper. We have built out this resource further so it is a full blown strategic planning process.

Before	After

Reports: We are breaking away from the “highly technical” look and feel! The new reports page allows you to quickly see the listing of available reports and access them more effectively. You have two more clicks but the total time savings should be well worth it. Quick Access drop down menus allow you to navigate through departments to individual team members much more rapidly.

Before	After

Accounts Page: The plan administrator will notice the layout of the account page is more streamlined. The new page offers a department listing in a drop down menu, while team members are also displayed in a drop-down at a level lower than the department listing. Click through this new feature, it helps expedite user management workflow.

Future Development: MyStrategicPlan is not just a web application (or point solution with planned output). It is an end-to-end business process application. We are dedicated to enhancing the system to meet your business needs. Customer feedback drove these changes and if you want to have a voice in the next round, we welcome your feedback. We have a list a mile long. With your continued support and recommendations to friends and colleagues we are committed to making your job easier. As recommendations are submitted, we evaluate them and commit resources to those most mission critical. Here are some items scheduled for the next 6 months:

• API: The first pass at an API has been developed and is ready in write form. We look to connect to an industry leading application for testing. If your organization needs to connect MyStrategicPlan to a 3rd party application, please let us know.
• Mobile application: We know you want a mobile app and we do too!
• Powerpoint Report: Accelerate your strategy reviews by automating the production of a PowerPoint presentation that will pull in the information from your Track Goals and Actions page.

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Poster X: Our industry doesn’t lend themselves to strategic planning. We need to have the freedom to react to an environment that is constantly changing.

Let’s not fall into this trap! Strategic planning is so much more than this. This poster seems to be caught in the old belief that strategic planning is a rigid process that places your company in concrete boots or a plan can’t be changed once it’s created.

As we all know, strategic planning is not an event, it is a process. I would argue that a well-executed strategic plan allows for greater freedom and great assurance in today’s changing environment. It isn’t just about creating a strategic plan, the difference will be made in executing strategy and building a culture of strategy.

To avoid creating a lengthy blog post, here are three data points that I think apply here.

1. A good strategic plan allows for better decision making and quicker decisions making: Good Decisions Improve Financial Results: Companies that excel in decision making generate average total shareholder returns nearly 6 percentage points higher than those of other companies. – “Decide & Deliver: 5 Steps to Breakthrough Performance in Your Organization,” Bain & Company by Marcia W. Blanko, Michael C. Mankins, and Paul Rogers

2. Without the focus that a strategic plan can provide, we can all fall into the trap of unproductive busyness. 90% of managers are typically either distracted or disengaged from key organizational objectives. “Confusing frenetic motion with constructive action,” they are noted for their “unproductive busyness. - “Closing the Individual Productivity Gap: Putting First Things First,” Franklin Covey via “Beware the Busy Manager,” Harvard Business Review by Bruch, H. and Ghoshal, S., Feb 2002

3. A strong organizational focus benefits all companies in all industries. Downturns are roller coasters for weak firms: 3x to 5x. During downturns, weaker businesses are the shock absorbers of their industries – their margin swings are often three to five times that of the leader. That gives companies with strong, focused cores the opportunity to invest and gain ground on their competitors during the downturn and the subsequent recovery. - “Global Strategy Practice: Profit from the Core: A Return to Growth in Turbulent Times,” Bain & Company, February 2010 by Chris Zook and James G. Allen

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1. Pull together a diverse, yet appropriate, group of people to make up your planning team. Diversity leads to a better strategy. Bring together a small core team –between six and ten people–of leaders and managers who represent every area of the company.
2. Allow time for big picture, strategic thinking. We tend to try to squeeze strategic planning discussions in between putting out fires and going on a much needed vacation. But to create a strategic plan, your team needs time to think big. Do whatever it takes to allow that time for big-picture thinking (including taking your team off-site).
3. Get full commitment from key people in your organization. You can’t do it alone. If your team doesn’t buy into the planning process and the resulting strategic plan, you’re dead in the water.
4. Allow for open and free discussion regardless of each person’s position within the organization. Don’t lead the planning sessions. Hire an outside facilitator, someone who doesn’t have any stake in your success. When you do, people wonder whether you’re trying to lead them down the path you wanted all along. Encourage active participation, but don’t let any one person dominate the session.
5. Think about execution before you start. It doesn’t matter how good the plan is if it isn’t executed.
6. Use a facilitator, if your budget allows. Hire a trained professional who has no emotional investment in the outcome of the plan. An impartial third party can concentrate on the process instead of the end result and can ask the tough questions that others may fear to ask.
7. Make your plan actionable. To have any chance at implementation, the plan must clearly articulate goals, action steps, responsibilities, accountabilities, and specific deadlines.  And everyone must understand the plan and their role in it.
8. Don’t write your plan in stone. Good strategic plans are fluid, not rigid and unbending. They allow you to adapt to changes in the marketplace. Don’t be afraid to change your plan as necessary.
9. Clearly articulate next steps after every session. Before closing the strategic planning session, clearly explain what comes next and who’s responsible for what. When you walk out of the room, everyone must fully understand what they’re responsible for and when to meet deadlines.
10. Make strategy a habit, not just a retreat. Review the strategic plan for performance achievement no less than quarterly and as often as monthly or weekly. Focus on accountability for results and have clear and compelling consequences for unapproved missed deadlines.

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Listeners will learn:

• How to effectively review your progress and track your key performance indicators
• Establish an execution schedule with correct frequency, tools and reports to support the process
• Set up business rules to help your team easily follow the process
• How to run great monthly strategy review meetings

Download PDF (slide deck)

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1. Strategy Stat: 7 people in a decision-making group
2. Topic/Question: Running an Effective Quarterly Business Review – So you have a plan, now what? One of the biggest challenges organizations have is putting a plan into action – moving from the off-site to monthly decision making throughout the year. A visible sign of a plan that is being executed is hold monthly or quarterly business review or, as we call them, Strategy Review Meetings.

• “Must Dos” before thinking about instituting Strategy Review Meetings
• Identifying attendees, handouts, and frequency
• Two different agendas and styles to run your meeting
• Tips on how to facilitate a strategic, not tactical, conversation

Download PDF

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June 16,2010 Executing Strategy with Meaningful Measurement In this newsletter we tapped into the expertise of Howard Olsen, a co-founder of M3 Planning (the consultancy responsible for the development of MyStrategicPlan). As a lead market researcher he explains how to avoid some stumbling blocks when approaching measurement. [read more]

October 20, 2010 Five Ways to Tank Your Strategic Planning Retreat In this edition, we explain what to watch out for when planning strategic retreats. These tips come from our experience, as our company has been facilitating retreats for almost a decade. We are glad this newsletter resonated with so many readers. [read more]

November 3, 2010 Bochy Ball – Excellence in Strategic Execution Who couldn’t help but to write about the San Francisco Giants in their spectacular performance this fall? We thought it would be entertaining to fold the World Series win into this newsletter, yet upon researching we found real inspiration from Giants manager Bruce Bochy. He made bold decisions with “tipping point” consequences. It was the strength of his conviction and the trust of the team that made this a strategic case story gem. [read more]

We hope you enjoy revisiting these articles as much as we did. Enjoy the New Year!

Strategy Check: How are you constructing the experiences of 2010 to advance your organization in 2011?

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Because your strategic plan is a work in progress the MyStrategicPlan System gives you a comprehensive, one-screen module to stay current on your key performance indicators.

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Fast-forward to discovering better ways to navigate your business today. With the following three key people to formally support strategic execution, we believe organizations have a much better chance of seeing their strategies come to fruition.

The Strategy Champion

Every organization needs people who are farsighted in their support of an idea. All strategic plans need to be championed by someone who has a conviction that goes beyond promotion of planning. Strategic champions connect with the concept that today’s efforts can collectively be harnessed to position a company toward a more confident position in the future marketplace. Strategy champions are guides. Their efforts position companies to trudge through the muck of the recession; aiming to gain firmer ground in the most direct way possible. In this manner, strategic companies exercise full stride at the earliest opportunity, resulting in a purposefully constructed competitive advantage.

The Strategy Endorser

It is optimal to ensure your organization’s strategy champions have executive-level influence, such as a CEO (business), director (non-profit) or Mayor (municipality). It is critical to ensure that the person at the helm gives full endorsement to the need and function of the strategic plan from assessment to execution. Strategic plans by design acknowledge change, and for some who might resist (and there’s always people that resist), a clear directive from the top will help pull the plan through the rough spots in strategic execution.

The Strategy Administrator

Administrators are the engines of an organization. Strategic plan administration serves the same purpose. Administrators are key for maintenance and upkeep of your plan. To ensure a strategic plan does not become a time albatross, make sure the system in which you manage the plan can be updated quickly, referenced easily and is centrally shared. It is particularly helpful to automate the process as much as possible. For example, having report templates that are produced without difficulty will make strategy review sessions a much less burdensome occurrence.

The take-away: Provide proper guidance for your strategic plan to make your journey a professionally driven endeavor. Without the three roles above fulfilled, strategic plans quickly turn into a misadventure in planes, trains and automobiles… that doesn’t have to be your experience!

StrategyCheck: Do you have the right people supporting your strategic plan?

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Since the future cannot be controlled, many times long-term goals and objectives in strategic planning seem unattainable and even grandiose.  For example, when you worked at NASA in the 1960s, putting a man on the moon probably inspired just a little uncertainty, if not full blown doubt, by some!  Nevertheless, they engineered the problem and incrementally came up with solutions.  The same incremental approach is needed for strategic objectives that position companies at a certain spot three, five or seven years down the road.  Luckily these aims don’t require the same amount of resources as placing a man on the moon.

For many organizations, a pervasive problem in executing strategy is the existence of ambiguous wording, measurements and tracking mechanisms.  Without clarity, a strategic execution becomes directionless work.  Morale and support quickly erode in these circumstances.

Adam Smith says, “On the road from the City of Skepticism, I had to pass through the Valley of Ambiguity.”  We say rebook your trip!  With clarity of purpose, organizations can create tasks and routines that keep incremental actions moving forward with holistic purpose and accountability.  Leave less to question and interpretation when assigning strategic tasks and begin progress toward a more certain future.

Strategy Check:  Do you steer clear of ambiguity when talking about strategic performance?

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Not smart, you say? But you can’t possibly be telling me that a sledge hammer isn’t useful- nearly everyone I know has one. They’re simple and easy to use: lift over your head and bring it down on whatever you need to “fix.” You really can’t get much simpler- and in today’s fast-paced world who has time to learn how to use another tool?

Unfortunately, this is how many businesses today approach strategic planning.

Search for “strategic planning spreadsheet excel” in Google and you’ll get 88,000 results at the time of this writing- and the first result will be an essay extolling the virtues of Excel as a strategic planning tool.

What Excel can’t do for your strategic planning process

• Excel won’t teach you the strategic planning process
• Excel won’t show you how your strategy filters down throughout your company
• Excel doesn’t create outlines
• Excel can not manage your progress
• Excel will not remind you where you’re at
• Excel will not allow you to set user permissions
• Excel isn’t available via the web for you to access night and day from anywhere (at least not the version your company uses)

In his post titled “the Spreadsheet Love Affair,” Dennis Howlett at ZDNet sums up some of the dangers of using Excel for uses it was not intended for:

I’ve always held the view that the spreadsheet was never designed for the sophisticated uses to which companies continue to put it. At best it is a development environment that is rarely documented because users are not trained as developers. The net result is that when things go wrong, errors are notoriously difficult to find.

If you are crafting a strategic plan, research the correct tools you should use. Excel works great in the many uses for which it was intended, but it’s no better for strategic planning than a sledgehammer is for your leaky sink.

Incidentally, a search for “sledgehammer leaky faucet” only grabs about 1,500 results; most of them jokes.

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