Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM MARCH 2022 64 I t's great to have dreams – but your dreams will be destined to remain only dreams unless you set goals and follow a plan to achieve them. A goal is a preferred result that a person or an organization envisions and then plans and commits to achieve, complete with desired outcomes and measurements. Developing a strategic plan takes time and resources. It requires that you focus on your company's mission and vision, and that you make a commitment to the direction the mission is dictating. In large part, your responsibility as one of the visionaries of your organization is to develop and implement the strategies and goals that will be needed to carry out your clearly defined mission. It's important for both the leadership and upper management to engage not only in strategic thinking but also in the effective execution of the process. By planning and measuring, you'll be better prepared to grow in a meaningful way and reach your goals. FIVE KEY COMPONENTS TO A POWERFUL STRATEGIC PLAN 1. Your mission, vision and aspirations. A mission statement is the overall, enduring formulation of why your company exists and what it hopes to be in the future. 2. Your core values. 3. A SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses opportunities, threats). 4. Your objectives, strategies and operational tactics. 5. Your KPI dashboard for measurements and funding streams. SO – WHY DO YOU NEED A STRATEGY? WHY TAKE TIME FOR PLANNING? There are many reasons – here are a few of the most important: 1. First and foremost, you need a strategy because it sets the direction and establishes the priorities for your organization. The goal of strategic planning is to ensure that everyone is working toward a common goal of achieving clearly defined outcomes and results through organized management. The strategy defines how your organization will define success, prioritize resources, and focus the energies of all involved. When that is happening, it strengthens your operations. 2. A strategic plan helps simplify your decision-making. Once the plan is in place, making decisions becomes much easier. Acting on new ideas or initiatives that don't follow your strategic plan becomes burdensome, because they don't fit neatly within the pre-determined direction of your plan. They stick out like a sore thumb and are easy to identify and evaluate. 3. Your strategic plan will communicate your message to your employees, your suppliers, your lenders and even your customers. It will effectively articulate and define your business and its direction and make it easier for your staff to work toward the goal they've been asked to achieve. Your strategic plan moves through a number of phases. The first is to establish and clarify your mission and vision. Once the vision is clear, you're ready to formulate your strategy, based on all of the information you've collected, and then develop your desired outcomes. The next step is to implement your strategy – and then finally, to evaluate and control the performance. Remember that having a vision and a plan is critical to the future of your organization. It's been wisely said: "A vision without a plan is just a dream. A plan without a vision is just drudgery. But a vision with a plan can change the world." S E R V I C E D E P A R T M E N T RO STRATEGIC PLANNING: YOUR ROADMAP TO SUCCESS Ralph Wolff, Industry Relations, PSA

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