<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=349935452247528&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Find out where you can get a Taste of TAB... our global events blast is on!
Search
word-map-thumb

The Alternative Board Blog

Avoid These 5 Strategic Planning Mistakes

Oct. 4, 2022 | Posted by Lee Polevoi

 Strategic planning is a critically important part of business growth. If a CEO and senior executive staff don’t look ahead to what the future might hold, there’s little opportunity for growth and expansion. A business can only tread water and hope for the best possible financial outcome.

 

At the same time, plunging into the strategic planning process without adequate preparation can result in muddle and confusion. Too many attempts at effective planning fall apart, due to mistakes made in the process. Here are five common strategic planning mistakes you should avoid at all costs:

 

1. Nothing different from one year to the next

 

Remember the strategic plan you created for 2022, way back in 2021? It may have worked well for your business, but that doesn’t mean you should simply recycle that plan again in 2023.

 

Times change, market conditions vary, key personnel come and go. For these and many other reasons, strive to create and adopt a new plan, different in tone and quality from last year’s plan. Certain elements may stay the same but refrain from just adding some new dates to an old plan.

 

2.  A lack of clarity around customer needs

 

When it comes to effective strategic planning, a laser-like focus on your customer base is the best formula for success. All too often, strategic plans skate over changing customer demands, relying instead on a generic concept of customers.

 

To enhance effectiveness, closely examine current and projected customer demographics, what you’re doing right (and wrong) with respect to customer retention and look more closely at how you can continue addressing the challenges faced by your customers.

 

3. Lack of focus on competitors

 

In virtually every field of business, there’s competition for customers. Unfortunately, many strategic plans fail to gauge the effect competition can have on plans for growth. This lack of focus on competitors can result in a strategic plan that exists in a vacuum, without regard for the larger national and/or international markets.

 

Even if all your competitor analysis data doesn’t go into the plan, those charged with creating it should have a strong understanding of key competitors, where they have expanded or cut back in the previous year, how they communicate to customers, and so on.

 

4. A plan that doesn’t “add up”

 

Sometimes, the plan that emerges from strategic thinking doesn’t really “add up” in terms of its analysis, description of challenges, and potential solutions. That can happen when a plan is created by committee, or when those involved have neglected to provide continuity and coherence throughout.

 

Strategic planning experts advise staying away from overly complex wording or convoluted thinking. “Creating a simply strategy by dumbing things down … doesn’t work,” notes Forbes. Instead, “make sure that the strategy is a coherent whole,” with “various chapters and sections of plan” fitting together. Above all else, a strategic plan must make sense.

 

Want additional insight? Read 4 Step Guide to Strategic Planning now to learn more

DOWNLOAD

5. Failing to build consensus from within

 

Without the support of the organization, how effective can a strategic plan really be? In many cases, notes business author Bernard Marr, plans “are developed by only one person … without engaging critical stakeholders from elsewhere in the company, then simply handed down from the leadership team like a decree from the heavens.” That can result in an absence of understanding or support from within.

 

Instead, consult with a variety of departments, in order to design a more comprehensive plan. Consensus-building goes a long way towards eventual execution of the plan.

 

Want to learn more? Sign up for our free TAB Boss Webinar, “10 Most Common Business Mistakes.”

Read our 19 Reasons You Need a Business Owner Advisory Board

DOWNLOAD

Written by Lee Polevoi

Related posts

Business Success: Why Having an Accountability Partner is Key
Mar. 11, 2024 | Posted by Fernando Herran
In my time working with business owners, I’ve found out that in general, a common theme is facing challenges and key decision-making alone. On the other hand, I have also found entrepreneurs who have...
Top 3 Strategic Musts for the Coming Year
Jan. 11, 2024 | Posted by The Alternative Board
The first quarter of the year always seems to have business owners dreaming a little bigger, reaching a little higher, and planning innovative ways to improve their organizations in the ensuing...
5 “Must-Have” Elements of a Strategic Plan
Jan. 3, 2024 | Posted by Lee Polevoi
Deciding to “stay in place” is not a viable option for most businesses. Marketplace conditions are always in flux, and customer needs and preferences frequently change over time, so business leaders...
Peer Coaching Groups for Company Success & Employee Well-Being
Aug. 18, 2023 | Posted by Dave Scarola
Do you incorporate peer coaching and peer learning into your company? Should you? This article will explain what Peer Coaching Groups are and how they can positively impact organizations and...
Ay Yi Yi: The Fascinating World of AI
Jul. 12, 2023 | Posted by The Alternative Board
Artificial intelligence. What once felt wildly futuristic has suddenly become mainstream and is growing more ubiquitous by the minute. You are likely already interacting with AI, even if you are not...
5 Tips for Building a Long-Term Sales Strategy
Jun. 21, 2023 | Posted by Lee Polevoi
Any hard-working salesperson can tell you closing a sale is their ultimate goal. Short-term sale strategies emphasize the value of a clean, efficient transaction with a customer, particularly...
Watch Out for Blind Spots in Sales
Jun. 7, 2023 | Posted by Lee Polevoi
Let’s assume your company employs one or more salespeople who are responsible for generating leads and closing deals. As talented as these sales professionals might be, some “blind spots” in sales...
What Technology Strategy is Most Effective for Your Remote Team?
May. 31, 2023 | Posted by Lee Polevoi
If, like many businesses these days, you employ a cadre of remote workers, it’s imperative to do all you can to support their offsite efforts. That means providing the best technology available so...
How Employee Learning and Development Can Boost Retention
May. 17, 2023 | Posted by Lee Polevoi
The ideal employee is an individual who works hard, acts on their own initiative, seeks to be a high-quality team player, and wishes to grow in their career. If you have employees who fit this...