Strategic Planning & Why It Matters: Q&A with Sonia Byrne

You wouldn't go on a hike without planning your route or your ultimate destination. So how can you lead without a strategic plan?

Regardless of the size of your organization or business, having a solid strategic plan is a must. It can help you narrow your focus, set short and long-term goals, attract and retain talent and board members, and much more. Ultimately, it provides stability, sustainability and direction for you, your team, and your business/organization. 

Do you want to develop a strategic plan, but don't know where to start? We're thrilled to have Sonia Byrne of Sonia Byrne & Associates lead a free, online strategic planning workshop with us on March 19, where she'll walk participants through the steps to develop a strategic plan, the benefits and challenges of collaborative planning, and more. (Click here to register for "Strategic Planning & Why It Matters.")

We recently caught up with Sonia to learn more about why strategic plans are so crucial (regardless of the size of your organization), the importance of looking to the past to help plan for the future, why you'll want to keep things flexible, and much more. 

Sonia Byrne

Business & Arts NL: There may be a bit of a perception that strategic plans are only for organizations that have reached a particular level of growth (in terms of employees, finances, etc.). Why are strategic plans important for organizations of any size?

Sonia Byrne: Strategic plans are entirely scalable for the specific size of an organization. It doesn't have to be a "cookie cutter" kind of experience to create a strategic plan that works for your organization, whether it is a solo employee with a volunteer board of directors or an entrepreneur with a small team of contractors or a company with thousands of employees. Strategic planning can work for all these organizations.

And, if your organization is interested in either growing its size and reach or doing more with its existing resources, strategic planning can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of what the organization has available to it right now.

Business & Arts NL: What are some of the most critical things that an organization should include in its strategic plan?

SB: It is important to consider the whole timeline of the organization needs and plans. Looking to the past, organizations can consider what has been a pain point or what issues, process, etc. that remains an ongoing challenge and consider if now is the time to address a resolution through the strategic planning process. For the present, organizations can look at what needs to happen to leverage existing opportunities. For the future, it is good to consider what the organization might like to achieve in the coming years and develop strategic actions that can produce forward momentum.

Business & Arts NL: How often would you recommend organizations consult/tweak their strategic plan?

SB: For an organization's first strategic plan, I recommend establishing a three-year plan. When organizations complete their initial plan - sometimes ahead of time - they may feel comfortable to develop another three- to five-year plan. While a strategic plan is not "set in stone" and immovable, it should be robust enough and flexible enough to travel with the organization over its three-year lifespan.

However, as recent history has shown us, things can change on a large or small scale that can have an interrupting force for a strategic plan. Delays can be incorporated into the duration of the plan as can total stoppages of initiatives. The strategic plan is a living, breathing document that should support accountability while not strangling an organization's organic flow of progress.

I do provide an internal tracking document (for monthly and/or regular meetings) for the strategic plan to keep the momentum and accountability going during the lifespan of the plan and that is helpful in sensing and planning for contingencies that can naturally arise in an organization's experience.

Business & Arts NL: For some organizations, especially those smaller ones that might never have had a strategic plan, putting one together from scratch can seem daunting. Are there any tips you can provide to help simplify the process?

SB: I work with all sizes of organizations so I have created a Simplified Strategic Planning Process with small businesses, entrepreneurs, and non-profits in mind. It simply starts with considering what is most needed in the organization. And, then looking at what could be wanted in a future state after the needs are addressed.

To achieve this basic assessment of needs and wants, I do suggest that the leaders of small organizations gather a group of stakeholders around them to participate in such an endeavour in order that the view is wide and the experience is participatory. I have seen great success with this simple model, including greater ease in recruiting and retaining board members, volunteers, and employees. As the saying goes, what gets planned can get achieved...and that can have a great impact on a small organization.

Workshop: Strategic Planning & Why It Matters
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 19 from 1-2pm NST
Location: Online via Zoom
Price: Free
Registration: Click here to register for the workshop "Strategic Planning & Why It Matters"