Tag Archives: strategic plans

Business Planning

Developing a Business Plan!

Business PlanThere are many important steps to consider when developing a Business Plan for your company, but the first step is to fully understand the main uses of a business plan. The four main uses of a business-plan are as follows:

• A Business Plan is a written document that you can use in your search for external financing.
• A Business Plan is a tactical planning and management tool for your business.
• A Business Plan is a document showing the capacity of your team to control and manage all the aspects of the company.
• A Business Plan brings you new ideas to refine your business.… Read the rest

Sustainable Small Business

A Worthy Goal for Small Businesses – Sustainability

Sustainability, from an organizational perspective, should include an increase in productivity, and/orsustainability reduction of consumed resources without compromising product or service quality, competitiveness, or profitability. It is a business strategy that all size companies will need to adapt if we want to improve our environment. “It just makes sense to pay attention to the environmental impact of our economic practices and try to ensure that our communities are healthy, pleasant places to live.” – Susan Ward… Read the rest

Living Into the Future

Defining Sustainability

sustainabilityA recent survey published by Boston Consulting Group and MIT revealed that there is no single, established definition for sustainability. Some companies engaged in sustainability focus solely on environmental issues while others include economic, stakeholder, and governmental issues. The study also revealed that although companies differ in their definition,sustainability is a force to be reckoned with and is a concept that is here to stay. (The Business of Sustainability, 2009, Boston Consulting Group)… Read the rest

Annual Board Retreats

Idea for an Association Board Workshop

workshopIt is quite common that an association will have an annual retreat with their Board of Director. One of the primary workshop subjects for that retreat is the review and revision of the association’s Strategic Plan. Another might be a review of board governance. Let us consider a third, Business Model Generation.… Read the rest

Knowing Your Organization

Assessing Sustainability

sustainabilityWhether you are a business, a charitable organization, or an association, the relationships you have with customers, donors, or members is critical to continued success. That relationship needs to be one which builds loyalty. At the root of success is the loyalty of those, in many cases employees, within the organization to the mission. A lack of employee loyalty may result in the inability to achieve goals and dysfunctional communication. Morale and culture issues may develop. On an overall basis, there is no alignment of systems, people, and strategy.

 … Read the rest

Drucker’s Insight on Leadership

The Effective Leader

leader In two previous articles, we discussed results-based leadership and some of the possible methods of making that happen. I want to share with you some of the thoughts written by the late Peter F. Drucker in an article entitled What Makes an Effective Executive published in the June 2004 issue of Harvard Business Review. In this article, he provides excellent insights into the development of your leadership style. His analysis is broken down into three major categories with steps within each. They include:… Read the rest

Non-Profit Organizational Success

Business Success in a Non-Profit Organization

non-profitStrategic Planning has always been a key leadership tool in the development of successful for-profit organizations. Its format and time scope may vary, but it serves as an important function in business success. It has helped many businesses focus their priorities on future growth and profitability.

… Read the rest

Leadership. Why and How

Leadership, Back to Basics

leadershipIt is often the case that a Board of Directors, whether it is for a Fortune 500 company or a local non-profit, has to recruit and evaluate candidates for the position of CEO or President. When asked what they are looking for during this selection process, the most common answer is leadership. But why do they look for a candidate with leadership skills and how do they determine if that candidate will be an effective leader. Most importantly, they are looking for a person who can accomplish tasks and achieve results. Let’s consider that way first and then two models for determining an individual’s leadership ability.… Read the rest

Strategic Plans That Never Happen

The Strategic Plan That Never Happened

failureMaybe you are a business or a non-profit that completed writing a strategic plan within the last one to two years. You spent many hours with your board of directors or management team carefully crafting the wording within each step of the process. Maybe you used a consultant or let a team member lead the discussion. Everyone felt good about the completion of the document, but a year later the status quo continues. What happened?

… Read the rest

Strategic Plans

Making the Strategic Plan Work

The Non-Profit Board

boardroomHaving worked with and been a part of several non-profit boards of directors, we have observed both well-functioning and dysfunctional groups. Please understand that in every case they were made up of intelligent and well-meaning people. Many of them have worked long and hard in writing a strategic plan. But once completed, it often becomes only an agenda item at the next annual retreat.… Read the rest