1. Strategy + Planning to Ensure Your Chorus Will Thrive
Welcome!
Christie Hammes
Director, Strategic Development
MAP for Nonprofits
A session for Chorus America’s Annual Conference
partners = congregations, businesses, schools, residents, community groups, etc.
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

2. What’s possible when you do strategic planning that might not occur if you don’t?
Ch capture their answers on one FLIP marked “strategy” or “strategic thinking” and one marked “planning”
Ch think anchors (to allow stability during chaos) and sails (to leverage the wind, adapt in nimble ways)
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

3. Focus for this Session Possibilities and benefits of S + P
The why, what, when, how, and who of strategy creation
An approach to use or adapt
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

4. The Times We’re in… Economic realities driving unpredictable change
Doing more with less (money and time)
Traditional funding sources dwindling
Financial viability of individual organizations and institutions increasingly fragile
We’ll start with strategy – with the importance of strategic thinking and acting
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

5. The Nonprofit Context: What Defines Success?
For-profit
Nonprofit
Accountability
Bottom Line
Illustrates the dual bottom line
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

6. Clarity about Dual Bottom-Line

7. Strategic Alignment EXTERNAL FORCES Opportunities Threats MISSION &
ORG. VIABILITY
($)
EXTERNAL FORCES
Opportunities
Threats
INTERNAL FORCES
Strengths
Weaknesses

8. Strategic Planning… Simple!
Determining:
Who we are.
What we intend to accomplish.
How we will accomplish it.
Future
Ok, we already know that just because we decide on and write down these things, they won’t necessarily happen.
So let’s look at some key components to both the process and the product that tend to lead to success in BOTH people’s ability to think and act strategically AND arrive at shared agreement on a roadmap
How
Present
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

9. Process and Product Strategic process Strategic planning product
- Engages stakeholders; builds leaders
- Clarifies bottom line
- Generates innovation
- Drives relevance
Strategic planning product
- Shared vision and roadmap
- Umbrella for all other plans

10. Typical Components
Vision = The ideal future if ArtsRUs could fulfill its utmost wish
Mission = The business we are in; “What good do we do for whom?”
Values = The beliefs or guiding principles we hold deeply as an organization
Goals = The what of strategic change during the next 3 years
Benchmarks = Evidence at end of 3 years that we’ve successfully accomplished goal
Strategies = The how of the goals

11. Who’s Involved? Strategic Planning Team (SPT)
Drive, champion process; lion’s share of work
Communicate w/larger group
Board and key staff (or volunteers)
Do pre-work and participate in retreats
Prepare to implement as appropriate
Other stakeholders
Participate in scan; possibly retreat

12. Various Traditional Approaches
Critical Issues Approach
Focus on priority issues; use answers to clarify vision
Scenario Approach
Choose from several “big pictures;” then build steps
Goals Approach
Set major goals; (staff) build operating plans for each
Alignment Approach
Get programs & resources in sync w/mission

13. Some Less Conventional Approaches
Strategic Thinking and Acting (La Piana, etc.)
Blue Ocean Strategy
Jim Collins’ Good to Great and the Social Sectors
Christie do Today’s Kickoff, Brown Bag, Outcomes
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

14. The Good to Great Approach: Characteristics of Great Organizations
“Hedgehog Concept”
What are you deeply passionate about?
What can you be best at in meeting community’s needs?
What drives your resource engine?

15. What are you deeply passionate about? What are you best at in meeting
The Good to Great Approach: Three Circles of Hedgehog Concept
What are you deeply passionate about?
What are you best at in meeting
community needs?
What drives
your resource
engine?

16. Hedgehog Concept in Action
Page 4 in Guide
Ask: “Fiduciary” mean? “Of, relating to, or involving confidence or trust.”
Tell: See booklet in packet: “Fiduciary Resp’s of Dir’s of Charitable Org’s”
Under Minn. law, directors of a nonprofit corp are responsible for the management of the business and affairs of the corp.
Does not mean that directors are required to manage the day-to-day activities of a corporation, or to act in the role of Exec Dir or CEO.
Does mean directors must appoint officers and assign responsibilities to them so that the officers can effectively carry out the daily tasks of running the corporation.
Also means that directors must supervise and direct the officers and govern the charity's efforts in carrying out its mission.
MN law imposes on directors fiduciary responsibilities of care, loyalty, obedience.
Ask: “Care” mean? (Best interest of organization)
Ask: “Loyalty” mean? (Allegiance to org mission above self interest)
To avoid conflict: 1) Advise board of conflict; 2) Remove from decision making; 3) Ensure minutes reflect these two actions
Ask: “Obedience” mean? (Follow org’s governing documents)
E.g., Bylaws, state & federal statutes, IRS requirements
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

17. A “Generic” Process-- 2 weeks to 6 months
Plan to plan
Clarify parameters
Conduct environmental scan
Envision the future
Identify strategic issues
Set Goals to address issues
Formulate strategies, action steps
Implement

18. Key Ingredients THINK BIG Strive for divergent views
Strive for consensus
The more involvement up front the
greater likelihood of implementation.

19. A Culture of Learning Implementation Tip…
Meeting agendas reflect priorities
Foster robust, meaningful discussion
Learning mentality – quick evaluation, for example…
1. The issues we covered today were important to our
mission and strategic direction.
Disagree Agree
Comments: _______
2. What was the most valuable contribution we made to the organization's welfare today? ____________
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

20. Your Keys to Success?
Kristin do Inside Your Time Slot, Inside Your Peer’s Time Slot
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010

21. Wrap Up Your questions and wisdom Resources:
See Free Management Library at
Or contact me:
Readiness to plan?
Up and running with basic infrastructure
Annual goals
Not in crisis
Board and staff leaders committed to process and ready for change
Leadership as a Quality Act / © MAP for Nonprofits, 2010