Strategic Planning – Part 2

Strategic Planning and Long-Range Planning

Although many use these terms interchangeably, strategic planning and long-range planning differ in their emphasis on the “assumed” environment. Long-range planning is generally considered to mean the development of a plan for accomplishing a goal or set of goals over a period of several years, with the assumption that current knowledge about future conditions is sufficiently reliable to ensure the plan’s reliability over the duration of its implementation. In the late fifties and early sixties, for example, the U.S. economy was relatively stable and somewhat predictable, and, therefore, long-range planning was both fashionable and useful.

On the other hand, strategic planning assumes that an organization must be responsive to a dynamic, changing environment (not the more stable environment assumed for long-range planning). Certainly a common assumption has emerged in the new economy that we are faced with in business: e-business and going global are an essential part of the strategic plan. This assumption, that the environment is indeed changeable, is often done in unpredictable ways. Strategy is about seeing the opportunities, then, stresses the importance of making decisions that will ensure the organization’s ability to successfully respond to changes in the environment. Organizations that resist change will fail to adapt, and will not survive.

Strategic Thinking and Strategic Management

Strategic planning is only useful if it supports strategic thinking and leads to strategic management – the basis for an effective organization. Strategic thinking means asking, “Are we doing the right thing?” Perhaps, more precisely, it means making that assessment using three key requirements about strategic thinking: a definite purpose in mind; an understanding of the environment, particularly of the forces that affect or impede the fulfillment of that purpose; and creativity in developing effective responses to those forces.

It follows, then, that strategic management is the application of strategic thinking to the job of leading an organization. One precise question provides a framework for understanding strategic management: continually asking the question, “Are we doing the right thing?” It requires attention to the “big picture” and the willingness to adapt to changing circumstances, and consists of the following three elements:

• formulation of the organization’s future mission in light of changing external factors such as regulation, competition, technology, and customers
• development of a competitive strategy to achieve the mission
• creation of an organizational structure which will deploy resources to successfully carry out its competitive strategy.

Strategic management is adaptive and keeps an organization relevant. In these dynamic times it is more likely to succeed than the traditional approach of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

 

What Strategic Planning Is Not

Everything said above to describe what strategic planning is can also provide an understanding of what it is not. For example, it is about fundamental decisions and actions, but it does not an attempt to make future decisions. Strategic planning involves anticipating the future environment, but the decisions are made in the present. This means that over time, the organization must stay abreast of changes in order to make the best decisions it can at any given point – it must manage, as well as plan, strategically.

Strategic planning has also been described as a tool – but it is not a substitute for the exercise of judgment by leadership. Ultimately, the leaders of any enterprise need to sit back and ask, and answer, “What are the most important issues to respond to?” and “How shall we respond?” Just as the hammer does not create the house, so the data analysis and decision-making tools of strategic planning do not make the organization work – they can only support the intuition, reasoning skills, and judgment that people bring to their organization.

Finally, strategic planning, though described as disciplined, does not typically flow smoothly from one step to the next. It is a creative process, and the fresh insight arrived at today might very well alter the decision made yesterday. Inevitably the process moves forward and back, side-to-side, several times before arriving at the final set of decisions. Therefore, no one should be surprised if the process feels less like a comfortable trip on a commuter train, but rather like a ride on a roller coaster. But even roller coaster cars arrive at their destination, with a little creativity.

Values That Support Successful Strategic Planning

When you come up with an idea for your business, how do you go about assessing whether it is a good idea? How do you convince yourself (and others) that you can make money exploiting the idea? A written strategic plan is one way to evaluate an idea before you commit to pursuing it. The process of creating the plan can reveal factors that you might otherwise not consider. And that can save you big money.

The following guiding principles support the process of strategic planning. These are self-explanatory and are offered as a way to approach this work.

Successful strategic planning:

• leads to action
• builds a shared vision that is values-based
• is an inclusive, participatory process in which board and staff take on a shared ownership
• accepts accountability to the organization
• is both externally and internally focused and sensitive to the organization’s environment
• is based on quality data
• requires an openness to questioning the status quo
• is a key part of effective management.

Many business managers feel that they can keep track of everything without the need to write it down. A written plan, after all, is really just the personification of the internal planning that every business manager does anyway. However, the structure a written plan provides makes it more likely that you will consider all relevant factors and that nothing important slips through the cracks.

What justifies the additional time and energy you’ll spend creating a written plan that presents a blueprint of your business idea? For starters, how about an increased chance for success? More specifically, a plan can be:

• A reality check when you first examine the feasibility of your business idea, which forces you to consider all relevant factors
• Your business’ resume, which will be vital in dealing with lenders and outside investors, and an important tool in negotiating with vendors and attracting employees
• A timetable for operations, helping you to coordinate all the diverse activities that go into running your own business
• A modeling Tool that helps you evaluate the variable factors that affect your business, so you can better prepare to deal with situations that may arise as conditions change
• A vehicle for tracking progress of your business
• A blueprint against which you can adjust operations in order to achieve your goals
• A starting point for future planning

Overcoming Hurdles

Getting Over The Hurdles of Life

The Grand National Steeplechase (also known as The National) is a world-famous horse race that is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four and half miles, with horses jumping 32 fences over two circuits of Aintree’s National Course. The steeplechase is the centerpiece of a three-day meeting, and it is the most valuable National Hunt in Britain.

Usually the first hurdle puts 25% of the participants out of the race; another group is eliminated at the second hurdle, and so on throughout the 32-hurdle race. The horses and riders train rigorously to develop strength and stamina for getting over the 32 hurdles.

About 60,000 people attend the race each year, and pay over $100 to attend. All sorts of handicaps are placed in the way to make this the most difficult steeplechase on the planet. The horse never knows what to expect beyond the hedge since they can’t see what lies beyond. There may be a moat; there might be fallen horses; they may get crowded out by other horses; but the horse and rider must successfully meet each situation they come to.

The gates, hedges and ditches the racers encounter during the race are flagged to provide them with difficult obstacles to be jumped along the way with posts and rails erected at the two points where they jump sometimes blindly. The course has a reputation as the ultimate test of horse and jockey, and most starters fail to complete the race. Only a few horses and riders remain in the race towards the end, and the winner receives a substantial grand prize.

Life is very much like the Aintree Steeplechase, and if we have the right attitudes, life’s obstacles can be immensely exciting and motivating. The pathway of life contains many hurdles and opportunities, and can be an adventure that is both invigorating, and immensely frustrating at times.

Whether we like it or not, that is the program of life we all encounter, and the one who is planning the course of his or her life would do well to learn to appreciate the “hurdles” that we all encounter, and prepare for the time when we will run into them.

As someone once said, “The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but to the one who is still in there fighting at the end of the course.”

A motto carved in the Massachusetts School fo the Blind says: “Obstacles are things to be overcome.” Obstacles make us think deeper, and act more swiftly. They make us prepare better. They are placed in our way to make us stronger and wiser.

“The successful man sees obstacles and turns them into opportunities. The unsuccessful man sees obstacles in his opportunities.” Brian Hazelgren.

Hurdles make it possible for the strong, determined, persevering person to work his or her way up to the front.

It’s fascinating to see in any group of people how many quit at the first obstacles. Some stick to the job until the second of third hurdle, but only a few develop that quality of stick-to-itiveness and determination that guarantees they will be there at the end of the contest. The weakling says how difficult it is for one to find success, while the strong person like Job, says “Though he may slay me, yet will I trust in him….”

We should never be a dropout from finding success. Just like in the difficult Aintree Steeplechase, it’s not how many times we start, its how many times we finish what we started out to do. Any one can fall down and quit, and when discouragement arises most people want to quit and move on to something else. However, the winner is the one who takes all of this in stride, and knows that success is just around the corner.

Anybody can have a good record for a brief period of time, but it’s the true leader who keeps on month after month, year after year, taking all the hurdles, and challenges and setbacks in stride, and reaches that pinnacle of success more often that those who quit prematurely. This is what makes a successful life.

We would do well to remember that obstacles are placed in our path to help us grow, and to help us learn more about who we truly are. Many of have encountered obstacles multiple times over, and each time we come out of the challenge a better person, knowing more about what it takes to be successful.

No one ever learns horsemanship riding a tame horse. The skilled mariner does not become so by sailing on calm waters. It was the strong north winds that made the Vikings great. It was adversity along the way and losing to our rival in high school that taught us to work harder and improve on our mistakes to win the state title. It’s not the path of least resistance that builds strength and power, and courage and initiative.

• We ask for strength and God gives us difficulties to make us strong.
• We pray for wisdom and God sends us problems, the solution of which develops wisdom;
• We plead for prosperity and God gives us brain and brawn to work;
• We ask for courage and God gives us dangers to overcome;
• We beg for favors and God gives us opportunities.

Overcoming our problems and challenges and discouragements is what builds strength. What if we were to take on a different attitude about the hurdles we in life and look at them as helpful benefits of great things we can learn? What if we kept our composure and met these hurdles with enthusiasm to be steady in our thinking, without overreacting and losing our minds…?

There is a story of a famous lecture on beans and walnuts that was delivered by Ralph Parlette. He would fill a large glass jar half full of beans and half full with walnuts. Then he would mix them up and shake the jar. The beans would quickly sink to the bottom of the jar, while the walnuts would rise to the top. Then he would turn the jar upside down and do the same thing again by shaking the jar until the beans and the walnuts would react just as they had done before…beans to the bottom and walnuts to the top. The same bumps, the same jolts, the same relentless shaking that sent the beans to the bottom, and the walnuts rose to the top of the jar.

So we need to ask ourselves, are we are bean or are we a walnut? Some like a little work because it is easy, but the result is that they shrivel up to the size of the task of what they choose to do. Others like the big jobs, and the things that will stretch their skills, and they enthusiastically accept the challenge to make themselves strive for a successful life.

If we want a strong back, we should go out and get a bigger load to carry. It has been said that this is like striking a balance financially. If our income is les than our outgo, it is much better to increase our income than to decrease our outgo.

If we quit when it gets tough, and when things are not going as smoothly as we had anticipated, we will end up going down like the bean. However, if we learn from the shaking and jolting of life that we can develop the determination and skills to fight our way up to the top, we will be much happier.

Each of us has had setbacks, and will continue to have them. Someone once said that “It’s nothing against you to fall down flat, but to lie there is sure disgrace.” We need to have the courage to get back up when we get knocked down, and exercise a little faith, and a little wisdom and get over that hurdle. These things are put in our paths to teach us how to get around the obstacle, and find success.

Just like in the steeplechase race at Aintree, hurdles are placed in our path, and only those with perseverance and the fortitude to keep pushing forward learning from the mistakes of others, that we can make it to the finish line. But if the hurdles are good, and can teach us things along the way, we should accept them eagerly by running out to meet them!

Brian Hazelgren

 

Pro’s and Con’s of Owning a Business

Owning a small business is not just another job. It’s a totally different lifestyle. You have to ask yourself whether you’re ready for a complete commitment to the success of your business. Just as importantly, if you are in a relationship, you should ask your partner whether he or she is completely committed to supporting you in your efforts.

As a small business owner, you’re going to have less time for your personal life and you’ll probably be using much of what you own as collateral to raise money for the business. If you are willing to make those sacrifices, then let’s move on to some of the advantages and disadvantages of owning your own business.

Pros:

• You have the chance to make a lot more money than you can make working for someone else.
• You’ll be your own boss and make the decisions that are crucial to your business’s success or failure.
• You may be the boss of other people.
• You’ll have job security — no one can fire you.
• You’ll have the chance to put your ideas into practice.
• You may participate in every aspect of running a business.
• You’ll learn more about every aspect of a business and gain experience in a variety of disciplines.
• You’ll have the chance to work directly with your customers.
• You’ll be able to benefit the local economy, such as by hiring other people to work for you.
• You’ll have the personal satisfaction of creating and running a successful business.
• You’ll be able to work in a field or area that you really enjoy.
• You’ll have the chance to build real retirement value (for example, by selling the business when you retire).
• You’ll have the chance to put down roots in a community and to provide a sense of belonging and stability for your family.

Cons:

• You may have to take a large financial risk.
• You will probably have to work long hours and may have fewer opportunities to take vacations.
• You may end up spending a lot of your time attending to the details of running a business and less time on those things you really enjoy.
• You may find that your income is not steady and that there are times when you don’t have much income coming in at all.
• You may have to undertake tasks you find unpleasant, such as firing someone or refusing to hire a friend or relative, or collecting receivables.
• You may have to learn many new disciplines, such as filing and bookkeeping, inventory control, production planning, advertising and promotion, market research, and general management.

Specific pros and cons of the home-based business:

• Your startup costs will be lower.
• Your operating costs will be lower than they would be if you were renting space and paying utilities.
• Your commute will be shorter!
• If your location is unimportant to your business, you can theoretically live anywhere and still operate your business.
• You may be more flexible in your schedule if your business can be conducted at your convenience or outside “normal” weekday business hours.
• On the other hand, you’re much more vulnerable to interruptions from family members, neighbors, and door-to-door salespeople.
• You may have trouble attracting qualified employees.
• You may be less accessible to suppliers.
• You may worry about your image and about how it “looks” to work from home. However,  with the growing popularity of home businesses, such concerns are becoming far less common.
• You may run out of space at home as your business grows.

Whatever you choose to do, owning and operating a business is exhilarating, thrilling, challenging, highly rewarding, and yes, very difficult. I wish you the absolute best of luck in your launch and operation of a successful business, and will be looking for stories to be written about your incredible company!

 www.brianhazelgren.com

Stay Focused #7

Stay Focused and keep reading! The seventh principle of staying focused is in my book Everlasting Wisdom.

www.brianhazelgren.com

Stay Focused #4

#4. Break tasks into smaller pieces – a big project can look so overwhelming at times. I have found that when you take the big picture and break it down to smaller elements, individual pieces don’t seem as daunting, and each time you complete one of the smaller tasks it is invigorating and empowering.

Stay Focused #3

They may not all work for you, but I have found that when you follow these principles, you stay focused, and you are able to direct your positive energies to the task at hand.

1. Establish well-defined goals – your goals are the foundation
of your plan and your plan is the roadmap to lead you to your destiny. Setting goals in not a new concept, but it is a wise principle to use and a habit that you should establish. Remember a goal not written is only a wish.

2. Create and stick to a priority list – sometimes a simple list of priorities can keep you focused on what needs to be accomplished
– and when. I like to have a priority list to refer to when distractions enter the picture…it keeps me…focused.

3. Track and Report your progress – Remember this: what gets reported gets done. Whether you are reporting to your self or to the board, when you are able to track your progress and show how you reach certain milestones, you can keep on the straight path without deviations.

www.brianhazelgren.com

Stay Focused #2

They may not all work for you, but I have found that when you follow these principles, you stay focused, and you are able to direct your positive energies to the task at hand.

#2. Create and stick to a priority list – sometimes a simple list of priorities can keep you focused on what needs to be accomplished
– and when. I like to have a priority list to refer to when distractions enter the picture…it keeps me…focused.

www.brianhazelgren.com

Stay Focused #1

They may not all work for you, but I have found that when you follow these principles, you stay focused, and you are able to direct your positive energies to the task at hand.
1. Establish well-defined goals – your goals are the foundation of your plan and your plan is the roadmap to lead you to your destiny. Setting goals in not a new concept, but it is a wise principle to use and a habit that you should establish. Remember a goal not written is only a wish.

www.brianhazelgren.com

Making a difference

You and I can make a profound difference in the lives of others and reach out and lift them up in ways we have probably not even thought of. Think of all the people you know and how they just might be able to use a good pick me up.

You and I have blessed to with skills and talents to help others. The real question is, what are we doing about it…? If you have the talents and skills to help others, then use these talents in a way that might make their lives a little better. REach out to those whose hands hang down, and whose hearts are heavy.

What if you are the person whose talents and skills can help? You never know how much of an impact you can make to lift someone up until you make the effort, or open your mouth. Dont hide your skills…use them! I don’t know who said this…but “service is the rent we pay to be on this earth.”

http://www.brianhazelgren.com/books_cds.html

Everlasting Wisdom

The wisdom of King Solomon has transcended through time and has not only lasted over 3000 years, it is gaining momentum. Recently I wrote a book called Everlasting Wisdom, that became a foundation for me to study wisdom. I am learning to have more, but the 12 principles that I highlighted in my book Everlasting Wisdom are things that Solomon did not shine a light on and say…”you need to pay attention to these 12 things,” rather it is what I learned as I read about how he built his empire.

Buy a copy of the book and ask that I personally sign it, no extra charge!

http://www.brianhazelgren.com/books_cds.html