We have all heard war stories about strategic planning - the expensive plan that sits on a shelf gathering dust, the complicated process involving a cast of thousands, the disillusionment when the plan makes no difference in operations. But strategic planning is still a powerful tool for associations, helping them achieve their purposes and better serve their members.

Strategic Planning Benefits:

Strategic planning requires time and resources - two things in short supply in most associations. Here are four major benefits of engaging in strategic planning:

1. It gives your association the best chance for a successful future, because you have considered the trends impacting the organization, the needs of its members, and prioritized your activities.

2. It provides consistent organizational focus and direction. This is especially valuable in our environment of distributed leadership and limited terms of office for volunteers.

3. It offers a rational basis for resource allocation - both dollars and staff time.

4. It builds teamwork between Board and Staff. Everyone understands the goals the organization is working to achieve.

Associated Costs:

There are also costs associated with strategic planning. Direct costs may include expenses for travel, meetings, research, special mailings, fees, and travel for an outside facilitator or consultant. Indirect costs include staff and volunteer time.

Planning Team:

Successful planning teams generally include leaders from the Board, senior staff and perhaps other key association leaders. The team should be large enough to include key perspectives, but not so large as to be unwieldy – 10 to 12 is ideal, while more than 20 becomes difficult to manage.

Strategic Planning Objective: Environmental Scanning

A strong strategic plan depends upon an objective and wide-ranging scan of the external environment. Look beyond your association and the profession to emerging political, economic, socio-demographic, cultural and technological trends. Especially in a fast-changing profession such as medicine and health care, you will need to review your trends often and revise your plan as needed. For associations, strategic planning must truly be an ongoing activity.