***How to Write a Strategic Plan: A Simple Outline

The Consumer Driven Strategic Planning Model© was created by Patty Sadallah in the mid 1980’s as a way to help non-profits to understand that they cannot plan in a vacuum. Too many organizations were working through their strategic planning processes without considering the external factors affecting their industries, neighborhoods and economies. And, they were making it WAY too complicated. It is really a matter of having your board and staff leadership work through a series of questions in a certain order and before too long, you have a viable working strategic plan. Patty has consulted dozens of organizations through the process and she shares her tips for getting through it a quickly and as effectively as possible in this e-workbook.

In February of 2008, she wrote an article in Associated Content with just the simple consumer driven strategic planning outline. At the time of this writing, 18,000 people have read this article, so she felt that it was time to write a workbook helping people to work through it. This is the outline that if you work through, will get you to a strategic plan that doubles as a grant template. We will go through this outline in more detail with workbook exercises that will help you work through this process.

Let’s take a moment to talk about using this document as a grant template. Grantors ask for this very information and yet, they all have a different way of asking for it. Use this document as a template that you can change and cut and paste from according to what the grantor is asking for. If you had a solid document where you could refer, cut and paste, you would apply for more grants. This process also focuses your organization so you know what you should apply for and what is outside your mission focus. So, allow it to guide which grants for which it makes sense for you to apply.

The next 3 pages included the basic outline and table of contents for which your group can work through. It is important to note that even though the document is written one order, you will work it through in a different order. The table of contents will make that clear. In general you will work from general to specific when planning, and follow a past, future, present model.

WORK THROUGH IT IN THIS ORDER and WRITE IT IN THIS ORDER (what is listed below each step)

Step 13
Cover Page

Step 12
Table of Contents

Step 11
Executive Summary

Step 2
Statement of Community Need
Initial Information
Statement of Need

Step 1
History
Creation of the Organization:
Major Accomplishments of the Past:
Present Situation:

Step 3
Mission
Mission Statement:
Interpretation of the Mission

Step 4
Vision
Vision Narrative:

Step 5
Strategies
Methods of Service:
Sustainability:
Marketing Plan:

Step 6
Organization
Organizational Chart
Board
Staff

Step 7
Goals and Objectives
Goals:
Staff Objectives:
Board Objectives

Step 8
Success Measures
Definition of Success:
Measurement Tools:
Continuous Quality Improvement:

Step 9
Budget
Total Operating Budget:
What Money will need to be Generated

Step 10
What is needed to Succeed?
Define Needed Support:

Step 11
Appendix
Articles of Incorporation as a 501c3 or Business Incorporation documents
Resumes of Key Staff and a List of Board Members
Brochures or other Marketing Tools
Articles Written about the Organization
Letters of Recommendation (You may want to pull quotes from these and include them in your summary statement)
Last Years Budget
Anything Else that would impress