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3 Steps for Tracking, Monitoring & Implementing Your Strategic Plan

By Jenna Sedmak - May 08, 2019

So, you've completed your strategic planning session and crafted an impressive strategic plan for your organization. But what happens next? That's where the importance of tracking and monitoring your strategic plan comes into play. In this article, we'll explore the crucial steps to ensure your plan stays on track and leads you to success. We'll discuss the significance of establishing clear key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your strategic priorities. By consistently monitoring and adjusting your strategy, you'll have the power to drive your organization forward and achieve its goals.

The strategic planning process doesn’t end once a document is created. To successfully execute your strategy across the organization, careful attention needs to be paid to the next steps: communication, implementation, monitoring, tracking, and leadership development. 

Download our free Strategic Planning Workbook and get the help you need to structure your strategic planning process

Communication to Develop Alignment:

If you’re working within a mid-sized or large organization, chances are that all employees could not be present at the planning meeting. Most likely, your executive leadership team members or potentially key departmental leaders participated in developing your plan. 

Prior to the strategy meeting, leaders can survey their teams to get information on their team’s perspective on various organizational strengths and weaknesses, goals and directions, and other topics to be addressed in the strategy session. Stakeholder engagement is key here, as it allows leaders to incorporate the perspectives of those who will be carrying out the operational tasks to achieve your organization's strategic objectives. Following the planning session and document creation, it’s important for leaders to make sure their team understands the organization’s strategic priorities, goals, and tactics and the reasons behind them.

If staff are engaged and feel heard during the pre-planning process, they are more likely to buy into the organizational strategy and to take ownership of their departmental and individual action items. By fostering communication and buy-in , your team will be more aligned, accountable, and better equipped to make decisions that serve your organization.

Starting the Strategic Plan Implementation Cycle:

Prior to implementing your strategic plan and moving forward with your action steps, it is critical that your strategic priority areas and goals support the vision . It is also critical that each department and individual understands which goals and tactics they are accountable to deliver on. Furthermore, it is important that they are aware of project expectations and understand what success looks like. 

Related Content: What is the Strategic Planning Process Strategic Problems and how to address them  

Monitoring & Tracking Your Plan:

To best understand where you’re succeeding and where you may be falling behind, strategic plans need to be continually monitored, and goals should be regularly tracked. There are multiple ways to track progress toward your strategic goals, including spreadsheets, software, or an office whiteboard. They can be as simple or complex as you desire, but the important thing is that everyone is using the same method and frequency for tracking. 

>> Watch below : How to use strategy dashboards for tracking & monitoring your plan:

If you decide to track your strategic planning progress with a software, we recommend using a dedicated strategic planning software, like Cascade Strategy , that has been specificall y develope d for this purpose.  With various features such as task management, GANTT charts, and various metric functions, you can quickly see where you’re meeting or exceeding goals and where you might be falling short.

> Read more : You Need These 5 Elements for Successful Strategy Implementation

In addition to monitoring your plan regularly, it is important to continually develop your leadership team's skills in critical areas such as project management, values and behavior alignment, change management, and communication. Additionally quarterly strategy reviews are a great way to make adjustments to your strategy on an ongoing basis so that you can maximize what is working and address any areas of weakness throughout the year.

Within our three levels of strategy implementation programs , our strategic planning facilitators work with teams to strengthen their leadership skills and capacities so that they are better equipped to execute their strategic plans. 

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How to Monitor & Control Your Business Plan

A business plan is a comprehensive document that outlines key elements of how you operate your business. The plan typically includes an assessment of your market and your competition, your operating budget breakdown, and your short and long-term business goals. While many business owners write a marketing plan to obtain business loans, the plan can be a useful tool for monitoring and controlling ongoing operations.

Create Plan Review Dates

Business plans should be reviewed on a regular basis, especially if a business is expanding quickly, experiencing cash flow problems, adding new products or services or reaching into new markets. Align your review dates with the short-term and long-term goals outlined in the original business plan and conduct a comparative analysis. Depending on your business, this could be a monthly, quarterly or annual review.

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Develop a Tracking System

If your business plan contains measurable goals, develop a tracking system to assess where you stand regularly. For example, if the plan calls for earning a certain amount of revenue per month, track revenue on a daily or weekly budget to monitor and control the process. This approach allows you to tweak the system if your numbers are far off the mark. Monitor key elements frequently. Key elements of the business plan include research on your market and competition as well as revenue projections. Each of these elements is subject to rapid change, and you should remain aware of where you stand with regard to these issues.

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The advantages of single business strategy, how can a company keep its strategic plan dynamic, what are the benefits of preparing a business plan, business planning & analysis, what does "abridged" mean on a business plan, coordinate business and marketing plans.

Business and marketing plans overlap in several ways, so reviewing both documents simultaneously on a regular basis helps you monitor and control the goals and measurements of each plan. If an element of one plan changes dramatically, evaluate the impact it has on the other plan. For example, if your marketing plan calls for you to launch a major media campaign, but your business plan's revenue projections are weak, revise each to stay on track.

Make Changes When Necessary

A business plan is not an unchangeable document. Consider it a fluid plan that can be tweaked and updated as your business changes and grows. Don't cling to elements of your plan that are outdated or no longer useful. For example, if part of your five-year plan includes moving to a larger facility, but you find after five years that your small facility works just fine, revise and update the business plan. Continually revise your plan so that you are always looking ahead in one, three and five-year increments, basing future projections on past performance.

• U.S. Small Business Administration: How to Write a Business Plan
• U.S. Small Business Administration: Essential Elements of a Good Business Plan
• U.S. Small Business Administration: Making Your Business Plan Work for You

Lisa McQuerrey has been a business writer since 1987. In 1994, she launched a full-service marketing and communications firm. McQuerrey's work has garnered awards from the U.S. Small Business Administration, the International Association of Business Communicators and the Associated Press. She is also the author of several nonfiction trade publications, and, in 2012, had her first young-adult novel published by Glass Page Books.

How to Create an Implementation Plan: a Step-by-Step Guide

Learn how to create an implementation plan with our step-by-step guide. Get practical insights and tips to guarantee your plan’s successful implementation.

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As much as we’d love for it to be true, ideas and visions alone are not enough to bring about transformative change. Whether it’s a groundbreaking business strategy or an ambitious personal goal, success hinges on the ability to execute plans effectively.

Implementation plans translate vision into action, turning your aspirations into tangible achievements.

This article covers everything you need to know about implementation plans, from what they should include to how to create one.

What is an implementation plan?

An implementation plan is a strategic roadmap that outlines the steps, resources, and  timeline  required to bring an idea or vision to fruition. It provides a detailed framework for translating goals and objectives into practical actions.

An effective implementation plan goes beyond simply assigning tasks to team members to include various components that collectively help the team execute the plan.

It typically includes specific activities, milestones, and deadlines to keep everyone on track. It also identifies the resources each task needs, including the required people, tools, and materials.

At the end of the day, an implementation plan allows for better coordination and communication among team members, making sure that everyone is working toward the same goal.

Key components of an implementation plan

An implementation plan is made up of several components that are crucial for a project’s success.

Let’s take a closer look at each of them.

‎Goals and objectives

Think about the desired outcomes and objectives for the implementation plan. What do you hope to achieve through the project? Your goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).

Clearly defined work goals  help ensure a shared understanding and direction for everyone involved in the project. Without them, your project will be more likely to fail.

Scope and deliverables

Define the implementation plan’s boundaries and scope. What specific deliverables or milestones need to be accomplished? This helps set clear expectations and establish a timeline.

Timeline and milestones

What are the project’s time restraints? Create a detailed timeline that outlines the implementation process’s major phases, activities, and milestones. This  time management strategy  allows for better planning and progress tracking.

Roles and responsibilities

Identify the individuals or teams responsible for carrying out different tasks and activities. Clarify each person’s roles, responsibilities, and reporting structures to ensure accountability and coordination.

Resources and budget

At least  85% of every project  is over budget to some degree due to unforeseen events. To reduce the likelihood of running out of funds, determine the resources your team needs to successfully execute the  plan of action  and allocate a budget. Ensure  your team has the right technological tools  at their disposal.

Risk assessment and mitigation strategies

Identify potential risks and challenges that may arise during implementation. Develop strategies and contingency plans to mitigate those risks and minimize their impact on the project.

Communication plan

Establish a plan for effective communication throughout the implementation process. Define the target audience, key messages, communication channels, and frequency of updates to keep stakeholders informed and engaged.

According to a report on business communication,  72% of business leaders  believe that effective communication increases their team’s productivity.

Training and support

Determine the training needs of the individuals involved in the implementation, and develop a plan to provide the necessary training and support. This ensures everyone has the knowledge and skills to carry out their assigned tasks.

According to the World Economic Forum,  six in ten workers  will require training before 2027, but only half have access to adequate training opportunities today.

Evaluation and monitoring

Define the metrics and evaluation criteria to assess the progress and success of the implementation plan. Regularly monitor and measure the outcomes against the established objectives.

Documentation and reporting

Establish a system for documenting all relevant information, including project plans, progress reports, and any changes made during the implementation. This ensures transparency and provides a record for future reference.

Benefits of creating an implementation plan

Creating an implementation plan can be a difficult process. But when done well, it can bring many benefits for your team and a project’s success. We’ll discuss a few of them below.

‎Ensuring alignment and clarity of goals

A crucial aspect of any implementation plan is clearly defined outcomes and objectives, which give all stakeholders a shared understanding of what needs to be achieved. This alignment minimizes confusion and keeps everyone focused on the same target.

Facilitating effective resource management

An implementation plan gives teams a comprehensive overview of the required resources, including finances, personnel, and materials. This allows for better planning and allocation, ensuring that the right resources are available at the right times.

Project managers can easily identify potential resource gaps or bottlenecks early and take proactive measures to avoid them.

Minimizing risks and addressing potential obstacles

Implementation plans serve as a helpful tool to predict and handle problems while putting a plan into action.

They provide a structured way to identify and evaluate potential risks and challenges so that steps can be taken in advance to reduce their impact. Managers can monitor progress and make the necessary adjustments to ensure the project stays on track.

Enhancing communication and coordination among team members

A well-thought-out implementation plan becomes a structured framework for sharing information and providing progress updates. Roles, responsibilities, and dependencies are clarified, promoting seamless teamwork. This fosters effective communication, improves collaboration, and helps ensure that everyone is on the same page.

‎For example, a team member may not know the plan’s next stage, or a project manager may want to follow up on a task’s progress. Instead of sending emails back and forth, they can both refer to the implementation plan as a source of truth.

Providing a framework for monitoring and evaluation

Implementation plans establish clear metrics and evaluation criteria, serving as benchmarks to assess the success of the plan. This systematic approach helps monitor key milestones and outcomes, empowering teams to make data-driven, informed decisions.

For example, say a non-profit organization develops an implementation plan for a community outreach program. The plan includes specific metrics to monitor the program’s success, such as the number of individuals reached, the impact of educational workshops, and participant feedback.

Regularly tracking these metrics and evaluating the program’s effectiveness means the organization can make informed decisions, identify areas for improvement, and demonstrate the program’s value to stakeholders and funders.

7 steps to create an implementation plan

Creating an implementation plan requires seven important steps. Let’s break down each one and use the example of a team developing a mobile app to illustrate the process.

Step 1: Define the objective and desired outcomes

The first step is to clearly define the objective of the mobile app or product launch. For example, the objective could be to develop a user-friendly app that simplifies online shopping, and the desired outcome could be a high user adoption rate and positive customer feedback.

Step 2: Identify the key stakeholders and their roles

Identify the key stakeholders involved in the development and launch process, such as the  product team , designers, developers, marketing team, and customer support. Clarify their roles and responsibilities to ensure effective collaboration and smooth project execution.

Step 3: Break down the objective into actionable tasks and steps

Break down the objective into smaller tasks and steps that need to be accomplished. These tasks could include conducting market research, designing a user interface, developing an app, creating marketing materials, and setting up customer support channels.

Step 4: Allocate resources and create a timeline

Allocate the necessary resources, including the budget, personnel, and technology, to support the project’s development and launch.  Create a detailed timeline  with specific deadlines for each task to help ensure that the development process stays on track.

Step 5: Conduct a risk assessment and develop mitigation strategies

Identify potential risks that may arise during the development and launch phase. These risks could include technical issues, competition, or market changes. Develop strategies to mitigate these risks, such as conducting thorough testing, staying updated on market trends, and establishing backup plans.

Step 6: Monitor progress and make the necessary adjustments

Regularly monitor the progress of the development and launch activities. Keep track of milestones, such as completing design iterations or reaching development checkpoints. If any issues or challenges arise, make necessary adjustments to the plan, such as reallocating resources or adjusting the timeline.

Step 7: Evaluate the outcomes and lessons learned

Once the mobile app or product is launched, evaluate its performance against the defined objectives in your implementation plan. Analyze user feedback, adoption rates, and sales data to measure success. Identify lessons learned from the development and launch process to improve future product releases.

Simplify your implementation plan process with Motion

With proper planning and a clear implementation plan, even the most ambitious ideas can become tangible realities. And the right tools make this process all the more efficient. That’s where  Motion’s Project Manager  comes in.

Say goodbye to tedious manual tasks and hello to streamlined efficiency with Motion. The app automates time-consuming aspects of your implementation plan, freeing up your team’s energy for what really matters: executing your vision. With Motion, you can easily align your team, track progress, and achieve successful project outcomes.

Simplify your implementation plan and supercharge your team’s productivity with Motion.  Sign up for a free 7-day trial today .

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Measuring Progress: KPIs for Tracking Strategy Implementation

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goal setting , KPIs , measurement , plan tracking , SMART goals , Strategic Planning , strategy execution , Strategy implementation

When leading businesses and organizations, having a strategic plan is just the beginning. The real game-changer is the ability to effectively track and measure the success of those strategies. This is where Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) come in, serving as guiding points for leaders during strategy implementation.

At AchieveIt, we understand the complexities and challenges of aligning organizational efforts with strategic goals. That’s why we’ve developed a practical approach to KPI management, ensuring your strategy implementation and tracking goes off without a hitch.

Also read: 4 Steps to Implement Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

The Power of Precision in Strategy

Measurement is the first step that leads to control and, eventually, to improvement. If you can’t measure something, you can’t understand it. If you can’t understand it, you can’t control it. If you can’t control it, you can’t improve it.

Applying this principle, the crux of strategic success lies in defining razor-sharp strategic objectives. These objectives become the foundation upon which effective KPI selection is built. By employing the SMART criteria—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound—we empower organizations to develop objectives that are not just aspirational, but actionable.

What are Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)?

Identifying the right set of KPIs is akin to selecting the most effective tools for a mission-critical job. It’s about choosing metrics that resonate closely with your strategic objectives, offering meaningful insights into progress and performance.

However, the landscape of KPIs is vast and varied, encompassing strategic, financial, operational, customer-centric, and employee-related metrics. They are your compass, guiding you towards metrics that are not just numbers, but narratives telling the story of your strategy in action.

Here’s an example of good and complete KPIs:

• Strategic KPI: Percentage increase in market share by end of fiscal year.
• Financial KPI: Revenue growth rate of 10% year-over-year.
• Operational KPI: Average production time reduced by 20% within six months.
• Customer-centric KPI: Net Promoter Score (NPS) above industry average by end of year.

Here’s an example of KPIs that still need work:

• Strategic KPI: Increase market share.
• Financial KPI: Grow revenue.
• Operational KPI: Improve production time.
• Customer-centric KPI: Boost customer satisfaction.

As you can see, the first set of KPIs are specific, measurable, and time-bound, providing a clear direction for action. The second set leave room for interpretation, making it difficult to determine progress and take decisive action.

Implementing a Comprehensive Measurement System

Choosing the right set of KPIs is only half the battle won. To effectively track strategy implementation, organizations need a robust measurement system. This involves defining data collection methods, establishing data accuracy and consistency, and ensuring accessibility to stakeholders across the organization.

At AchieveIt, we believe in simplifying the data collection and analysis process through our performance dashboards. By seamlessly integrating with your existing systems, we provide real-time updates on KPI progress, empowering teams to make data-driven decisions.

Turning Data into Action: Insights for Continuous Improvement

Data without action is simply numbers on a screen. The true value lies in analyzing KPI data to identify areas for improvement, track progress, and make strategic adjustments. Organizations can employ various data analysis techniques, such as trend analysis, benchmarking, and root cause analysis, to gain meaningful insights from their KPIs. This information can then be used to inform decision-making, allocate resources effectively, and drive continuous improvement throughout the organization.

Trend analysis

Trend analysis is a quantitative approach used to identify patterns or trends in data over a specific period. By examining historical data, organizations can predict future movements, understand underlying factors contributing to these trends, and make more informed decisions. In the context of KPI management, trend analysis allows leaders to assess the effectiveness of their strategies over time, identify areas of improvement, and adapt their approaches to meet strategic goals more effectively.

Benchmarking

Benchmarking, in the context of business and KPI management, is a methodical process where an organization compares its performance metrics, processes, and practices against those of industry leaders and direct competitors. This comparative analysis helps a company understand its position within the industry, highlighting areas of strength and pinpointing opportunities for improvement.

By learning from top organizations’ best practices, companies can assess their competitive position and gain insights to improve operations, drive innovation, and boost overall performance in line with strategic objectives.

Root Cause Analysis

Root cause analysis (RCA) is a process to find underlying reasons for problems hindering an organization’s goals–it uncovers primary causes, not just symptoms. This helps implement strategies to tackle core issues to prevent future recurrences.

Techniques like “5 Whys” or fishbone diagrams drill down to the root problem, ensuring effective corrective actions. In KPI management, RCA deciphers factors behind underperformance, guiding strategic improvements.

Also read: Strategy Execution is a Matter of Cause and Effect: Strategic Planning and KPIs

Building a Culture of Measurement

Adopting KPIs is more than a practice; it’s a cultural shift towards valuing data-driven decision-making. Building a robust measurement system is imperative, involving comprehensive collection, analysis, and reporting mechanisms.

Whether it’s through advanced performance dashboards or rigorous data accuracy protocols, the aim is to create a seamless flow of information. This ensures that data is not just collected, but curated and leveraged to inform strategic maneuvers and operational adjustments.

From Data to Decisions

The true value of KPIs is their power to turn data into useful insights. By using analysis methods like trend analysis, benchmarking, and root cause analysis, organizations can uncover the reasons behind their performance data, not just the numbers. These insights form the basis for smarter decisions, resource management, and ongoing improvement overall.

At AchieveIt, we partner with organizations to not only identify the right KPIs, but also provide tools and support to turn data into meaningful action. With our proven methodology and comprehensive approach to measurement, we help businesses and organizations maximize the impact of their strategies through effective KPI management.

Meet the Author   Chelsea Damon

Chelsea Damon is the Content Strategist at AchieveIt. When she's not publishing content about strategy execution, you'll likely find her outside or baking bread.

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5 Keys to Successful Strategy Execution

• 17 Nov 2020

You’ve set organizational goals and formulated a strategic plan . Now, how do you ensure it gets done?

Strategy execution is the implementation of a strategic plan in an effort to reach business goals and objectives . It comprises the daily structures, systems, and operational goals that set your team up for success.

Access your free e-book today.

Why Is Strategy Execution Difficult?

There are several factors that make successful execution of your business strategy challenging.

According to the Harvard Business School Online course Strategy Execution , some of the most common factors include:

• Poor communication of strategic objectives
• Lack of employee buy-in
• Ineffective risk management

All of these can cause the best strategic plans to fall flat in their execution. In fact, poor execution is more common than you may realize. According to research from Bridges Business Consultancy , 48 percent of organizations fail to reach at least half of their strategic targets, and just seven percent of business leaders believe their organizations are excellent at strategy implementation.

“If you’ve looked at the news lately, you’ve probably seen stories of businesses with great strategies that have failed ,” says Harvard Business School Professor Robert Simons, who teaches the online course Strategy Execution . “In each case, we find a business strategy that was well formulated but poorly executed.”

How can you equip yourself and your team to implement the plans you’ve crafted? Here are five keys to successful strategy execution you can use at your organization.

Keys to Successful Strategy Execution

1. commit to a strategic plan.

Before diving into execution, it’s important to ensure all decision-makers and stakeholders agree on the strategic plan.

Research in the Harvard Business Review shows that 71 percent of employees in companies with weak execution believe strategic decisions are second-guessed, as opposed to 45 percent of employees from companies with strong execution.

Committing to a strategic plan before beginning implementation ensures all decision-makers and their teams are aligned on the same goals. This creates a shared understanding of the larger strategic plan throughout the organization.

Strategies aren’t stagnant—they should evolve with new challenges and opportunities. Communication is critical to ensuring you and your colleagues start on the same page in the planning process and stay aligned as time goes on.

2. Align Jobs to Strategy

One barrier many companies face in effective strategy execution is that employees’ roles aren’t designed with strategy in mind.

This can occur when employees are hired before a strategy is formulated, or when roles are established to align with a former company strategy.

In Strategy Execution , Simons posits that jobs are optimized for high performance when they line up with an organizational strategy. He created the Job Design Optimization Tool (JDOT) that individuals can use to assess whether their organization's jobs are designed for successful strategy execution.

The JDOT assesses a job’s design based on four factors, or “spans”: control, accountability, influence, and support.

“Each span can be adjusted so that it’s narrow or wide or somewhere in between,” Simons writes in the Harvard Business Review . “I think of the adjustments as being made on sliders, like those found on music amplifiers. If you get the settings right, you can design a job in which a talented individual can successfully execute your company’s strategy. But if you get the settings wrong, it will be difficult for any employee to be effective.”

3. Communicate Clearly to Empower Employees

When it comes to strategy execution, the power of clear communication can’t be overlooked. Given that a staggering 95 percent of employees don’t understand or are unaware of their company’s strategy, communication is a skill worth improving.

Strategy execution depends on each member of your organization's daily tasks and decisions, so it’s vital to ensure everyone understands not only the company's broader strategic goals, but how their individual responsibilities make achieving them possible.

Data outlined in the Harvard Business Review shows that 61 percent of staff at strong-execution companies believe field and line employees are given the information necessary to understand the bottom-line impact of their work and decisions. In weak-execution organizations, just 28 percent believe this to be true.

To boost your organization’s performance and empower your employees, train managers to communicate the impact of their team's daily work, address the organization in an all-staff meeting, and foster a culture that celebrates milestones on the way to reaching large strategic goals.

4. Measure and Monitor Performance

Strategy execution relies on continually assessing progress toward goals. To effectively measure your organization’s performance metrics, determine numeric key performance indicators (KPIs) during the strategic planning stage . A numeric goal serves as a clear measure of success for you and your team to regularly track and monitor performance and assess if any changes need to be made based on that progress.

For instance, your company’s strategic goal could be to increase its customer retention rate by 30 percent by 2026. By keeping a record of the change in customer retention rate on a weekly or monthly basis, you can observe data trends over time.

If records show that your customer retention rate is decreasing month over month, it could signal that your strategic plan requires pivoting because it’s not driving the change you desire. If, however, your data shows steady month-over-month growth, you can use that trend to reasonably predict whether you’ll reach your goal of a 30 percent increase by 2026.

5. Balance Innovation and Control

While innovation is an essential driving force for company growth, don’t let it derail the execution of your strategy.

To leverage innovation and maintain control over your current strategy implementation, develop a process to evaluate challenges, barriers, and opportunities that arise. Who makes decisions that may pivot your strategy’s focus? What pieces of the strategy are non-negotiable? Answering questions like these upfront can allow for clarity during execution.

Also, remember that a stagnant organization has no room for growth. Encourage employees to brainstorm, experiment, and take calculated risks with strategic initiatives in mind.

Related: 23 Resources for Mobilizing Innovation in Your Organization

Building the Skills to Successfully Execute Strategy

Setting strategic goals, formulating a plan, and executing a strategy each require a different set of skills and come with their own challenges. Keeping in mind that even the best formulated strategy can be poorly executed, consider bolstering your execution skills before setting strategic goals and putting a plan in place. Developing these skills can have a lasting impact on your organization's future performance.

Are you interested in designing systems and structures to meet your organization’s strategic goals? Explore our eight-week Strategy Execution course and other online strategy courses to hone your strategic planning and execution skills. To find the right HBS Online Strategy course for you, download the free flowchart .

This post was updated on November 9, 2023. It was originally published on November 17, 2020.

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Strategic Implementation: More Than Just Implementing Strategy

By Kate Eby | November 27, 2017 (updated December 4, 2021)

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Strategic implementation is a key ingredient of modern business: Once an organization creates a strategy to meet its goals, implementation is the next step for successful execution. Essentially, the implementation phase outlines how a company plans to achieve its goals. Business theories and frameworks help guide strategic formulation, implementation, and execution. This article explains strategic implementation and how it differs from other strategy tactics. You’ll learn about key steps and pitfalls, review some examples, and get expert insights.

What Is Strategic Implementation?

There are numerous definitions of strategic implementation on the web, including the following:

Business Dictionary : The activity performed according to a plan in order to achieve an overall goal. For example, strategic implementation within a business context might involve developing and then executing a new marketing plan to help increase sales of the company's products to consumers.

The Houston Chronicle : The process that puts plans and strategies into action to reach goals. A strategic plan is a written document that lays out the plans of the business to reach goals, but will sit forgotten without strategic implementation. The implementation makes the company’s plans happen.

OnStrategy : The process that turns strategies and plans into actions in order to accomplish strategic objectives and goals.

What these and other definitions have in common is that they discuss turning a theoretical plan (about an organization’s direction) into manageable tasks that team members can perform to achieve the stated goals.

Once an organization creates a strategy, it needs to be implemented, and then executed. Here are the high-level steps in strategic implementation (which we will discuss in detail later):

• Communicate
• Align initiatives with strategy
• Engage staff and outside stakeholders
• Allocate resources
• Make structural adjustments
• Create strategic evaluations

Strategy Implementation vs. Strategic Implementation

Whether or not a difference exists between strategy implementation and strategic implementation depends on who you ask.

Ray Mckenzie, Founder and Managing Director of Red Beach Advisors , says, “Strategy implementation is a larger umbrella, or a holistic view of what’s going to happen, and looks at products and pricing and how we function as business. Strategic implementation is a plan for implementation of a specific objective: For example, if I have a piece of software that I want installed in three months.” One scenario might be if you want to integrate CRM software into your organization, you’ll need to identify the steps to take to execute the integration.

Lloyd Baird is the Jon M. Huntsman Visiting Professor at Utah State University . Of the difference between the two phrases, he says, “It depends on what organization or company you are talking to.”

In this article, we’ll treat strategy implementation and strategic implementation as synonymous.

Getting Strategic

As organizations evolve, they often change from a reactive to proactive operational style. It’s at this point that an organization begins strategic planning, which leads to strategic implementation.

Formulation, Implementation, and Execution

Strategy formulation (also known as planning), implementation, and execution are intertwined, but each are distinct. Formulation is the creation of a framework that guides decisions. Implementation is preparation and putting elements of the strategy into place. Execution is the decisions made and activities performed throughout the company, with the objective of meeting goals outlined in the strategy.

For example, imagine you're the coach of a football team in a critical 4th-and-1 situation. In this case, the terms would function as follows:

• Formulation: You select a play from your playbook, with the objective of getting a first down.
• Implementation: The players position themselves on the field as outlined in the chosen play, and you place the best offensive linemen up front, and the sturdiest running back in the backfield.
• Execution: The ball is snapped, the linemen push their defensive counterparts back, and if all goes well, they open up enough ground so that when the running back gets the handoff, he can move it across the line of scrimmage for a first down.

Smartsheet offers many templates to assist with strategic formulation.

Thinking About Strategic Implementation

In his paper Strategy Implementation as Substance and Selling , author Donald C. Hambrick and Albert A. Cannella, Jr., state  “… implementation must be considered during the formulation process, not later, when it may be too late.” They continue, “The strategist will not be able to nail down every action step when the strategy is first created, nor … should this even be attempted. However, he or she must have the ability to look ahead at the major implementation obstacles and ask, ‘Is this strategy workable?’”

Corporate Strategy and Business Unit Strategy

Executives create the corporate strategy, which determines the company’s lines of business. It also addresses how business units can work together to increase efficiency. Business unit strategy is created by the leader of each unit, and revolves around how the corporate strategy is put into action. In other words, corporate strategy determines what happens, and business unit strategy determines how it happens.

To align corporate and business unit strategies, executives must encourage the development of business unit strategies that both contribute to corporate strategy objectives and respond to their competitive situation, whether geographical or functional.

In a 1984 paper titled Business Unit Strategy, Managerial Characteristics, and Business Unit Effectiveness at Strategy Implementation , authors Anil K. Gupta and V. Govindarajan explain, “The absolute performance of a business entity depends not just on the effectiveness of its internal organization in implementing the chosen strategy, but also on industry characteristics and the choice of strategy itself.”

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Why Is Implementation Important?

Executives formulate the strategy that business units will execute. However, implementation requires the participation of the entire organization, so implementation is as important — if not more so — than the strategy itself. For example, you can buy seeds and plant them in your garden with the goal of serving a home-grown salad every night at dinner, but that doesn’t ensure that you’ll reach your goal. If you plant at the wrong time of year, if the seeds are not viable in your climate, or if the soil is depleted, you’ll still be buying vegetables from the store for a long time to.

Because strategic implementation is the most important, it’s also the most difficult to achieve. A 1989 Booz Allen study found that 73 percent of managers thought that strategic implementation is more difficult than formulation, 72 percent think that it takes more time, and 82 percent say it’s the part of the process over which they have the least control. But there’s been progress. In a 2015 survey of reports titled Strategy implementation: What is the failure rate? , authors Carlos J.F. Cândido and Sérgio P. Santos conclude that the implementation failure rate has fallen from the between 70-90 percent in the mid 1980s to about 44 percent in the early 2010s.

There are many reasons that strategies can fail. A bad plan (e.g. one that has unrealistic goals), or poor execution (e.g. not adapting to changing conditions) can cause failure, but since implementation is the key aspect, there are more possible pitfalls, including the following:

• Stakeholders Don’t Buy-In: Those who are responsible for executing a strategy won’t want to do it if they don’t believe in it. Ray McKenzie says, “Not having completed buy-in from the team is first and foremost. If people don’t buy-in, it won’t get completed.”
• Resources Aren’t Aligned with Strategy: For example, if you want to sell red balloons, but fill your warehouse with blue ones, you won’t meet your goals.
• Incentives Aren’t Aligned with the Strategy: This happens when you reward people for completing tasks that don’t contribute toward the key performance indicators (KPIs) .
• You Don’t Plan to Adjust: Lloyd Baird says, “There’s an old military saying: Your battle plan is great until you contact the enemy, then everything changes. Things are changing so fast in organizations that if you don’t have a method to adapt, evaluate, and change, you’re going to fail. The people that are really good are the ones who are adapting along the way.”
• Continuing To Do Things that Used To Work: Rather than relying on old mechanisms for success, stay current with trends and tools.
• Internal Politics: Turf battles or personal disputes can prevent an organization from properly implementing a strategy.
• Accountability Void: When implementing a strategy, everybody involved must be made aware of their responsibilities, and the consequences of not meeting them.
• No Milestones: As Ray McKenzie explains, “A strategy only works for a period of time — you have to have an outline of those dates.”
• Lack of Empowerment: This happens when people and teams aren’t given the authority, resources, and tools to execute the strategy.
• Communication Breakdown: If the organization is not sharing the strategy, or is sharing it in the wrong ways, the team won’t understand it.

Challenges and Criticisms of Strategic Implementation

Like any business process, strategic implementation has its share of challenges and criticisms. However, if an organization is aware of the limitations of strategic implementation and the obstacles that may arise, they can overcome potential challenges.

Key Leadership Theories for Implementation Strategy

Leadership theories guide how executives think about the world and their organization’s place in it. A couple important, related theories are discussed below.

Tipping Point Theory

• What It Is: The nce a critical mass of people gets behind something, it spreads quickly. Malcolm Gladwell’s 2000 book, The Tipping Point, provides many examples of this theory in action, from the changes in the Bill Bratton-led NYPD in the 1990s that resulted in a dramatic drop in crime, to the way Hush Puppies shoes became popular again once key people in the fashion world started wearing them. The makeup of a critical mass will vary by organization: It could be a majority, or it could be a small group of influential people.
• How It Can Help with Strategic Implementation: While implementing a strategy, executives can identify what constitutes a critical mass in each business unit, and work to get those people invested in the strategy. Once those team members are on board, they’ll bring the rest of the team along.

Blue Ocean Theory

• What It Is: It sprang out of a marketing theory with the same name, which posits that companies should create opportunities in market areas where there isn’t much competition to provide greater growth opportunities. For example, Southwest Airlines became a major player by combining customer-focused service, low prices (partly achieved by flying from secondary airports and partly by using only a single aircraft), and flying to underserved areas. As a leadership theory, Blue Ocean tasks leaders with undertaking the activities that increase team performance, listening to feedback from all parts of their organization, and developing leaders at all levels.
• How It Can Help with Strategic Implementation: Having leaders at many levels focus on activities that increase team performance and listen to every level, the strategies they develop will be easier to implement. This method helps the leaders generate some built-in buy-in. By walking the leadership walk, others are more likely to follow along.

What Do You Mean by Strategic Evaluation?

Strategic evaluation is a type of business performance measurement (BPM) system. In a 2007 paper Towards A Definition of a Business Performance Measurement System , Monica Franco-Santos et al. describes it as, “...a set of metrics used to quantify both the efficiency and effectiveness of actions; or as the reporting process that gives feedback to employees on the outcome of actions.” Strategic evaluation (often written as strategic evaluation and control, when it’s used as part of a strategic management model) is a cyclical process that helps managers and executives determine whether programs, projects, and activities are helping an organization meet their strategy’s goals and objectives. In short, it can help an organization stay on and get back on track.

Strategic evaluation is performed during the execution phase, but you create the process during implementation. There’s always a need to get and analyze feedback to find out what is and isn’t working, identify ways to fix what’s not working, and record the lessons learned for future strategies. There are four high-level steps in the strategic evaluation process:

• Set benchmarks
• Compare results against benchmarks
• Analyze the differences
• Take corrective actions

There are a few different facets of strategic evaluation. Each facet is important and shouldn't be ignored, as using all four ensure that you’ll discover any possible root causes of a problem.

• Premise: Were the strategic goals realistic and achievable?
• Implementation: Was the process of implementing organizational changes based on the strategy performed properly?
• Strategic Surveillance: Are processes and tasks being performed as expected, and if so, are they getting the desired results?
• Special Alerts: While strategic evaluation should take the long view, and not focus too much on short-term fluctuations, it needs to evaluate how changing market conditions and competitors’ actions, as well as unexpected events, affect the strategy. Taking this view will highlight those surprises and changes — then you can implement contingency plans and bring in crisis management teams if required to change the strategy’s execution.

Strategic evaluations are a great way to learn. Ray McKenzie says, “Have a follow-up with the team to see what worked, or if you should do things differently next time around."

How Strategic Implementation Works in Different Organizations

With the rise of mass production in the 19th century, companies began to centralize key functions like sales and finance, which led to economies of scale. Later, as some firms became diversified and began to increase their market, they created business units that focused on product lines or geographical regions. The firms may have lost some of the previously gained economies of scale, but they were able to better react to market conditions.

Centralized organizations could use strategic implementation to make shared services more efficient. Diversified organizations could coordinate processes and goals between various regional offices or product-focused groups.

Later, companies started using the matrix organization to try to take advantage of both the economies of scale created by centralization, and the adaptability of the geographical or product-focused organizations. Matrix organizations are difficult to coordinate. Implementing a strategy can help everyone focus on the same goals.

In the 1990s, the business process reengineering (a version of this is know as Total Quality Management, or TQM ) drove the creation of organizations that were organized around processes. Again, implementing a strategy can help everyone focus on the same goals.

Going forward, virtual, networked, and “Velcro” organizations (a concept where the organization can be pulled apart and put back together in response to changes in the business environment, or as Lloyd Baird says, “a network of relationships”) will have the same issues that strong strategic implementation can help.

What Is Involved in the Implementation Process

After formulating and finalizing a strategy, it’s time to share it with the organization. Next, you may need to make changes to the organization in preparation for the execution phase. The steps to take are as follows:

Communicate: Everyone in the organization, and some outside, must learn about the strategy, how it affects them, and what changes they’ll need to make to support it. As you cascade the strategy throughout the organization, different groups will need to be made aware of the parts that are important to them. Sales and marketing teams will want to hear more about the sales goals, while IT will be more concerned about changes to the network and new required software. A vendor will need to know what changes they’ll need make to the materials they provide.

Engage Stakeholders: After communicating the goals, managers and staff (as well as any contractors or vendor affected) need to understand the importance of the strategic goals, their role in strategy execution, their responsibilities, and the impact of meeting or not meeting the goals or fulfilling their responsibilities. Using stakeholders throughout the organization to be champions of the coming changes will make the job easier.

Align Initiatives with Strategy: You’ll likely need to update processes, swap out tools, and make other changes to ensure company activities are contributing to the KPIs laid out in the strategy.

Allocate Resources: What needs to be bought or moved to prepare for execution? What funding needs to be allocated to strategic, operational, and capital expense budgets?

Make Structural Adjustments: Do you need to hire new people? Will there be a round of layoffs? Will you need to change any reporting structures? Are new vendors or contractors required? This is the hardest part of the implementation to perform.

Create a Strategic Evaluation: Implement repeatable processes that will check progress toward the goals, and provide data to executives and managers to determine what changes need to be made to the strategy or it’s execution to keep the organization on track to meeting the goals.

The Three Cs of Strategic Implementation

In a 2012 Forbes article , Scott Edinger composed a concise checklist of considerations. When preparing to implement, keep these in mind:

• Clarify: Avoid high-level statements that only resonate with the C-suite. Write your strategy in a way that connects with front-line employees and managers.
• Communicate: Spread the message in as many ways as you can. Connect the strategy to each group's’ core purpose.
• Cascade: Translate the strategy into actions through the organization. Managers at every level will be the ones who handle this.

5 Changes That Support Successful Implementation

Another lens to look through is, “What changes need to be made to implement the strategy?” You can divide the answer into five groups:

• People: Train or hire the right (and the right number of) individuals to implement plans. Ray Mckenzie advises, “Build a team of people who are key and can help you move your strategy forward.”
• Resources: Get funding and sufficient time to implement required changes.
• Organization: Restructure the company to support the strategic goals.
• Systems: Acquire the tools needed to perform the required processes.
• Culture: Work to create an environment that prioritizes the actions needed to reach the stated goals.

McKinsey 7S Framework

The McKinsey 7S framework is an organizational tool developed at the McKinsey & Company consulting firm in the 1980s, by Robert H. Waterman and Tom Peters. The framework can be used in many ways, including to determine how well an organization is prepared to change in order to implement a strategy.

Here are the 7Ss:

• Strategy: What needs to to be implemented
• Structure: The chain of command
• Systems: The tools used to perform tasks and complete processes
• Skills: What employees can do
• Style: How the leaders lead
• Staff: The employees
• Shared Values: The core values, expressed through the corporate culture

These can be divided into the hard Ss (Strategy, Structure, Systems), which are tangible, and the soft Ss (Skills, Style, Staff, Shared Values), which are intangible. In order to ensure smooth implementation, align each of these categories.

Examples of Successful and Unsuccessful Implementation Strategies

As previously mentioned, because strategy formulation, implementation, and execution are intertwined, it may difficult to know which phase is the cause of strategic failure. Here are some quick examples of success and failure where implementation is key.

Wal-Mart: The corporation became the retail giant they are by having low prices. They made lower margins by having high volume. In order to do that, they implemented a supply chain strategy that reduced operating costs. As they grew, their strategy was to use their size as a bargaining chip with suppliers to get even lower prices.  

J.C. Penney: Penney’s was a major retailer in the U.S. for many years, but when the landscape changed, they kept doing the same things. When the company finally brought in new leadership in 2011, they implemented a strategy that eliminated coupons that customers used and lowered their regular prices. They also changed their retail mix. When sales began to fall, they maintained their implemented strategy without adjusting. If they had taken advantage of the data from strategic evaluations and had responded appropriately, they might have been able to salvage the parts of their strategy that were working.

Apple: In the late 1990s, Apple was close to going out of business. They had many products that didn’t sell. When Steve Jobs returned, he implemented a strategy that reduced the number of products, and worked to develop new ones. This approach eventually led to the invention of the iPod. The iPod was not the first MP3 player, but it was the first to catch on because of its ease of use and storage capacity. This, in essence, was an application of the Blue Ocean theory: Apple found a market segment that wasn’t very competitive, and created a product that was better than what was available. For a long time, Apple was the dominant player in that market segment.

Google: While Google is successful in most ventures (search, email, maps), they have had some notable stumbles. One is Google Glass, the company’s wearable computer. While the idea was good, the device was very expensive, was not easy to use, there were concerns about privacy, and was an unattractive pair of glasses. Mostly, there was no real compelling reason to use it. Google Glass was a failed application of the Blue Ocean theory, and also another failure to adapt to data from strategic evaluations.

Strategic Implementation without Disruption

Strategic implementation can involve the restructuring of reporting relationships: adding, deleting, or updating processes, or even layoffs. This process can be painful for employees, and can cause problems when it’s time to execute strategy.

Restructuring can be expensive, and the new structure can create issues as troublesome as those you are trying to solve. Employes have to adapt to the new structure and may be dissatisfied. As a result, a lot of tacit institutional knowledge can be lost as people get shuffled around or worse, leave the company. Restructuring may also result in maintaining legacy systems until they can be phased out, which causes unnecessary expense. Additionally, some people won't be able to fully focus on the new strategy while they keep legacy systems running.

It's far less disruptive to choose an organizational design that’s flexible and can be adapted without major conflicts, and then formulate strategies that can be easily implemented.

Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton recommend the balanced scorecard framework, which they co-created in the 1990s. They believe that this framework will minimize the need to go through disruptive restructuring when new strategies change due to the following reasons:

• It focuses on the strategic agenda of the organization.
• It recommends monitoring a small number of data points.
• It looks at both financial and non-financial data.

The implementation of this framework is beyond the scope of this article, but you can read an explanation of its benefits via the Harvard Business Review .

Sometimes disruptive restructuring is necessary. If it can’t be avoided, here are some steps to make it more manageable:

• Break the strategy into smaller chunks, so the disruption is spread over a longer time frame.
• Communicate directly to affected employees. Explain why the changes are needed, and retrain them to adapt to the new structure.
• Use a version of the strategic evaluation process that focuses on the affected employees, have them report their on satisfaction levels, and adjust the strategy based on that feedback to lessen the impacts.

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More Like this

3 pro tips for strategy implementation, what is strategy implementation.

Strategy implementation is the process that turns your strategy plan into real action. Implementing your strategic plan is key to ensuring your organization’s future growth and success. Effective strategy implementation involves several key components to support the successful execution of the strategy. We are here to help you master the art of bringing your strategy to life through a consistent, focused implementation process.

Is Implementing Strategy Difficult?

While strategy implementation is a critical follow-up for any new strategy or strategic plan, it poses significant challenges for many organizations. Nine out of 10 companies with strategic plans fail to implement them. Fortune Magazine says nine out of ten organizations fail to implement their strategic plan. These reasons include:

• 60% of organizations don’t link strategy to budgeting
• 75% of organizations don’t link employee incentives to strategy
• 86% of business owners and managers spend less than one hour per month discussing strategy
• 95% of the typical workforce doesn’t understand their organization’s strategy.

Engaging key stakeholders in the strategic planning process is crucial to ensure alignment and buy-in from various organization leaders. Validating strategic goals with both internal teams and external key stakeholders helps guide and shape the organization’s strategic decisions.

The root cause of strategic implementation failure often lies in lacking a well-defined, actionable plan that resonates with the organization’s broader goals.

Tip 1: Make Sure Your Have a Complete Plan

This might seem obvious, but the first step is ensuring you have an implementation-ready plan before starting your execution process. A great plan covers what you want to achieve and

It’s supported by clear objectives, goals, and actions that articulate who, where, when, and how you’ll achieve your bigger vision of success. Additionally, having essential components and systems in place is crucial for successful strategy execution, as they support effective implementation by providing necessary processes, procedures, and tools for monitoring and evaluating performance.

Before moving into a strategy implementation and execution process, make sure your strategic plan checks off the following boxes:

• You have a clear vision of the future.
• Your plan articulates your mission and core values.
• You have a current state analysis that articulates where you are today.
• A clear growth strategy has been defined and is supported by your competitive advantages.
• There are 4-6 long-term strategic objectives that create the framework for your plan.
• You have annual goals/OKRs to support your long-term objectives.
• You have clear KPIs, measures, and targets.
• You have the right people in the room.
• You have a quarterly action plan.

Ensuring that your strategic plan is actually ready to implement requires getting your teams together, outlining expectations, assigning roles and responsibilities, setting deadlines and KPIs, and finally, providing the resources needed for your teams to do their jobs to bring your strategic plan to life.

Get the Free Guide for Agile Implementation & OKR Cycles

Tip 2: make sure your team is aligned with your plan and direction..

One of the key steps to successful strategy implementation is ensuring your team understands your vision, goals, plan structure, available resources, market conditions, and how they play a pivotal role in the success of your plan.

Once your team is aligned on your goals and objectives and they understand your strategy, it is time to implement your strategic plan.

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Tip 3: Recognize the common pitfalls of strategy implementation and avoid them.

Identifying your pitfalls and course-correcting them before they occur is a more beneficial and mature approach to strategic implementation, especially in the beginning stages or if this is your first strategic planning process.

6 Strategic implementation roadblocks and OnStrategy’s best practices to avoid them:

Because you want your plan to succeed, heed the advice here and identify the pitfalls and solutions that are most relevant to your strategy implementation process. Here are the 6 most common pitfalls seen in strategic plans and how you can avoid them as you implement your strategy:

Lack of ownership and accountability.

Lack of ownership is the most common reason a process fails. If members of your team don’t have a stake in the plan, it’ll be business as usual for all but a frustrated few. This lack of ownership also coincides with a lack of accountability where your team is unwilling or unable to take responsibility for the success of the plan.

OnStrategy Approach: We recommend employing cross-functional teams, so everyone is responsible for a piece of the plan. Accountability helps drive change, so each measure, objective, data source, and initiative must have an owner.

Lack of communication and infrequent reporting schedule.

Your plan doesn’t get communicated to employees, and they don’t understand how they connect with the strategy or contribute to its success. Your team also doesn’t find value in frequent reporting, so meetings are regularly pushed back in favor of higher-priority tasks.

OnStrategy Approach: The solution to this pitfall is ensuring that your entire organization and each relevant team are in alignment and clearly understand the strategic plan and their role within it. This means regular, firmly scheduled check-ins to report on progress and address shortcomings. These meetings should be treated just as important as any other.

Treating your planning as a special occasion.

This can hinder your plan’s effectiveness. When strategic planning is viewed as separate from the day-to-day management process or only addressed during annual retreats or special events, the overall impact of your strategy diminishes.

OnStrategy Approach: To counter this, integrate your strategy into the core of your organization’s operations through consistent reporting and ongoing activity (monthly reporting and quarterly refresh). Rather than treating strategy as a periodic project, make it an integral part of everyone’s regular responsibilities and job duties.

The plan is overwhelming.

The goals and actions generated in the strategic planning session are too numerous because the team failed to make tough choices to eliminate non-critical actions. Employees don’t know where to begin.

OnStrategy Approach: We always recommend that organizations focus on 4-6 key initiatives or objectives within their strategic implementation plan. This ensures your team isn’t spread too thin and that you are only focusing on the relevant and impactful initiatives that will drive your success.

The implementation plan isn’t clear.

Implementation isn’t discussed in the strategic planning process. The planning document is seen as an end in itself, but you lack the forethought on how to make it actionable.

OnStrategy Approach: The objective of strategic planning is not just the plan itself but the continual process of working towards it and improving it. You need to set clear, actionable steps to make your strategic plan more than just a sheet of paper—this means setting KPIs, scheduling regular check-ins, assigning teams and goal owners, and implementing strategy via tracking and communication processes so that everyone is on the same page.

Your short-term objectives are undefined.

Another reason why your team may struggle to implement strategy is due to a lack of clear objectives. Sure, the broad strokes of your plan and vision are outlined, but you lack the key components of a complete plan, including annual goals, quarterly action plans, and key performance indicators.

OnStrategy Approach: Make sure you have a complete plan and roadmap for achieving your business goals. Your long-term plan must be supported by short-term goals and objectives with measurable analytics! A purpose-built strategic management tool and dashboard can also help keep our team coordinated and aligned. Again, with the help of a dynamic dashboard, like as the StrategyHub , you can set clear goals with well-defined measurements of success. Setting smaller, specific objectives that you know will contribute to your long-term goals will allow you to see in real-time what is working for your plan and what is not working and allow you to re-calibrate accordingly.

It’s easier to avoid pitfalls when they’re clearly identified and when you’ve outlined a solution to address them. Now that you know what they are, you’re more likely to jump right over them!

• A clearly defined implementation calendar and scheduled reviews. When you roll out your plan, schedule your monthly and quarterly reviews out for the year. It can be helpful to include monthly updates in your current standing meetings, but you should host dedicated quarterly reviews to review performance, refresh your plan, and create a focus for the next quarter.
• Clear expectations for when performance is to be updated and reviewed. Your entire team members need to know what they own and when they are responsible for updating their progress against performance.

9 Steps to Finalize a Strategy Implementation Approach

Implementing your plan includes several steps and can sometimes feel like it needs another plan of its own. But you don’t need to go to that extent. Use the steps below as your base implementation plan. Modify it to make it your own timeline and fit your organization’s culture and structure.

• Finalize your strategic plan after obtaining input from all invested parties.
• Align your budget to annual goals based on your financial assessment.
• Produce the various versions of your plan for each group.
• Establish your scorecard system for tracking and monitoring your plan.
• Establish your performance management and reward system.
• Roll out your plan to the whole organization to implement the strategy.
• Build all department annual plans around the corporate plan.
• Set up monthly strategy meetings with established reporting to monitor your progress.
• Set up annual strategic review dates, including new assessments and a large group meeting for an annual plan review.

Check out OnStrategy’s whiteboard video, explaining our Strategic Implementation Checklist!

Final Thought: Strategy Execution Doesn’t Need to Be Overwhelming!

Setting your strategy implementation approach might seem totally overwhelming after you complete your plan, but it doesn’t need to be. If you need help, we’ve got you covered with our expert strategy consultants and purpose-built strategy implementation tool called the StrategyHub.

We can help you ensure your plan is supported by the organizational culture, implementation approach, and necessary resources to achieve your vision of success.

Covering All Your Bases

As a business owner, executive, or department manager, your job entails making sure you’re set up for a successful implementation. Before you start this process, evaluate your strategic plan and how you may implement it by answering a few questions to keep yourself in check.

Take a moment to honestly answer the following questions:

• How committed are you to implementing the plan to move your company forward?
• How do you plan to communicate the plan throughout the company?
• Are there sufficient people who have a buy-in to drive the plan forward?
• How are you going to motivate your people?
• Have you identified internal processes that are key to driving the plan forward?
• Are you going to commit money, resources, and time to support the plan?
• What are the roadblocks to implementing and supporting the plan?
• How will you take available resources and achieve maximum results with them?

16 Comments

Hi i like to read these article and i got lots of help about strategy plan thanks

the implementation plans can assists an organisation in making its strategic efficiently which bust the organisation performance

Great article , I am an MBA student from kenya and am intending to research on factors that influence the implementaton of strategic plans in kenyan schools . Any idea on the relevant objectives and theories for my theoretical review and framework will be highly appreciated .

The article has been of invaluable use to me.thanks a lot.I would like to get more articles on strategic Management since I have done an Undergraduate degree in Strategic Management.

Good outline. My experience suggests that strategic plan ACHIEVEMENT always boils down to: broad understanding; assignability; actionable tasks; measurable elements; and stretch reasonableness. When plans fail, it’s usually because they’re either too esoteric, vague, unrealistic, or lack broad-based employee buy-in. Shorter-term plans, subsidiary plans, budgets, functional assignments, and job descriptions need to support this broader set of goals and objectives. There needs to be regular, ongoing communication and updates. Lastly, (and this makes professional planners uneasy), it’s not just about an elegant process, it’s about translating that vision into an executable framework from which elegant outcomes are actually achieved.

this is great and I have scooped a lot from it

Thanks a lot.This article has made me understand better

Isn’t this from “Strategic planning for dummies”? anyways thanks

Hi Brian- Our COO, Erica Olsen, wrote the book “Strategic Planning for Dummies” so you will some very similar thoughts here that you would see in the book.

thanks for the article . it has really helped me answer all my questions keep it up.

Thanks but can you assist more on why in most cases the strategic planning is regarded as a meaningless ,trivial and mundane ritual in organisations

I’m very happy reading your article and help much in our project implementaion, hoping that there are still more than this, thanks very much

The article is very useful for information. Thank you.

thanks alot for the outline,really impressed though an advise for strategy formulation in a motor vehicle showroom as a new business venture and also implementation of the same.

This is a very valuable piece. You helped me understand strategic planning and implementation much better. Thanks so much.

Very helpful information, thank you!

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The importance of knowing how to evaluate a strategic plan

Now that you know more precisely what strategic planning is and what it is for – with the help of Peter Drucker’s ideas – let’s take a look at some strategic planning objectives.

3 main objectives of strategic planning

Below are the main objectives and benefits of monitoring your organization’s strategic plan:

1- Ensuring that activities are being performed within the defined parameters

During the development of strategic planning, for each activity planned for the organization, necessary parameters for their accomplishment are considered.

Costs, execution time, financial, material and human resources needed, among others.

Now, while the plan is being put in place, the manager must make sure that all activities are being carried out within the proper parameters.

Rather than assessing, the manager must look at whether a change of course is required, and whether the parameters for any activity need to be rethought.

Ensuring activity progress helps set performance standards that indicate progress towards long-term goals, assesses people’s performance, and provides input for feedback.

2- Ensuring activities are consistent with company DNA

The soul of the organization is closely linked to its vision, mission and values.

Monitoring strategic planning is also a way to ensure that activities are being developed in accordance with the values that guide the organization and its organizational culture.

Since they are directly related to the organizational climate and the corporate image of the company.

Check out this unique Siteware infographic that shows the consequences of a misaligned organizational culture of strategic planning:

3- Assessing ability to achieve goals and identify problems

Analyzing both the internal and external workforce and the exchange of ideas is also important in measuring how well a company is able to achieve what was set for the period.

By comparing performance data with established standards, it is possible to visualize or anticipate possible bottlenecks in corporate daily life.

Why is monitoring strategic planning important?

When a company monitors its strategic planning closely, it ensures that its teams are doing a good job, committed to maintaining progress, and with proper records so they can be evaluated.

Here is another quote from a master, Ram Charan , to illustrate how monitoring strategic planning is critical.

“ 70% of strategies fail due to ineffectiveness. They rarely fail due to lack of intelligence or vision.”

That is, at the time of executing the plan, it is crucial to carry out strategic monitoring and evaluation of the planning systematically and constantly.

After all, if 70% of planning activities fail in execution, only strategic planning control and evaluation – with metrics – will allow errors to be detected and adjustments made.

The metrics a company uses to measure also indicate the quality of the year or period the company is in.

If necessary, from what is evaluated, it is possible to correct the current path, make investments, hire staff, seek technological tools, build partnerships, among many other solutions.

Monitoring is part of the strategic planning system primarily to keep track of what is happening.

And this is usually done through an analysis of regular operational and financial reports on a company’s activities.

The results of a strategic planning follow-up are:

• Incentive for continuous improvement;
• Provision of data on the impact of activities;
• Information for decision making.

The monitoring of strategic planning should be carried out based on the same indicators used when preparing strategic planning.

This also allows for process review as the company realizes that activities, internal and external relationships, customer approaches, etc. need to be modified.

Is it clear to you how important strategic planning and the control of action plans and activities are?

Examples of strategic planning indicators

You have seen that there is no way to monitor strategic planning without the use of indicators.

There are actually three types of indicators to consider in a company:

• Strategic Indicators:  They point to the future, the path the company is expected to follow, and are linked to the mission and vision of the business. They will be reached in the long term, between 3 and 5 years. After an analysis of internal and external scenarios and company differentials, with the help of SWOT analysis, strategic indicators are usually defined.
• Tactical Indicators:  are related to the actions of each area of the company. They make up an action plan that is effective in a shorter period than the strategic objectives, but should contribute to it. If tactical indicators are being met, there is a good chance that strategic objectives will also be met successfully.
• Operational Indicators:  short term. They are directly linked to the day-to-day operations in a company and the progress of the processes. Operational indicators are assigned to each employee to achieve the desired performance level that will make it possible to achieve tactical and strategic goals.

How do you define strategic planning indicators, anyway?

We have seen in the paragraphs above that strategic indicators have the following characteristics:

• Point to the future
• Achieved in the long term
• Linked to a company’s mission and vision
• Based on competitive differences

So, for example, it would make no sense to define strategic indicators like the following:

• Improve the efficiency of our production line by 15% next year.
• Increase sales by 10% by the end of June
• Hire new talent to fill 6 positions on the board by year’s end

These are typical examples of tactical indicators.

To get examples of strategic planning indicators, one must think of changes more linked to the company’s DNA, its mission to society.

Here is a short list of examples of strategic planning indicators:

• Launch 3 new product lines each year over the next 4 years to gain 35% more Share in Market X.
• Create a corporate university that meets our needs within a maximum of 2 years and institute university study support plans to enable our employees to have 85% of the workforce with a college degree and 50% with a postgraduate degree. 5 years.
• Deactivate business units with less than 20% profitability and use the proceeds from the sale of these assets to start an international expansion project by opening 1 unit in countries X, Y and Z and 3 units in country W within 4 years.

Challenges of following strategic planning

Now that it’s clear to you how to evaluate a strategic plan, let’s look at the challenges inherent in doing it.

If we consider that strategic planning is the consolidation of ideas, it is in the implementation of these ideas that the organization will obtain its results, as Charan pointed out.

That’s why it needs to be constantly reevaluated and rethought as corporate progresses.

The biggest challenge of strategic management is related to the ability to move the organization and keep it connected with what was proposed by the strategic plan, with the adaptability that this process requires.

Like every management function, this presupposes a permanent dynamic of planning, execution, monitoring, evaluation, adjustments and readjustments.

And if you want to know how to evaluate a strategic plan even more quickly and assertively, check out STRATWs One strategic planning software.

It enables a friendly view of your strategy map, making it easy to track indicators and goals and creating action plans for each one.

It makes it much easier to understand how to evaluate a strategic plan and monitor internal activities.

Revolutionize the management of your company with STRATWs One

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How To Implement Your Business Plan Objectives

Breaking down your business goals into actionable steps is key for success

What Is a Business Plan Objective?

Be specific and define clear objectives, break down objectives into tasks.

• Assign Responsibilities/Allocate Resources

Be Mindful of Risks and Create Contingencies

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A business plan is an important tool to help business owners map their path to success. In addition, business plans may be used when applying for loans or seeking outside investment. But a business plan isn’t worth it if you leave it gathering dust. To make a business plan effective, you have to implement your business plan objectives.

Whether you’re a new business owner or a veteran returning for a refresher, here’s a closer look at common strategies to implement on your business plan objectives.

Key Takeaways

• A business plan objective is a specific goal for your business.
• Making achievable and specific tasks is helpful for successful implementations.
• Track your results and stay prepared to update your business plan if necessary.

A business plan objective is a specific goal you hope to reach with your business. This may be a number of customers, revenue, or profit goal, among others. There are no right or wrong business objectives, in theory, but it’s important to take the time to pick the best goals for your unique business if you’re going through the work to create business plan objectives.

The SMART framework is a popular way to frame goals, and it can be helpful for creating objectives, too. To qualify, an objective must meet these criteria:

• Specific : A general goal like “add more customers” could leave you floundering. Pick a specific number of customers. Every objective should have a clear finish line.
• Measurable : Identify objectives you can measure. For example, you can’t necessarily measure something like “customer loyalty,” but you can measure repeat customers, sales and revenue per customer, and other data points related to loyalty.
• Attainable : You might dream of turning your startup into a $1-million-per-year business. However, that may not be attainable in your first few years. What’s attainable varies widely by the business but in general, you’ll want to find the middle ground between unrealistic and underachieving.
• Relevant : Perhaps part of your business growth strategy involves social media. While it may be fun to see your accounts grow, that may not necessarily be relevant to your revenue and profits. Keep goals focused on what’s most important to achieve, which may not include vanity numbers that are more about ego than results.
• Time-bound : Each objective should have a deadline. If you give yourself unlimited time to get something done, you may never get around to it. With a set due date, you’re giving yourself a little pressure and motivation to hit that goal as planned.

SMART goals are just one method of choosing business plan objectives. You can work to create any objectives you’d like that make the most sense for what you’re trying to achieve.

Even if you don’t follow the SMART goals framework, it’s still wise to be specific and clear when choosing your goals and objectives. Vague and loosely defined goals often set business owners up for failure. Specific and clear business objectives give you and your team, if you have one, a common mission to work toward.

Breaking each objective into smaller tasks can prevent teams from getting overwhelmed and even help you get a clearer picture of what you need to do to prevail. Smaller goals also help you see faster and more frequent successes, which is a good way to stay motivated. An added benefit is an opportunity to foresee any needed resources or roadblocks, such as a need for an outside consultant or a government-issued permit.

Assign Responsibilities and Allocate Resources

Entrepreneurs with “superhero syndrome” think they can do everything themselves and often get burned out in pursuing business goals. Rather than do it all yourself, even if you have the capability, it’s often wise to delegate to others . Employees, freelancers, contractors, and business partners are part of the team. When you can count on others and best utilize their time and skills, you take a wise step to reach your objectives.

Create Milestones and Monitor Progress

Just as it’s a good idea to set smaller goals along the way, it’s also wise to create key milestone moments and monitor progress. You may learn along the way that a certain process can be improved. When a process works well, try to capture and double down on that success. When you stumble or discover inefficiencies, you could have an opportunity.

Monitoring progress helps you know what’s working and what isn’t, so you can adjust goals or methods if necessary.

Not all things go according to plan. If you miss the mark, you could join one of the millions of failed business owners. Stay mindful of risks and if it may be time to pull the plug rather than sink in more money.

Also, you may find successes outside of what you expected. Even the biggest companies pivot to a related product or service when their first idea fizzles. Remember that there’s a lot you can’t control in the business world, so not all business failures should be considered personal failures. Instead, look at them as learning opportunities to draw on in the future.

The Bottom Line

A business plan without clear objectives is at risk of being ineffective. Identify what your objectives are, break them down into small steps, delegate responsibilities, and be comfortable with pivoting when needed and dealing with risk. Taking the proper steps to create realistic objectives isn’t a guarantee that you’ll meet your goals, but it provides the framework to set you up for success.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What goes in the objectives section of a business plan.

There is no set template you must follow for a business plan. Business plans can range from a one-page summary to a lengthy, detailed document. If a business plan includes an objectives section, it should include clear and specific goals that help define success for the business.

What is the difference between a goal and an objective in a business plan?

The terms “goal'' and “objective” can be used interchangeably in a business plan. Some businesses may consider objectives as smaller tasks that help reach goals. Regardless of the terminology, goals and objectives are both good for your business’s long-term success.

Want to read more content like this? Sign up for The Balance’s newsletter for daily insights, analysis, and financial tips, all delivered straight to your inbox every morning!

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. “ Setting Goals and Developing Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound Objectives ,” Pages 1-2.

Chris Drucker. “ Virtual Freedom Companion Workbook ,” Page 3.

Chamber of Commerce. “ 10 Hugely Successful Companies That Reinvented Their Business .”

Small Business Administration. “ Write Your Business Plan .”

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• What is strategic planning? A 5-step gu ...

What is strategic planning? A 5-step guide

Strategic planning is a process through which business leaders map out their vision for their organization’s growth and how they’re going to get there. In this article, we'll guide you through the strategic planning process, including why it's important, the benefits and best practices, and five steps to get you from beginning to end.

Strategic planning is a process through which business leaders map out their vision for their organization’s growth and how they’re going to get there. The strategic planning process informs your organization’s decisions, growth, and goals.

Strategic planning helps you clearly define your company’s long-term objectives—and maps how your short-term goals and work will help you achieve them. This, in turn, gives you a clear sense of where your organization is going and allows you to ensure your teams are working on projects that make the most impact. Think of it this way—if your goals and objectives are your destination on a map, your strategic plan is your navigation system.

In this article, we walk you through the 5-step strategic planning process and show you how to get started developing your own strategic plan.

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What is strategic planning?

Strategic planning is a business process that helps you define and share the direction your company will take in the next three to five years. During the strategic planning process, stakeholders review and define the organization’s mission and goals, conduct competitive assessments, and identify company goals and objectives. The product of the planning cycle is a strategic plan, which is shared throughout the company.

What is a strategic plan?

A strategic plan is the end result of the strategic planning process. At its most basic, it’s a tool used to define your organization’s goals and what actions you’ll take to achieve them.

Typically, your strategic plan should include: 

Your company’s mission statement

Your organizational goals, including your long-term goals and short-term, yearly objectives

Any plan of action, tactics, or approaches you plan to take to meet those goals

What are the benefits of strategic planning?

Strategic planning can help with goal setting and decision-making by allowing you to map out how your company will move toward your organization’s vision and mission statements in the next three to five years. Let’s circle back to our map metaphor. If you think of your company trajectory as a line on a map, a strategic plan can help you better quantify how you’ll get from point A (where you are now) to point B (where you want to be in a few years).

When you create and share a clear strategic plan with your team, you can:

Build a strong organizational culture by clearly defining and aligning on your organization’s mission, vision, and goals.

Align everyone around a shared purpose and ensure all departments and teams are working toward a common objective.

Proactively set objectives to help you get where you want to go and achieve desired outcomes.

Promote a long-term vision for your company rather than focusing primarily on short-term gains.

Ensure resources are allocated around the most high-impact priorities.

Define long-term goals and set shorter-term goals to support them.

Assess your current situation and identify any opportunities—or threats—allowing your organization to mitigate potential risks.

Create a proactive business culture that enables your organization to respond more swiftly to emerging market changes and opportunities.

What are the 5 steps in strategic planning?

The strategic planning process involves a structured methodology that guides the organization from vision to implementation. The strategic planning process starts with assembling a small, dedicated team of key strategic planners—typically five to 10 members—who will form the strategic planning, or management, committee. This team is responsible for gathering crucial information, guiding the development of the plan, and overseeing strategy execution.

Once you’ve established your management committee, you can get to work on the planning process. 

Step 1: Assess your current business strategy and business environment

Before you can define where you’re going, you first need to define where you are. Understanding the external environment, including market trends and competitive landscape, is crucial in the initial assessment phase of strategic planning.

To do this, your management committee should collect a variety of information from additional stakeholders, like employees and customers. In particular, plan to gather:

Relevant industry and market data to inform any market opportunities, as well as any potential upcoming threats in the near future.

Customer insights to understand what your customers want from your company—like product improvements or additional services.

Employee feedback that needs to be addressed—whether about the product, business practices, or the day-to-day company culture.

Consider different types of strategic planning tools and analytical techniques to gather this information, such as:

A balanced scorecard to help you evaluate four major elements of a business: learning and growth, business processes, customer satisfaction, and financial performance.

A SWOT analysis to help you assess both current and future potential for the business (you’ll return to this analysis periodically during the strategic planning process). 

To fill out each letter in the SWOT acronym, your management committee will answer a series of questions:

What does your organization currently do well?

What separates you from your competitors?

What are your most valuable internal resources?

What tangible assets do you have?

What is your biggest strength? 

Weaknesses:

What does your organization do poorly?

What do you currently lack (whether that’s a product, resource, or process)?

What do your competitors do better than you?

What, if any, limitations are holding your organization back?

What processes or products need improvement? 

Opportunities:

What opportunities does your organization have?

How can you leverage your unique company strengths?

Are there any trends that you can take advantage of?

How can you capitalize on marketing or press opportunities?

Is there an emerging need for your product or service? 

What emerging competitors should you keep an eye on?

Are there any weaknesses that expose your organization to risk?

Have you or could you experience negative press that could reduce market share?

Is there a chance of changing customer attitudes towards your company? 

Step 2: Identify your company’s goals and objectives

To begin strategy development, take into account your current position, which is where you are now. Then, draw inspiration from your vision, mission, and current position to identify and define your goals—these are your final destination. 

To develop your strategy, you’re essentially pulling out your compass and asking, “Where are we going next?” “What’s the ideal future state of this company?” This can help you figure out which path you need to take to get there.

During this phase of the planning process, take inspiration from important company documents, such as:

Your mission statement, to understand how you can continue moving towards your organization’s core purpose.

Your vision statement, to clarify how your strategic plan fits into your long-term vision.

Your company values, to guide you towards what matters most towards your company.

Your competitive advantages, to understand what unique benefit you offer to the market.

Your long-term goals, to track where you want to be in five or 10 years.

Your financial forecast and projection, to understand where you expect your financials to be in the next three years, what your expected cash flow is, and what new opportunities you will likely be able to invest in.

Step 3: Develop your strategic plan and determine performance metrics

Now that you understand where you are and where you want to go, it’s time to put pen to paper. Take your current business position and strategy into account, as well as your organization’s goals and objectives, and build out a strategic plan for the next three to five years. Keep in mind that even though you’re creating a long-term plan, parts of your plan should be created or revisited as the quarters and years go on.

As you build your strategic plan, you should define:

Company priorities for the next three to five years, based on your SWOT analysis and strategy.

Yearly objectives for the first year. You don’t need to define your objectives for every year of the strategic plan. As the years go on, create new yearly objectives that connect back to your overall strategic goals . 

Related key results and KPIs. Some of these should be set by the management committee, and some should be set by specific teams that are closer to the work. Make sure your key results and KPIs are measurable and actionable. These KPIs will help you track progress and ensure you’re moving in the right direction.

Budget for the next year or few years. This should be based on your financial forecast as well as your direction. Do you need to spend aggressively to develop your product? Build your team? Make a dent with marketing? Clarify your most important initiatives and how you’ll budget for those.

A high-level project roadmap . A project roadmap is a tool in project management that helps you visualize the timeline of a complex initiative, but you can also create a very high-level project roadmap for your strategic plan. Outline what you expect to be working on in certain quarters or years to make the plan more actionable and understandable.

Step 4: Implement and share your plan

Now it’s time to put your plan into action. Strategy implementation involves clear communication across your entire organization to make sure everyone knows their responsibilities and how to measure the plan’s success. 

Make sure your team (especially senior leadership) has access to the strategic plan, so they can understand how their work contributes to company priorities and the overall strategy map. We recommend sharing your plan in the same tool you use to manage and track work, so you can more easily connect high-level objectives to daily work. If you don’t already, consider using a work management platform .  

A few tips to make sure your plan will be executed without a hitch: 

Communicate clearly to your entire organization throughout the implementation process, to ensure all team members understand the strategic plan and how to implement it effectively. 

Define what “success” looks like by mapping your strategic plan to key performance indicators.

Ensure that the actions outlined in the strategic plan are integrated into the daily operations of the organization, so that every team member's daily activities are aligned with the broader strategic objectives.

Utilize tools and software—like a work management platform—that can aid in implementing and tracking the progress of your plan.

Regularly monitor and share the progress of the strategic plan with the entire organization, to keep everyone informed and reinforce the importance of the plan.

Establish regular check-ins to monitor the progress of your strategic plan and make adjustments as needed. 

Step 5: Revise and restructure as needed

Once you’ve created and implemented your new strategic framework, the final step of the planning process is to monitor and manage your plan.

Remember, your strategic plan isn’t set in stone. You’ll need to revisit and update the plan if your company changes directions or makes new investments. As new market opportunities and threats come up, you’ll likely want to tweak your strategic plan. Make sure to review your plan regularly—meaning quarterly and annually—to ensure it’s still aligned with your organization’s vision and goals.

Keep in mind that your plan won’t last forever, even if you do update it frequently. A successful strategic plan evolves with your company’s long-term goals. When you’ve achieved most of your strategic goals, or if your strategy has evolved significantly since you first made your plan, it might be time to create a new one.

Build a smarter strategic plan with a work management platform

To turn your company strategy into a plan—and ultimately, impact—make sure you’re proactively connecting company objectives to daily work. When you can clarify this connection, you’re giving your team members the context they need to get their best work done. 

A work management platform plays a pivotal role in this process. It acts as a central hub for your strategic plan, ensuring that every task and project is directly tied to your broader company goals. This alignment is crucial for visibility and coordination, allowing team members to see how their individual efforts contribute to the company’s success. 

By leveraging such a platform, you not only streamline workflow and enhance team productivity but also align every action with your strategic objectives—allowing teams to drive greater impact and helping your company move toward goals more effectively. 

Strategic planning FAQs

Still have questions about strategic planning? We have answers.

Why do I need a strategic plan?

A strategic plan is one of many tools you can use to plan and hit your goals. It helps map out strategic objectives and growth metrics that will help your company be successful.

When should I create a strategic plan?

You should aim to create a strategic plan every three to five years, depending on your organization’s growth speed.

Since the point of a strategic plan is to map out your long-term goals and how you’ll get there, you should create a strategic plan when you’ve met most or all of them. You should also create a strategic plan any time you’re going to make a large pivot in your organization’s mission or enter new markets. 

What is a strategic planning template?

A strategic planning template is a tool organizations can use to map out their strategic plan and track progress. Typically, a strategic planning template houses all the components needed to build out a strategic plan, including your company’s vision and mission statements, information from any competitive analyses or SWOT assessments, and relevant KPIs.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. business plan?

A business plan can help you document your strategy as you’re getting started so every team member is on the same page about your core business priorities and goals. This tool can help you document and share your strategy with key investors or stakeholders as you get your business up and running.

You should create a business plan when you’re: 

Just starting your business

Significantly restructuring your business

If your business is already established, you should create a strategic plan instead of a business plan. Even if you’re working at a relatively young company, your strategic plan can build on your business plan to help you move in the right direction. During the strategic planning process, you’ll draw from a lot of the fundamental business elements you built early on to establish your strategy for the next three to five years.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. mission and vision statements?

Your strategic plan, mission statement, and vision statements are all closely connected. In fact, during the strategic planning process, you will take inspiration from your mission and vision statements in order to build out your strategic plan.

Simply put: 

A mission statement summarizes your company’s purpose.

A vision statement broadly explains how you’ll reach your company’s purpose.

A strategic plan pulls in inspiration from your mission and vision statements and outlines what actions you’re going to take to move in the right direction. 

For example, if your company produces pet safety equipment, here’s how your mission statement, vision statement, and strategic plan might shake out:

Mission statement: “To ensure the safety of the world’s animals.” 

Vision statement: “To create pet safety and tracking products that are effortless to use.” 

Your strategic plan would outline the steps you’re going to take in the next few years to bring your company closer to your mission and vision. For example, you develop a new pet tracking smart collar or improve the microchipping experience for pet owners. 

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. company objectives?

Company objectives are broad goals. You should set these on a yearly or quarterly basis (if your organization moves quickly). These objectives give your team a clear sense of what you intend to accomplish for a set period of time. 

Your strategic plan is more forward-thinking than your company goals, and it should cover more than one year of work. Think of it this way: your company objectives will move the needle towards your overall strategy—but your strategic plan should be bigger than company objectives because it spans multiple years.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. a business case?

A business case is a document to help you pitch a significant investment or initiative for your company. When you create a business case, you’re outlining why this investment is a good idea, and how this large-scale project will positively impact the business. 

You might end up building business cases for things on your strategic plan’s roadmap—but your strategic plan should be bigger than that. This tool should encompass multiple years of your roadmap, across your entire company—not just one initiative.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. a project plan?

A strategic plan is a company-wide, multi-year plan of what you want to accomplish in the next three to five years and how you plan to accomplish that. A project plan, on the other hand, outlines how you’re going to accomplish a specific project. This project could be one of many initiatives that contribute to a specific company objective which, in turn, is one of many objectives that contribute to your strategic plan. 

What’s the difference between strategic management vs. strategic planning?

A strategic plan is a tool to define where your organization wants to go and what actions you need to take to achieve those goals. Strategic planning is the process of creating a plan in order to hit your strategic objectives.

Strategic management includes the strategic planning process, but also goes beyond it. In addition to planning how you will achieve your big-picture goals, strategic management also helps you organize your resources and figure out the best action plans for success. 

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Strategic plan essentials: monitoring & adaptation.

Basics of Monitoring, Evaluating and Deviating from the Strategic Plan

© Copyright Carter McNamara, MBA, Ph.D., Authenticity Consulting, LLC . Adapted from the Field Guide to Nonprofit Strategic Planning and Facilitation .

(The reader might best be served to first read the information on the topic of Strategic Planning . This library topic explains the basics of strategic planning, the basic elements in the process, how to prepare for planning, conduct planning, write and communicate the document, evaluating the strategic planning process.)

Sections of This Topic Include

• Great Value from Evaluating the Strategic Planning Activity and Results
• Responsibilities for Monitoring
• Key Questions While Monitoring Implementation of the Plan
• Frequently of Monitoring
• Reporting Status of Implementation

Deviating from Plan

Changing the plan, a note about celebration.

Also, consider Related Library Topics

Learn More in the Library’s Blogs Related to Evaluating the Strategic Plan

In addition to the information on this current page, see the following blogs which have posts related to Evaluating the Strategic Plan. Scan down the blog’s page to see various posts. Also, see the section “Recent Blog Posts” in the sidebar of the blog or click on “Next” near the bottom of a post in the blog.

• Library’s Business Planning Blog
• Library’s Leadership Blog
• Library’s Project Management Blog
• Library’s Strategic Planning Blog

Great Value from Monitoring and Evaluation

As stated several times throughout this library topic (and in materials linked from it), too many strategic plans end up collecting dust on a shelf. Monitoring and evaluating the planning activities and status of implementation of the plan is — for many organizations — as important as identifying strategic issues and goals. One advantage of monitoring and evaluation is to ensure that the organization is following the direction established during strategic planning.

The above advantage is obvious. Adults tend to learn best when they’re actually doing something with new information and materials and then they’re continuing to reflect on their experiences. You can learn a great deal about your organization and how to manage it by continuing to monitor the implementation of strategic plans.

Note that plans are guidelines. They aren’t rules. It’s OK to deviate from a plan. But planners should understand the reason for the deviations and update the plan to reflect the new direction.

Responsibilities for Monitoring and Evaluation

The strategic plan document should specify who is responsible for the overall implementation of the plan, and also who is responsible for achieving each goal and objective.

The document should also specify who is responsible to monitor the implementation of the plan and making decisions based on the results. For example, the board might expect the chief executive to regularly report to the full board about the status of implementation, including progress toward each of the overall strategic goals. In turn, the chief executive might expect regular status reports from middle managers regarding the status toward their achieving the goals and objectives assigned to them.

Key Questions While Monitoring and Evaluating the Status of Implementation of the Plan

1. Are goals and objectives being achieved or not? If they are, then acknowledge, reward, and communicate the progress. If not, then consider the following questions.

2. Will the goals be achieved according to the timelines specified in the plan? If not, then why?

3. Should the deadlines for completion be changed (be careful about making these changes — know why efforts are behind schedule before times are changed)?

4. Do personnel have adequate resources (money, equipment, facilities, training, etc.) to achieve the goals?

5. Are the goals and objectives still realistic?

6. Should priorities be changed to put more focus on achieving the goals?

7. Should the goals be changed (be careful about making these changes — know why efforts are not achieving the goals before changing the goals)?

8. What can be learned from our monitoring and evaluation in order to improve future planning activities and also improve future monitoring and evaluation efforts?

Frequency of Monitoring and Evaluation

The frequency of reviews depends on the nature of the organization and the environment in which it’s operating. Organizations experiencing rapid change from inside and/or outside the organization may want to monitor the implementation of the plan at least on a monthly basis.

Boards of directors should see the status of implementation at least on a quarterly basis.

Chief executives should see the status at least on a monthly basis.

Reporting Results of Monitoring and Evaluation

Always write down the status reports. In the reports, describe: 1. Answers to the above key questions while monitoring implementation.

2. Trends regarding the progress (or lack thereof) toward goals, including which goals and objectives

3. Recommendations about the status

4. Any actions needed by management

It’s OK to deviate from the plan. The plan is only a guideline, not a strict roadmap that must be followed.

Usually, the organization ends up changing its direction somewhat as it proceeds through the coming years. Changes in the plan usually result from changes in the organization’s external environment and/or client needs resulting in different organizational goals, changes in the availability of resources to carry out the original plan, etc.

The most important aspect of deviating from the plan is knowing why you’re deviating from the plan, i.e., having a solid understanding of what’s going on and why.

Be sure some mechanism is identified for changing the plan, if necessary. For example, regarding changes, write down:

1. What is causing changes to be made.

2. Why the changes should be made (the “why” is often different than “what is causing” the changes).

3. The changes to be made, including goals, objectives, responsibilities, and timelines.

Manage the various versions of the plan (including by putting a new date on each new version of the plan).

Always keep old copies of the plan.

Always discuss and write down what can be learned from recent planning activities to make the next strategic planning activity more efficient.

I’ve been involved with many strategic planning activities. Rarely, when a plan is completed, do organizations really acknowledge the success they have achieved? Instead, planners are often so focused on “progress” and problem-solving, that they’re too eager to move on to the next version of the plan.

Celebration is as important as accomplishing objectives — maybe more. Without a sense of closure, acknowledgment, and fulfillment from a job well done, the next planning cycle becomes a grind.

Return to the topic of Strategic Planning .

For the Category of Strategic Planning:

To round out your knowledge of this Library topic, you may want to review some related topics, available from the link below. Each of the related topics includes free, online resources.

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5 Strategies to Effectively Monitor and Evaluate Program Implementation

Many of our studies involve monitoring and evaluating program implementation to learn more about how programs are delivered and the degree to which they are delivered as intended. Examining program implementation helps program developers, stakeholders, and evaluators better understand how certain factors (e.g., adherence, dosage, quality of delivery, participant engagement, modifications) might influence a program’s intended outcomes.

At Magnolia Consulting, we find the following five strategies help us to effectively monitor and evaluate implementation:

• Understand the theory behind the program. We recommend reviewing the program’s logic model to ensure a clear understanding of the theory behind the program. A logic model provides a visual description of how critical program components are expected to result in short-, intermediate-, and long-term outcomes. This can help evaluators understand which program components should be implemented and monitored during the study.
• Attend program training. When feasible, we recommend evaluators attend program training(s). Attending program training(s) can help evaluators learn about different program components, better understand how each component should be delivered, and become familiar with which program resources are available to support implementation (e.g., English language supports). This experience can help evaluators understand and identify when implementation is or is not going as intended.
• Align evaluation efforts to implementation guidelines. When possible, we recommend aligning evaluation efforts to program implementation guidelines. Implementation guidelines provide detailed guidance on the expected critical program features and the extent to which each component should be implemented. Along with providing guidance to those delivering programs, they can also help evaluators determine if the program is actually implemented with fidelity to the guidelines.
• Use multiple measures. We recommend selecting or creating multiple measures to properly monitor and assess various aspects of program implementation. For example, we use a variety of measures to monitor program implementation based on the study’s goals and budget, such as implementation logs, classroom observations, surveys, interviews, and program usage data. The use of multiple measures decreases bias and allows for response validation through triangulation (i.e., cross-verification from two or more sources), which helps ensure an accurate assessment of program implementation.
• Keep track of response rates and missing data. We recommend tracking implementation data regularly to avoid missing data. For example, if a study uses weekly implementation logs, response rates and missing data should be monitored on a weekly basis to ensure that measures are completed in a timely manner. Complete data sets provide evaluators with important, and more valid, information regarding program implementation than those with missing data points.

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What Is an Implementation Plan? (Template & Example Included)

What Is Project Implementation?

Project implementation, or project execution, is the process of completing tasks to deliver a project successfully. These tasks are initially described in the project plan, a comprehensive document that covers all areas of project management. However, a secondary action plan, known as an implementation plan, should be created to help team members and project managers better execute and track the project .

What Is an Implementation Plan?

An implementation plan is a document that describes the necessary steps for the execution of a project. Implementation plans break down the project implementation process by defining the timeline, the teams and the resources that’ll be needed.

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Implementation Plan Template

Use this free Implementation Plan Template for Excel to manage your projects better.

Implementation Plan vs. Project Plan

A project plan is a comprehensive project management document that should describe everything about your project including the project schedule, project budget, scope management plan, risk management plan, stakeholder management plan and other important components. An implementation plan, on the other hand, is a simplified version of your project plan that includes only the information that’s needed by the team members who will actually participate in the project execution phase, such as their roles, responsibilities, daily tasks and deadlines.

Project management software like ProjectManager greatly simplifies the implementation planning process. Schedule and execute your implementation plan with our robust online Gantt charts. Assign work, link dependencies and track progress in real time with one chart. Plus, if your team wants to work with something other than a Gantt chart, our software offers four other project views for managing work: task lists, kanban boards, calendars and sheets. Try it for free today.

Key Steps In Project Implementation

Here are some of the key steps that you must oversee as a project manager during the project execution phase . Your project implementation plan should have the necessary components to help you achieve these steps.

1. Communicate Goals and Objectives

Once you’ve outlined the project goals and objectives, the next step is to ensure that the team understands them. For the project to succeed, there must be buy-in from the project team. A meeting is a good way to communicate this, though having project documents that they can refer to is also viable.

2. Define Team Roles and Responsibilities

The project manager will define the roles and responsibilities and communicate them to the project team . They should understand what they’re expected to do and who they can reach out to with questions about their work, all of which leads to a smooth-running project.

3. Establish the Success Criteria for Deliverables

The project deliverables need to meet quality standards, and to do this there must be a success criteria for handing off these deliverables. You want to have something in place to determine if the deliverable is what it’s supposed to be. The measurement is called a success criteria and it applies to any deliverable, whether it’s tangible or intangible.

4. Schedule Work on a Project Timeline

All projects require a schedule , which at its most basic is a start date and an end date for your project. In between those two points, you’ll have phases and tasks, which also have start and finish dates. To manage these deadlines, use a project timeline to visually map everything in one place.

Free Implementation Plan Template

Use this implementation plan template for Excel to define your strategy, scope, resource plan, timeline and more. It’s the ideal way to begin your implementation process. Download your template today.

5. Monitor Cost, Time and Performance

To make sure that you’re keeping to your schedule and budget, you need to keep a close eye on the project during the execution phase. Some of the things you should monitor are your costs, time and performance. Costs refer to your budget , time refers to your schedule and performance impacts both as well as quality. By keeping track of these metrics, you can make adjustments to stay on schedule and on budget.

6. Report to Project Stakeholders

While the project manager is monitoring the project, the stakeholders, who have a vested interest in the project, are also going to want to stay informed. To manage their expectations and show them that the project is hitting all its milestones, you’ll want to have project reports , such as project status reports. These can then be presented to the stakeholders regularly to keep them updated.

What Are the Key Components of an Implementation Plan?

There’s no standard one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to creating your implementation plan. However, we’ve created an implementation plan outline for your projects. Here are its components.

• Project goals & objectives: The project goal is the ultimate goal of your project, while the objectives are the key milestones or achievements that must be completed to reach it.
• Success criteria: The project manager must reach an agreement with stakeholders to define the project success criteria.
• Project deliverables: Project deliverables are tangible or intangible outputs from project tasks.
• Scope statement: The scope statement briefly describes your project scope, which can be simply defined as the project work to be performed.
• Resource plan: Create a simple resource plan that outlines the human resources, equipment and materials needed for your project.
• Risk analysis: Use a risk assessment tool like a SWOT analysis or risk register. There are different tools with different levels of detail for your risk analysis.
• Implementation timeline: Any implementation plan needs a clear project timeline to be executed properly. You should use an advanced tool such as a Gantt chart to create one.
• Implementation plan milestones: You need to identify key milestones of your implementation plan so that you can easily keep track of its progress.
• Team roles & responsibilities: The implementation plan won’t execute itself. You’ll need to assign roles and responsibilities to your team members.
• Implementation plan metrics: You’ll need KPIs, OKRs or any other performance metrics you can use to control the progress of your implementation plan.

How to Write an Implementation Plan

Follow these steps to create an implementation plan for your project or business. You can also consider using project management software like ProjectManager to help you with the implementation process.

1. Review Your Project Plan

Start by identifying what you’ll need for the execution of your implementation plan:

• What teams need to be involved to achieve the strategic goals?
• How long will it take to make the strategic goals happen?
• What resources should be allocated ?

By interviewing stakeholders, key partners, customers and team members, you can determine the most crucial assignments needed and prioritize them accordingly. It’s also at this stage that you should list out all the goals you’re looking to achieve to cross-embed the strategic plan with the implementation plan. Everything must tie back to that strategic plan in order for your implementation plan to work.

2. Map Out Assumptions and Risks

This acts as an extension to the research and discovery phase, but it’s also important to point out assumptions and risks in your implementation plan. This can include anything that might affect the execution of the implementation plan, such as paid time off or holidays you didn’t factor into your timeline , budget constraints, losing personnel, market instability or even tools that require repair before your implementation can commence.

3. Identify Task Owners

Each activity in your implementation plan must include a primary task owner or champion to be the owner of it. For tasks to be properly assigned, this champion will need to do the delegating. This means that they ensure that all systems are working as per usual, keep track of their teams’ productivity and more. Project planning software is practically essential for this aspect.

4. Define Project Tasks

Next, you need to finalize all the little activities to round out your plan. Start by asking yourself the following questions:

• What are the steps or milestones that make up the plan?
• What are the activities needed to complete each step?
• Who needs to be involved in the plan?
• What are the stakeholder requirements?
• What resources should be allocated?
• Are there any milestones we need to list?
• What are the risks involved based on the assumptions we notated?
• Are there any dependencies for any of the tasks?

Once all activities are outlined, all resources are listed and all stakeholders have approved (but no actions have been taken just yet), you can consider your implementation plan complete and ready for execution.

Implementation Plan Example

Implementation plans are used by companies across industries on a daily basis. Here’s a simple project implementation plan example we’ve created using ProjectManager to help you better understand how implementation plans work. Let’s imagine a software development team is creating a new app.

• Project goal: Create a new app
• Project objectives: All the project deliverables that must be achieved to reach that ultimate goal.
• Success criteria: The development team needs to communicate with the project stakeholders and agree upon success criteria.
• Scope statement: Here’s where the development team will document all the work needed to develop the app. That work is broken down into tasks, which are known as user stories in product and software development. Here, the team must also note all the exceptions, which means everything that won’t be done.
• Resource plan: In this case, the resources are all the professionals involved in the software development process, as well as any equipment needed by the team.
• Risk analysis: Using a risk register, the product manager can list all the potential risks that might affect the app development process.
• Timeline, milestones and metrics: Here’s an image of an implementation plan timeline we created using ProjectManager’s Gantt chart view. The diamond symbols represent the implementation plan milestones.
• Team roles & responsibilities: Similarly, we used a Gantt chart to assign implementation plan tasks to team members according to their roles and responsibilities.

Benefits of an Implementation Plan for the Project Implementation Process

The implementation plan plays a large role in the success of your overall strategic plan. But more than that, communicating both your strategic plan and the implementation of it therein to your team members helps them feel as if they have a sense of ownership within the company’s long-term direction.

Increased Cooperation

An implementation plan that’s well communicated also helps to increase cooperation across all teams through all the steps of the implementation process. It’s easy to work in a silo—you know exactly what your daily process is and how to execute it. But reaching across the aisle and making sure your team is aligned on the project goals that you’re also trying to meet? That’s another story entirely. With an implementation plan in place, it helps to bridge the divide just a little easier.

Additionally, with an implementation plan that’s thoroughly researched and well-defined, you can ensure buy-in from stakeholders and key partners involved in the project. And no matter which milestone you’re at, you can continue to get that buy-in time and time again with proper documentation.

At the end of the day, the biggest benefit of an implementation plan is that it makes it that much easier for the company to meet its long-term goals. When everyone across all teams knows exactly what you want to accomplish and how to do it, it’s easy to make it happen.

Implementation Plan FAQ

There’s more to know about implementation plans. It’s a big subject and we’ve tried to be thorough as possible, but if you have any further questions, hopefully we’ve answered them below.

What Is the Difference Between an Action Plan and an Implementation Plan?

The main difference between an action plan and an implementation plan is that an action plan focuses exclusively on describing work packages and tasks, while the implementation plan is more holistic and addresses other variables that affect the implementation process such as risks, resources and team roles & responsibilities.

What Is an Implementation Plan in Business?

A business implementation plan is the set of steps that a company follows to execute its strategic plan and achieve all the business goals that are described there.

What Is an Implementation Plan in Project Management?

Implementation plans have many uses in project management. They’re a planning tool that allows project managers to control smaller projects within their project plan. For example, they might need an implementation plan to execute risk mitigation actions, change requests or produce specific deliverables.

How to Make an Implementation Plan With ProjectManager

Creating and managing an implementation plan is a huge responsibility and one that requires diligence, patience and great organizational skills.

When it comes to a project implementation plan, there are many ways to make one that’s best suited for your team. With ProjectManager , you get access to both agile and waterfall planning so you can plan in sprints for large or small projects, track issues and collaborate easily. Try kanban boards for managing backlogs or for making workflows in departments.

Switching up the activities after a milestone meeting with stakeholders? You can easily update your implementation plan with our software features. Add new tasks, set due dates, and track how far along your team is on their current activities.

Implementation plans are the backbone of an organization’s strategic overall plan. With ProjectManager, give your organization the project management software they need to gain insight into all resources needed, view activities on their lists and collaborate with ease. Sign up for our free 30-day trial today.

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How-To-Guide

How to Develop a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan

Home > How to Guides > How to Develop a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan

Introduction

Click here to access this Guide in Arabic

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What is a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan?

A monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plan is a document that helps to track and assess the results of the interventions throughout the life of a program. It is a living document that should be referred to and updated on a regular basis. While the specifics of each program’s M&E plan will look different, they should all follow the same basic structure and include the same key elements.

An M&E plan will include some documents that may have been created during the program planning process, and some that will need to be created new. For example, elements such as the logic model /logical framework, theory of change, and monitoring indicators may have already been developed with input from key stakeholders and/or the program donor. The M&E plan takes those documents and develops a further plan for their implementation.

Why develop a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan?

It is important to develop an M&E plan before beginning any monitoring activities so that there is a clear plan for what questions about the program need to be answered. It will help program staff decide how they are going to collect data to track indicators , how monitoring data will be analyzed, and how the results of data collection will be disseminated both to the donor and internally among staff members for program improvement. Remember, M&E data alone is not useful until someone puts it to use! An M&E plan will help make sure data is being used efficiently to make programs as effective as possible and to be able to report on results at the end of the program.

Who should develop a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan?

An M&E plan should be developed by the research team or staff with research experience, with inputs from program staff involved in designing and implementing the program.

When should a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan be developed?

An M&E plan should be developed at the beginning of the program when the interventions are being designed. This will ensure there is a system in place to monitor the program and evaluate success.

Who is this guide for?

This guide is designed primarily for program managers or personnel who are not trained researchers themselves but who need to understand the rationale and process of conducting research. This guide can help managers to support the need for research and ensure that research staff have adequate resources to conduct the research that is needed to be certain that the program is evidence based and that results can be tracked over time and measured at the end of the program.

Learning Objectives

After completing the steps for developing an M&E plan, the team will:

• Identify the elements and steps of an M&E plan
• Explain how to create an M&E plan for an upcoming program
• Describe how to advocate for the creation and use of M&E plans for a program/organization

Estimated Time Needed

Developing an M&E plan can take up to a week, depending on the size of the team available to develop the plan, and whether a logic model and theory of change have already been designed.

Prerequisites

How to Develop a Logic Model

Step 1: Identify Program Goals and Objectives

The first step to creating an M&E plan is to identify the program goals and objectives. If the program already has a logic model or theory of change, then the program goals are most likely already defined. However, if not, the M&E plan is a great place to start. Identify the program goals and objectives.

Defining program goals starts with answering three questions:

• What problem is the program trying to solve?
• What steps are being taken to solve that problem?
• How will program staff know when the program has been successful in solving the problem?

​Answering these questions will help identify what the program is expected to do, and how staff will know whether or not it worked. For example, if the program is starting a condom distribution program for adolescents, the answers might look like this:

From these answers, it can be seen that the overall program goal is to reduce the rates of unintended pregnancy and STI transmission in the community.

It is also necessary to develop intermediate outputs and objectives for the program to help track successful steps on the way to the overall program goal. More information about identifying these objectives can be found in the logic model guide .

Step 2: Define Indicators

Once the program’s goals and objectives are defined, it is time to define indicators for tracking progress towards achieving those goals. Program indicators should be a mix of those that measure process, or what is being done in the program, and those that measure outcomes.

Process indicators track the progress of the program. They help to answer the question, “Are activities being implemented as planned?” Some examples of process indicators are:

• Number of trainings held with health providers
• Number of outreach activities conducted at youth-friendly locations
• Number of condoms distributed at youth-friendly locations
• Percent of youth reached with condom use messages through the media

Outcome indicators track how successful program activities have been at achieving program objectives. They help to answer the question, “Have program activities made a difference?” Some examples of outcome indicators are:

• Percent of youth using condoms during first intercourse
• Number and percent of trained health providers offering family planning services to youth
• Number and percent of new STI infections among youth.

These are just a few examples of indicators that can be created to track a program’s success. More information about creating indicators can be found in the How to Develop Indicators guide .

Step 3: Define Data Collection Methods and TImeline

After creating monitoring indicators, it is time to decide on methods for gathering data and how often various data will be recorded to track indicators. This should be a conversation between program staff, stakeholders, and donors. These methods will have important implications for what data collection methods will be used and how the results will be reported.

The source of monitoring data depends largely on what each indicator is trying to measure. The program will likely need multiple data sources to answer all of the programming questions. Below is a table that represents some examples of what data can be collected and how.

Once it is determined how data will be collected, it is also necessary to decide how often it will be collected. This will be affected by donor requirements, available resources, and the timeline of the intervention. Some data will be continuously gathered by the program (such as the number of trainings), but these will be recorded every six months or once a year, depending on the M&E plan. Other types of data depend on outside sources, such as clinic and DHS data.

After all of these questions have been answered, a table like the one below can be made to include in the M&E plan. This table can be printed out and all staff working on the program can refer to it so that everyone knows what data is needed and when.

Step 4: Identify M&E Roles and Responsibilities

The next element of the M&E plan is a section on roles and responsibilities. It is important to decide from the early planning stages who is responsible for collecting the data for each indicator. This will probably be a mix of M&E staff, research staff, and program staff. Everyone will need to work together to get data collected accurately and in a timely fashion.

Data management roles should be decided with input from all team members so everyone is on the same page and knows which indicators they are assigned. This way when it is time for reporting there are no surprises.

An easy way to put this into the M&E plan is to expand the indicators table with additional columns for who is responsible for each indicator, as shown below.

Step 5: Create an Analysis Plan and Reporting Templates

Once all of the data have been collected, someone will need to compile and analyze it to fill in a results table for internal review and external reporting. This is likely to be an in-house M&E manager or research assistant for the program.

The M&E plan should include a section with details about what data will be analyzed and how the results will be presented. Do research staff need to perform any statistical tests to get the needed answers? If so, what tests are they and what data will be used in them? What software program will be used to analyze data and make reporting tables? Excel? SPSS? These are important considerations.

Another good thing to include in the plan is a blank table for indicator reporting. These tables should outline the indicators, data, and time period of reporting. They can also include things like the indicator target, and how far the program has progressed towards that target. An example of a reporting table is below.

Step 6: Plan for Dissemination and Donor Reporting

The last element of the M&E plan describes how and to whom data will be disseminated. Data for data’s sake should not be the ultimate goal of M&E efforts. Data should always be collected for particular purposes.

Consider the following:

• How will M&E data be used to inform staff and stakeholders about the success and progress of the program?
• How will it be used to help staff make modifications and course corrections, as necessary?
• How will the data be used to move the field forward and make program practices more effective?

The M&E plan should include plans for internal dissemination among the program team, as well as wider dissemination among stakeholders and donors. For example, a program team may want to review data on a monthly basis to make programmatic decisions and develop future workplans, while meetings with the donor to review data and program progress might occur quarterly or annually. Dissemination of printed or digital materials might occur at more frequent intervals. These options should be discussed with stakeholders and your team to determine reasonable expectations for data review and to develop plans for dissemination early in the program. If these plans are in place from the beginning and become routine for the project, meetings and other kinds of periodic review have a much better chance of being productive ones that everyone looks forward to.

After following these 6 steps, the outline of the M&E plan should look something like this:

• ​Program goals and objectives
• Logic model/ Logical Framework/Theory of change
• Table with data sources, collection timing, and staff member responsible
• Description of each staff member’s role in M&E data collection, analysis, and/or reporting
• Analysis plan
• Reporting template table
• Description of how and when M&E data will be disseminated internally and externally

M&E Planning: Template for Indicator Reporting

M&E Plan Indicators Table Template

M&E Plan: Data Sources Table Example

Tips & Recommendations

• It is a good idea to try to avoid over-promising what data can be collected. It is better to collect fewer data well than a lot of data poorly. It is important for program staff to take a good look at the staff time and resource costs of data collection to see what is reasonable.

Glossary & Concepts

• Process indicators track how the implementation of the program is progressing. They help to answer the question, “Are activities being implemented as planned?”
• Outcome indicators track how successful program activities have been at achieving program goals. They help to answer the question, “Have program activities made a difference?”

Resources and References

Evaluation Toolbox. Step by Step Guide to Create your M&E Plan. Retrieved from: http://evaluationtoolbox.net.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=23:create-m-and-e-plan&catid=8:planning-your-evaluation&Itemid=44

infoDev. Developing a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan for ICT for Education. Retrieved from: https://www.infodev.org/infodev-files/resource/InfodevDocuments_287.pdf

FHI360. Developing a Monitoring and Evaluation Work Plan. Retrieved from: http://www.fhi360.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/Monitoring%20HIV-AIDS%20Programs%20(Facilitator)%20-%20Module%203.pdf

Banner Photo: © 2012 Akintunde Akinleye/NURHI, Courtesy of Photoshare

ABOUT HOW TO GUIDES

SBC How-to Guides are short guides that provide step-by-step instructions on how to perform core social and behavior change tasks. From formative research through monitoring and evaluation, these guides cover each step of the SBC process, offer useful hints, and include important resources and references.

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How to Use Key Performance Indicators for Strategy Implementation

Key performance indicators (KPIs) have become commonplace in large and medium-sized companies worldwide. However, despite the widespread use of KPIs, many companies still have not managed to get a high benefit from KPIs. Frequently, KPIs are just seen as a tool for measuring performance on an operational level. This approach misses the benefits KPIs can offer for strategic planning and strategy implementation.

The role of key performance indicators in strategic planning

Key performance indicators can be an essential success factor for strategy implementation. In the strategic planning process, KPIs can be directly linked to the achievement of strategic objectives (see figure).

A company’s strategy is the way in which it endeavors to realize its vision in the mid- to long-term. In order to reach the envisioned state, the strategy needs to be translated into action via strategic objectives. They can be further broken down into operational objectives. The achievement of both strategic and operational objectives needs to be regularly monitored in order to see, if the corporate strategy is on track.

This is where KPIs come in. They provide evidence on the degree to which strategic and operational objectives have been achieved. In this way, KPIs serve as an early-warning system for strategic and operational problems. If deviation between the measured performance and the targeted performance is at a significant level, it is time to reconsider, analyze the causes, and take action.

While this may sound straightforward, implementing KPIs in practice entails a number of challenges, and quite often, KPIs are not used in the most effective way.

Five common mistakes in using KPIs

1. kpis are not aligned with strategic objectives.

The crucial word in ‘key performance indicators’ is ‘key’. You can collect data for numerous performance indicators. However, in order to get the data that you need for making the right strategic decisions, you first need to decide, which performance indicators are key.

The criterion for branding a performance indicator as key is, how much it is aligned with a strategic objective. Let us assume you are a start-up company with the strategic objective of increasing the number of customers within the next year to 1,000. Then, a KPI called ‘Number of newly acquired customers’ would be aligned with this strategic objective. A KPI named ‘Level of financial reserves’ would not be aligned with this objective. It might even be opposed to the objective, as achieving it may require investments in marketing campaigns that could undermine the financial reserve.

2. Selection of KPIs is limited to those easily measurable

It is very tempting to limit yourself to KPIs that are easy to measure, like, for example, capital expenditure. However, depending on your strategic objectives, this may be insufficient. As Albert Einstein once said: “Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.”

If you are in the service business, ‘Customer satisfaction’ is very likely an important KPI. However, it is not really countable like capital expenditure. Nevertheless, it is possible to get an indication of the level of customer satisfaction, for example via a customer satisfaction survey.

It gets even more difficult, if you have a strategic objective of sustaining an innovation-friendly corporate culture. Although this is basically impossible to measure directly, you may find indicators for it, like, e.g., the number of new ideas for product features submitted by employees in a month.

3. Selection of KPIs gives too much weight to the past

There is a distinction between backward-oriented KPIs and forward-oriented KPIs. Both are important. However, if you have only backward-oriented KPIs, you create a strategic problem for your company. It is like only looking in the rear-view mirror while you are driving. Backward-looking KPIs are those that are focused on past results; sometimes they are also called key results indicators (KRIs). This could be, for example, turnover. It is important to know the turnover for the last quarter, but you have no chance of changing the result. A forward-looking KPI has influence on a future result and offers, thus, the opportunity to influence it through your decisions. This could be, for example, ‘Customer orientation’, which may help drive sales and turnover.

4. KPIs are used as instruments for controlling employees

The risk of some KPIs is that they can be used for controlling and even punishing employees. Take, for example, a KPI like ‘Number of sales per sales representative’. Although it may be interesting to know the data down to an individual sales rep level, you may provoke behavior that is counterproductive. If employees notice that their honestly produced data will be used against them, e.g., for reducing their bonus, it may stimulate counterproductive behavior, e.g. sales reps sell at loss-making discounts, in order to increase their number of sales.

5. No distinction between strategic and operational KPIs

There is a difference between strategic and operational KPIs, which is often neglected. Strategic KPIs are relevant for longer-term performance. Thus, gathering data for them is not as frequently required as for operational KPIs. For some operational KPIs, especially in production processes, data need to be captured and monitored almost in real-time, while for strategic KPIs a monthly or quarterly data gathering and monitoring frequency would be sufficient.

Three recommendations for using KPIs

Based on the insights above, I would like to give three recommendations for getting the best out of KPIs.

1. Closely align strategic KPIs with strategic objectives.

Keep strategic KPIs relevant to your strategy implementation and your regular strategy review, by making sure, they are relevant and closely linked to a specific strategic objective.

2. Integrate KPIs in a strategic management framework.

You can increase the effectiveness of KPIs by integrating them in a strategic management framework. One of the most popular frameworks is Balanced Scorecard. Despite some challenges in its practical implementation, I would still recommend to use it.

3. Apply stringent criteria for selecting your KPIs.

KPIs are like torchlights used to shine into different corners of your business. Due to limited resources, you cannot shine into every corner. Thus, you should make a stringent selection of KPIs based on criteria like relevance to your strategic objectives, balance between forward-looking and backward-looking KPIs, and comprehensibility of KPIs.

KPIs can make the difference between successful strategy implementation and failure to detect and adapt to strategic challenges early enough. The key is to implement strategic and operational KPIs in the right way, which means that they should be aligned with the corporate strategy and relevant to the purpose.

5 Ways To Monitor Your Business Performance

Monitoring and improving business performance is critical for success in today’s competitive landscape. It requires a keen understanding of key performance indicators, strategic planning, and the drive to implement necessary changes effectively. In the journey to enhance business performance, the right guidance can make all the difference. This is where the role of an  accountability coach  becomes invaluable, offering personalized strategies to keep you focused and on track. With these elements in mind, let’s explore five effective ways to monitor and boost your business’s performance.

Live Monitoring and Testing

Performance monitoring companies like Digivante are digital platforms that can help to assess your business performance through their selection of different solutions. These are perfect for those who want to highlight their business’s performance through the development and success of their website and website conversions in order to boost their sales. At digivante.com , they combine a range of different performance monitoring techniques. These include testing issues within your website prior to its launch. Additionally, the software can also run performance and optimization testing which can help to find the aspects of your website making it underperform and live monitoring, which can help you to track daily coverage of your website’s performance and conversions. 

One of the best ways to find out how your business is performing is to get direct feedback from the individuals who know best; your customers. By asking for reviews, your customers will be able to give you an idea of their first-hand experience of your website and business, which can help you to determine your weakest factors and the aspects which need to change.  Not only this, but hearing directly from customers what they would like changed can help you to improve your business in ways that you know will appeal to your clientele. Additionally, employing a fake follower checker can help ensure that the reviews and feedback you receive are from genuine customers, providing valuable insights into your business’s performance. You can get more reviews by creating a review page on your website, providing incentives for reviews, and asking for reviews from past clients in follow-up emails.

Analytics Tools

Analytics tools are digital software applications that can help you to automate your business performance tracking. Jared Bauman, co-founder of San Diego SEO Agency 201 Creative , shares that he constantly analyzes metrics from tools like GA4, Ahrefs, and numerous custom dashboards he’s built to make informed, data-based decisions for both his company and clients that hire them for digital marketing services.   Analytics software is often focused on a certain aspect of your business, such as tracking cash flow or finance, and can be used to gather information from different sources, which you can then use to analyse your performance. Many companies will also be able to predict the success of your business in the future. Analytics tools can also include devices such as spreadsheets, which often have statistical functions that can give you an insight into the performance of your business. 

Meetings and Appraisals

If you are looking to monitor employee performance within your overall plan, annual successful meetings and appraisals are an excellent way to do this, as they allow you to have face-to-face interaction with your employees that can help you to discuss any issues and set targets for their work. You can also use quantitative analysis to measure employee performance, such as determining sales per employee, and profit per employee, for example.

Market Research

You can monitor your performance by comparing your sales to that of competitors, as this allows you to consider your place in the market. Methods to do this include conducting market research , which will allow you to determine who their target audience is, how they appeal to their target audience, and the type of offers that they make to draw in their audience. This will allow you to discover any opportunities and threats that you have been missing, as well as to work out your own strengths.

With this research, you can start improving your business in the areas that are lacking. For example, if you realize from your tracking that your business website doesn’t actually appeal to your target audience, you can then start making changes based on what you have learned does appeal to them. You can do this on your own or with the help of a source like Creative Tweed to push you in the right direction, depending on what you need.

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