Effective Strategic Planning is what differentiates successful organizations. The Convergence Group has extensive experience in providing support in strategic planning for private, public, and education sectors. We have worked with small, medium, and large organizations to support the development of strategies that are designed to achieve business success in dynamic and unpredictable environments. In rapidly changing times a strategic plan is essential.
Strategic Planning is a critically important business tool for both large and small organizations. We offer over 20 years of experience in the planning process to help you develop the strategy that is right for you. We simplify the process into understandable chunks without compromising the integrity of the process. We will guide you through the vision / goal development, current state assessment, gap analysis, and selection of best fit strategies. We also provide support in the development of supporting measurement systems (dashboard of indicators) which continually update leaders on the progress of initiatives. Our expertise also includes implementation support and change management.
Strategic Planning Step 1: Current State Assessment
We use a variety of strategic planning assessment tools such as SWOT, PEST, and environmental scanning. We leverage technology by using e-surveys to collect assessment data from customers, partners, and stakeholders. Of all the stages in strategic planning the current state assessment is the most critical. An honest objective “no rose coloured glasses” view of an organization’s position is key to the development of effective strategies. We employ tools such as e-surveys to gather information to accurately assess current strengths and opportunities.
Strategic Planning Step 2: Gap Analysis
Our consultants play an essential role in helping your organization identify and address its shortcomings. They do this by facilitating a detailed and thorough discussion about the current state of affairs in your organization. Here’s how the process generally works:
- Identification of gaps: This typically involves a rigorous analysis of your organization, its processes, structures, and outcomes. It includes evaluating current performance metrics and comparing them to desired or industry standard benchmarks. Our consultants will lead and encourage open, constructive dialogues, ensuring that the organization’s key stakeholders, including executives, managers, and even staff, are actively involved in the discussions. This comprehensive review and discussion allow us to collectively pinpoint areas where there are performance gaps, inefficiencies, or weaknesses that are preventing your organization from reaching its full potential.
- Prioritization of problem areas: Once we have identified the problem areas, the next step is to determine which of these should be addressed first. This is a crucial phase as it’s not always feasible or practical to tackle all issues simultaneously. The prioritization process is often based on factors such as the severity of the problem, its impact on the organization, the resources required to fix it, and the potential benefits of resolving it. Our consultants will guide this process, helping you evaluate each problem from different perspectives, including strategic, operational, and financial viewpoints, among others.
- Development of solutions: Post prioritization, our consultants work with your team to design and implement effective solutions for the identified problem areas. This could involve creating new strategies, improving processes, changing organizational structures, or providing training to employees, among other possible solutions. The goal is to address the most critical issues in a way that aligns with your organization’s capabilities, resources, and strategic objectives.
- Continuous improvement: Our consultants also ensure that there is a process in place for ongoing monitoring and continuous improvement. This involves setting up relevant performance indicators, regular reviews of progress, and making necessary adjustments to the solutions implemented. It ensures that your organization stays on the right track towards resolving its key problem areas and improving overall performance.
In conclusion, our consultants don’t merely identify and list out the problems; they actively involve themselves in the facilitation of conversations around these issues, help prioritize which issues to tackle first based on various factors, assist in the development of targeted, strategic solutions, and set up a system for continuous monitoring and improvement. Their ultimate goal is to drive your organization towards heightened efficiency, effectiveness, and success.
Strategic Planning Step 3: Strategy Selection
When the key gaps have been identified energy can then be focused on the development of approaches to close gaps. It is important to remember that not all strategies will be right for you. A careful analysis will help determine the best fit strategies to ensure implementation success. A key point of failure is picking a theoretically ideal strategy that you do not have the capacity to execute.