This month I want to talk about strategic planning, which is a much overlooked part of one's business plan. In an effort to secure funding we hurriedly put together a business plan to "sell" to a bank or investors. Often missing is the reason why we're in the business in the first place. An excellent on-line resource for providing a template for your strategic plan can be found on: www.planware.org. They offer SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, vision and mission statements, corporate values, business objectives, key strategies, major goals, and strategic action plans. Let's look more closely at these components of your plan.

 

1) SWOT: "strengths and weaknesses are internal to the organization and relate to matters concerning resources, program and organization in key areas" (from www.planware.org). What is it that sets your company apart from the others? These should be your strengths and can include your expertise, contacts, experience, market share. For myself, my strengths include: expertise in business planning, owned two businesses, good process thinker, results-oriented, and good with people. Don't be mislead or afraid of your weaknesses; you must first identify these in order to work around them and gain experience to minimize start-up risk. For me, my weaknesses are: new to coaching, no accounting background, no corporate networking. Thus my weaknesses become target goals for me. I can always outsource any accounting that might be part of a business intervention; I can join the local Chamber of Commerce to increase my business contacts; I can offer free workshops on executive coaching. Threats and opportunities are external to the organization and can include structural or demographic market demand for one's services. As an example I've been talking to a local pediatrician in Houston about his practice and the fact that we are aging as a population; my the year 2020, 50% of us will be over 65 years old; we're having fewer babies and in Houston we have increasing immigration and more folks qualifying for Medicaid. This has a tremendous financial impact on this doctor's practice over the next ten years (he is already feeling the impact today with more paperwork and less revenue per patient).
2) Vision Statement: Answer this question. Why would someone request your product or service? You need to define who you are and what you can offer your customers over the next 3-5 years. In other words, what will your business look like in five years? Back to the MD example above, this doctor needs to anticipate the changing demographics and offer high-end well baby check-ups or establish a subspecialty niche (including going back for postdoctoral training) such as ADHD evaluations, genetic abnormalities, pediatric infectious diseases that might find their way into our country despite immigration requirements.
3) Mission Statement: This is the purpose for one's business; this defines what you are about. Try to be as specific as possible with measurable statements. Don't say "we are unique and important;" instead define yourself as "developing a specialty market." Back to our MD example. Our pediatrician might include as part of his mission statement that he "will offer comprehensive ADHD and learning disability assessments for high-risk children with early toxic exposure." This defines exactly what he is about and will drive customers to him who will be desperate for his services. He can even sell his market niche to companies or managed care groups who might require his services as a second opinion expert.

 

Next month I will cover the remaining aspects of one's strategic plan.

 

 

"Helpful Hints" is a monthly feature of The Executive Connection. In this section of our Newsletter, we will discuss accountability structures necessary to stay focused on your business plan and objectives.

 

"This Month's Helpful Hints"

 

1. Develop a mission and vision statement for your business.
2. Write out your SWOTs, paying particular attention to external threats and opportunities.
3. Look at where you want to be five years from now. Will you be able to capture the market you are looking for? If not, then revise your mission and vision statements.