1 Strategic Planning

2 Agenda Definition and Rationale for a Personal Operating System (POS) Definition of the Elements in a POS Using Your POS/Managing Yourself and Others Anticipated Challenges Related to Your POS

3 Personal Operating System (POS) A POS will help you: Crystallize strategic plan based on “theory of change” Articulate actions to help you make progress against your strategic plan Align monthly, weekly, and daily project plans to strategic plan Manage team and resources towards strategic outcomes

4 Why Develop A POS? Day to day demands can be overwhelming POS can lead to 25% more efficiency Links “to do” list with big strategic priorities and quarterly benchmarks Answers the questions: How do I organize myself to ensure that what I am doing minute-to-minute, week-to-week, month-to-month, and year-to-year improves the school or program that I run to effect higher student achievement?

5 Agenda Definition and Rationale for a Personal Operating System (POS) Definition of the Elements in a POS Using Your POS/Managing Yourself and Others Anticipated Challenges Related to Your POS

6 Strategic priority areas; A vision for priority areas; Focus areas that will enable progress in strategic priority areas; Goals in each focus area; Action steps to meet those goals; and Measures of success for the outcomes you will attain. Strategic plan should be aligned with primary tool for measuring progress Requires you and/or your team to articulate: STRATEGIC PLAN

What does success look like? What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year? Where am I going to focus my energy? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? STRATEGIC PLAN What do we want to strive for? How will I accomplish my objectives? 7

STRATEGIC PRIORITY AREAS Answers the questions: What are my areas of responsibility? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? What are the big areas I need to focus my attention on in order to improve my organization’s ability to impact student achievement? Large areas for which you are responsible If you manage them well - will impact student achievement Requires you to think about your theory of change: what your team needs to focus on in order to improve student achievement 8 Aka, “Big Hairy Audacious Goals”, Areas of Work

APPENDIX B.1 Sample Strategic Plan for Non-profit CEO Strategic Priority Areas Strategic Priority Area #1 – Growth and Strategic Planning Strategic Priority Area #2 – Corps and Alumni Community Strategic Priority Area #3 – Teacher Performance Strategic Priority Area #4 – Fundraising Strategic Priority Area #5 – Policy and Political Visibility Strategic Priority Area #6 – Board Building 9

What does success look like? What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year? Where am I going to focus my energy? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? STRATEGIC PLAN What do we want to strive for? How will I accomplish my objectives? 10

VISION STATEMENT Answers the questions: What do my team members and I want to be able to say about each of my priority areas? What is inspiring to us? What do we want to strive for? A pithy sentence, phrase, or paragraph that describes where you want to be in each strategic priority area Aka, Where You Want To Be 11

APPENDIX B.1 Sample Strategic Plan for Non-profit CEO Strategic Priorities Areas and Vision Strategic Priority Area #1 – Growth and Strategic Planning INSERT VISION STATEMENT HERE Strategic Priority Area #2 – Corps and Alumni Community INSERT VISION STATEMENT HERE Strategic Priority Area #3 – Teacher Performance INSERT VISION STATEMENT HERE Strategic Priority Area #4 – Fundraising INSERT VISION STATEMENT HERE Strategic Priority Area #5 – Policy and Political Visibility INSERT VISION STATEMENT HERE Strategic Priority Area #6 – Board Building Change the World’s board will transform from a large, disorganized, “advisory” group to a lean, results-oriented group that sets and attains specific fundraising, growth, and visibility goals. 12

What does success look like? What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year? Where am I going to focus my energy? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? STRATEGIC PLAN What do we want to strive for? How will I accomplish my objectives? 13

FOCUS AREAS Answers the questions: Within my strategic priority areas, where am I going to focus my energy? How are we going to divide up the strategic priority areas given limited time, money, and talent? Where can I get the outcomes by spending limited and precious resources? Next layer of detail below strategic priority areas Requires refined thinking about your theory of change Must delve deeper in to how you will improve your strategic priority areas 14 Aka, Priorities, Sub-goals

APPENDIX B.2 Sample Strategic Plan for Non-profit CEO Focus Areas by Strategic Priority Area By July: Strategic Priority Area #1 – Growth and Strategic Planning (Focus Areas: 1.1 XXX; 1.2 XXX; 1.3 XXX; 1.4 XXX; 1.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #2 – Corps and Alumni Community (Focus Areas: 2.1 XXX; 2.2 XXX; 2.3 XXX; 2.4 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #3 – Teacher Performance (Focus Areas: 3.1 XXX; 3.2 XXX; 3.3 XXX; 3.4 XXX; 3.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #4 – Fundraising (Focus Areas: 4.1 XXX; 4.2 XXX; 4.3 XXX; 4.4 XXX; 4.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #5 – Policy and Political Visibility (Focus Areas: 5.1 XXX; 5.2 XXX; 5.3 XXX; 5.4 XXX; 5.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #6 – Board Building (Focus Areas: 6.1 Board Chair; 6.2 Purpose of Board and Individual Membership Requirements; 6.3 Performance Management; 6.4 Relationship with Staff) 15

What does success look like? What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year? Where am I going to focus my energy? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? STRATEGIC PLAN What do we want to strive for? How will I accomplish my objectives? 16

GOALS Answers the questions: What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year and why? Will it help me progress towards my overarching goals, my vision statements, and my strategic priority areas? Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and tangible outcomes you plan to attain Work to drive towards your strategic priority areas and vision statements 17 Aka, S.M.A.R.T. goals

18 SPECIFIC: A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal MEASURABLE: Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set ATTAINABLE: When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true REALISTIC: To be realistic, a goal must represent an goal toward which you are both willing and able to work TIMELY: An goal should be grounded within a time frame (“T” can also be tangible – A tangible goal is one you can experience with one of the senses) S.M.A.R.T. GOALS

APPENDIX B.2 Sample Strategic Plan for Non-profit CEO S.M.A.R.T. Goals by Focus Area By July: Strategic Priority Area #1 – Growth and Strategic Planning (Focus Areas: 1.1 XXX; 1.2 XXX; 1.3 XXX; 1.4 XXX; 1.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #2 – Corps and Alumni Community (Focus Areas: 12.1 XXX; 2.2 XXX; 2.3 XXX; 2.4 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #3 – Teacher Performance (Focus Areas: 3.1 XXX; 3.2 XXX; 3.3 XXX; 3.4 XXX; 3.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #4 – Fundraising (Focus Areas: 4.1 XXX; 4.2 XXX; 4.3 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #5 – Policy and Political Visibility (Focus Areas: 5.1 XXX; 5.2 XXX; 5.3 XXX; 5.4 XXX; 5.5 XXX) Strategic Priority Area #6 – Board Building (Focus Areas: 6.1 Board Chair; 6.2 Purpose of Board and Individual Membership Requirements; 6.3 Performance Management; 6.4 Relationship with Staff) New board chair will be selected according to strategic criteria from a diverse and robust pool Chair will set and attain benchmarks for transforming membership Chair will establish protocols for communicating with key staff. 19

What does success look like? What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year? Where am I going to focus my energy? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? STRATEGIC PLAN What do we want to strive for? How will I accomplish my objectives? 20

KEY ACTION STEPS Answers the questions: How will I accomplish my objectives? What are the specific projects I need to complete to move forward? The tasks you will complete to achieve the objectives Aka, Action Plan 21

APPENDIX B.3 Sample Strategic Plan for Non-profit CEO Key Action Steps by Strategic Priority Area and Goal Strategic Priority AreaFocus AreaGoalKey Action Steps 6. Board Building6.1 Board chair6.1.1 New board chair will be selected according to strategic criteria from a diverse and robust pool Meet with 5 “successful” board chairs to determine qualities of effective chair Consider key research and articles Define specific qualities of an effective board chair Convene nomination committee Populate database with options and initial assessment of match with qualities Chair will set and attain benchmarks for transforming membership Chair will establish protocols for communicating with key staff. 22

What does success look like? What am I going to accomplish by the end of the year? Where am I going to focus my energy? What are the categories of work for which I am responsible? STRATEGIC PLAN What do we want to strive for? How will I accomplish my objectives? 23

MEASURES OF SUCCESS Answers the questions: What does success look like? Feel like? Sound like? What are people saying? Doing? Feeling? How will I know when I am there? What product or outcome is evident as an artifact of our progress? When the work is done, what will be true? The deliverable  the outcome At the end, it demonstrates you have accomplished goals, and progressed toward vision and strategic priority areas 24 Aka, Outputs, Outcomes

APPENDIX B.4 Sample Strategic Plan for Non-profit CEO Measures of Success and Tools by Focus Areas Strategic Priority Area Focus Area GoalKey Action StepsMeasures of SuccessTools for Development 6. Board Building 6.1 Board chair New board chair will be selected according to strategic criteria from a diverse and robust pool Meet with 5 “successful” board chairs to determine qualities of effective chair. Nominating committee reports they are clear on criteria for board selection. Board chair reports they are clear on expectations for tenure and transformation Board membership and purpose is clear and results- oriented. Anonymous survey Rubric for chair selection Consider key research and articles Define specific qualities of an effective board chair Convene nomination committee Populate database with options and initial assessment of match with qualities Chair will set and attain benchmarks for transforming membership Chair will establish protocols for communicating with key staff. 25

26 Agenda Definition and Rationale for a Personal Operating System (POS) Definition of the Elements in a POS Using Your POS/Managing Yourself and Others Anticipated Challenges Related to Your POS

27 Quarterly benchmarks Scope and sequence of action steps Effective backwards mapping and planning is essential Help you balance resources Quarterly Plans Q1- Get nominations for new board chair, and write initial selection criteria.

28 One-on-one meetings to measure overall progress Conversations should be ongoing, but also schedule time for step-backs in addition to discussing the day-to-day grind Quarterly Plans May take the following general forms: Two places I feel I am on track to meet my goals are… Two places I am worried I may not meet my goals are… Two ways you can better support my ability to reach these goals are… Quarterly step-back meetings to discuss progress towards goals

APPENDIX C QUARTERLY ACTION PLAN Priorities and Benchmarks In collaboration with the appropriate staff members: Q1: July – SeptemberQ2: October - December Q3: January – MarchQ4: April - June 29

30 Ask the same questions every week Look back a week – What requires follow up? What didn’t get completed and should be moved to this week? Look forward two weeks – What do I need to do to prepare? Review and revise quarterly benchmarks – What has come up that should be added as a benchmark? Look back at goals and objectives – What have you done to move toward your outcomes? Anticipate interacting with others – With whom do you need to coordinate/discuss this week to ensure movement? Weekly (and Daily) Plans

31 Scheduling is sometimes critical to success Schedule periods of time on your calendar for general and/or specific writing or phone calls Ritualize when and how when you write weekly plans and stick to it Prioritizing is ALWAYS critical to success It’s as critical to take things off of your weekly action plans as it is to put them on; the step of prioritizing is crucial Make sure to match weekly tasks with external meetings and balance priorities Weekly (and Daily) Plans

APPENDIX D WEEKLY ACTION PLAN Week of November XX, 2008 Strategic Priority AreasLast Week DoneThis Week DeliverableQuestions/Comments/Notes Strategic Priority Area # 1 Strategic Priority Area # 2 Strategic Priority Area # 3 Strategic Priority Area # 4 Strategic Priority Area # 5 32

33 Agenda Definition and Rationale for a Personal Operating System (POS) Definitions and the Elements in a POS Using Your POS/Managing Yourself and Others Anticipated Challenges Related to Your POS

Anticipated Challenges Do not create a POS that makes you suffer from analysis paralysis. Priorities can and should change/refine. People are much more important than paper and systems. There is real danger in becoming over-systematized. Collective wisdom is always better than individual. Think very hard about how your brain works. Tailor your POS to your working style 34