Bite Off Only What You Can Chew

In recent strategic planning sessions I've witnessed overly exuberant staffs and boards review a list of goals and objectives they had on prior strategic planning documents. Be careful not to try to overload your organization with too many goals and objectives, because too many of them will be given a less than desirable effort simply in order to check it off the list.

Depending on the size of the credit union, what has recently transpired, or will be forthcoming should be taken into account on strategic planning focus. One client had a terrible situation of executive theft which lead to extensive firings and court cases not to mention, the loss of revenue and write offs for "friend" loans. Another client is pondering a merger and being acquired. These are significant strategic items that need complete focus and a check of where are we now and where will we be in 12 months.

I fully endorse a multi-year strategic plan and focus unless so much is dramatically going to change within the next few months it's hard to imagine have a healthy plan with many goals and objectives until the big issue becomes resolved.

If your credit union is comfortable in your locations, have solid reviews and feel properly position to attack member, asset and loan growth, then this is the time for multi-year focus and aggressive goals and objectives. However, still keep in mind too many projects will not get done properly in a timely manner because the available resources of time and talent of your executives can only be spread so far.

If you are a credit union that isn’t as comfortable as the aforementioned one, you still have a great need for a focused plan to build on the strengths you have in the marketplace. The focus on only a few items to dramatically improve will serve your members better and your team will be able to generate greater success.

-- Russell

Strategic Planning - Process Leadership Checklist

These are the things I think you need to have in place before you start your first strategic planning meeting. Keep in mind that the Simplified Strategic Planning process is structured to require a minimum of preparation, so you may need much more preparation if you are attempting another approach to strategic planning.

First, you must have commitment. There are 3 areas where this is crucial: number one, the CEO or president must be committed to support the process and the implementation of the resulting plan. Secondly, the management team also needs to commit to support the process and implementation, and third, both groups - especially the CEO - need to commit to participation in the meetings following a pre-set schedule.

After commitment, you need to prepare your team. Number one, you need to make sure you have the right people selected for your team. Number two, you must assure that the team is adequately trained to participate in strategic planning (although this may be less important if you are using an outside facilitator who is also able to train the team). Thirdly, you need to select a team leader. This person will have different roles, depending upon whether you use an outside facilitator to run your planning meetings.

Once your team is prepared, you need to arrange for your meetings. This includes setting dates and assuring that everyone on the team can attend on the dates you have chosen. Also, you will want to arrange for meeting space, which should be away from your offices and branches, to help separate the team's thinking from day-to-day tactical issues. Finally, you need to assure that the appropriate materials will be at the meeting site - flipcharts, projectors, books, worksheets, and anything else you feel you might need to conduct a good strategic planning meeting.

So here is the basic checklist, in outline form:

Get Commitment
-CEO commitment
-Team commitment
-Participation commitments
Prepare Team
-Select strategic planning team
-Train strategic planning team
-Select strategic planning team leader
Arrange meetings
-Set dates
-Arrange location
-Arrange for materials

-Robert