The Two Day Strategic Planning Process

When it comes to strategic planning, every group has different emphases depending on what they have already done in the recent past. Typically we include exercises to reflect on the external environment, create a future vision, look at limitations, set priority directions and complete detailed action plans.

You may decide this is a good time to also reexamine your mission and values. North Star attractively documents all parts of the process for the group. Planning can be done in groups of 5-300+.

Why do we need two days to do strategic planning?

We recommend at least two days because good strategic planning involves a four step process that requires at least half a day for each step. We’re not in the business of creating extra work for ourselves so if there are tasks your organization can accomplish on your own, we’ll let you know. Please consult us to be sure of what can be realistically achieved with your organization.

Who needs to be involved in the strategic planning process?

We recommend that representatives from all key stakeholder groups be involved in the foundational components of the strategic planning process. Stakeholders may include past and present Board members, staff, key clients, funders, and sometimes interested members of the public. Examples of the foundational components include: historical and/or environmental scan, vision, contradictions, and strategic directions. Action planning, the last step of the strategic planning process, is typically done by staff and/or board members.

How many people need to be involved in strategic planning?

The minimum sized group is 3-5 people. Typically, groups range from 15-40 and we’ve worked with groups of 350 people. There is no maximum size because strategic planning can be done in different places and data can be aggregated and synthesized. Visioning processes for larger groups can occur simultaneously or at different times in several locations and then results are merged by a smaller representative group.