Strategic management planning is instrumental in helping a company achieve its goals. For a business to grow and thrive, the team needs to be a well-oiled machine that knows what it’s working towards, and how.
When it comes to strategic management planning, it’s not enough to have a goal in mind, you need to monitor your company's progress to ensure you’re on the right track. To that end, 14 members of Forbes Human Resources Council provide their best tips for strategic management planning, and how this advice has helped their company achieve both short- and long-term goals.
Forbes Human Resources Council members weigh in.
Photos courtesy of individual members.1. Be In Tune With Your Organization's C-Suite
Building business partnerships and cultivating relationships with your organization’s executives will help teams understand the executives’ vision for the organization's future and align on today’s initiatives and tomorrow’s goals. Knowing the strategic roadmap to the future will help effectively build a company’s HR team long-term. - David Tripp, Sage Dental
2. Write A White Paper
I use a process learned from my time at Amazon, writing a white paper to clarify my thinking. The inputs to a paper have been conversations with leaders and employees coupled with data from multiple sources. This helps frame the opportunities and actions, plus identifies dates and metrics. It also provides a vehicle to socialize for further input and refinement, leading to an actionable plan. - Val Rupp, fabric.inc
3. Bring The Outside In
It is easy to get focused on daily internal topics and miss other factors that impact your planning. On the HR side, I like to start the conversation by reviewing external environmental factors like economics, demographics, competition, social factors, technology and political and legal factors. - Kari Durham, Skyworks Solutions, Inc.
4. Shift From Linear Thinking To A Systems Perspective
Shifting your perspective will entail mapping connections between likely and what-if scenarios and running simulations. Because of feedback that inevitably occurs in systems, even small changes can have profound effects. We have helped several companies achieve extraordinary results in this way. - Pravir Malik, Galaxiez
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5. Align Financial Capital With Human Capital
The most effective strategic planning aligns the deployment of financial capital with human capital. Other considerations to support strategic management planning include considering growth, impact on reputation, impact on clients, the sustainability of the strategy and competitive advantage. - Kevin Silva, Voya Financial
6. Start With The End In Mind
Be bold, have a "big hairy goal" (BHG) and then map out your timeline and actions in each area that applies to your business across sales, people, propositions and other areas. Be open about your BHG, let your people know what it is, get them invested in it and link everything back to it. Embrace your BHG! - Alan Fergusson, WBN Global
7. Be At The Executive Table
You have to go outside your realm of HR. To plan strategically, you must have a pulse on the business and the key objectives your C-Suite has for the short- and long-term. That is when you know (and hopefully are able to engage in collaborative feedback) that you can truly create and design a people strategy that will be effective. - Nakisha Griffin, Neustar Security Services
8. Build A Core Team Of Staff That Can Partner With You
As leaders, we often feel like strategic planning is left to us alone; however, this is not true! I have met big and small goals through the effective use of a well-represented team. This allows more voices and perspectives to be considered and often leads to better end products and results. And oftentimes, there is fun to be found along the way. - Brandy Marshall, Franklin Pierce School District
9. Involve All Leadership In The Process
Ensure that all of the leadership is aware of the changes and involve them in the process so you have immediate buy-in. It helps to obtain their opinions so they feel as though they contributed to the change. Continue to follow up with them through the change process so they can communicate effectively with their teams. - Erin ImHof, CertiK
10. Set A Goal First, Then Work Backwards
The strategic management process is about getting from Point A to Point B more effectively and efficiently. A good tip is to work backward. Set what the goal is first, then trace the necessary steps on how to get there. Collaboration and communication with the team involved are key, so always make sure to be aligned with leadership. - Jenny Bode, Commercial Bank of California
11. Know How To Quantify People-Centric Initiatives
The return on investment and the cost of planning need to be communicated in a way where approval can be granted in a reasonable timeframe. If this is not done, this can leave one feeling unmotivated. - Tiersa Smith-Hall, The Hartling Group
12. Be Transparent And Communicate
You will not meet goals or objectives without being transparent across all levels of the organization, clearly communicating expectations, obtaining buy-in and most importantly, using KPIs to measure and track progress and success. By taking these steps, you'll be able to identify the need to pivot or deviate at a quicker rate. - JacLyn Pagnotta, Allied Partners
13. Use Historical Data To Establish A Clear Process
We should always refer to our historical data, analyze it and establish a clear and meaningful strategic planning process. To ensure success, we must engage all levels of employees and build a transparent communication plan. Communication is the key. - Rabah Bu Hamdan, National Aviation Services (NAS)
14. Get The Whole Team On The Same Page
Clear and consistent communication is an important key to strategic management planning so that everyone is on the same page regarding the company’s mission, values and objectives. This provides a roadmap that is critical to success. Through effective communication, plans and activities can be monitored, measured and tweaked accordingly to promote more adaptability to achieve short- and long-term objectives. - Niki Jorgensen, Insperity
