Strategic Planning

If You Felt Like You Were Going In Circles

You knew it was true, the feeling that you were going in circles. Turns out we are all prone to re-trace our steps and circle back on ourselves when we lack reference points. I am reminded of hearing the same suggestion brought annually by the newest board members of an arts organization. They all saw there was a flaw in the membership program. The new board member (without prompting from others or conspiracy) made the identical suggestion each year. You could almost hear a chuckle in the room from the veteran board members. It took a few years for the ‘new’ members to become the majority on the board and the suggestion was adopted. Turned out to be a smashing success. Just took a few trips around the calendar before enough people became comfortable with not repeating the old course.

Great article about a human navigation in the wilderness: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/21/science/21circles.html

How Many Tries?


For over a year my wireless provider has sent me a text saying they cannot reach me at my billing address. I changed my billing address over a year ago but the wireless company has a glitch in their computer system and it reverts my records to my old address. Every couple months I call customer service and update the billing address again. The representative assures me that the changes are confirmed by the computer. By the end of the month I am receiving the same text message.

My contract ends soon and I am ready to switch providers just to have a company who can keep my information correctly. It is a basic expectation and should be a simple process. If the fundamentals do not work then why should I consider investing more of my time and energy? Do you execute on the basics?

Mis-Communication


Went running earlier this week in western Colorado. I followed the road into a beautiful canyon that turns into a dirt road. To drop off the plateau and into a completely different world below the canyon rim is a favorite moment of mine. As I adventured along the county road locals were driving to town mostly in pick-up trucks. They stared out their windshields at me or gave a little nod but continued forward at a high rate of speed. What they did not consider was that their trucks were spraying gravel in a rooster tail which descended on me as I ran in the other direction. I started covering my face with my hands when they approached. What clearly appeared as the start of a friendly wave on my part was actually a self-defense mechanism. It took me a moment to realize that if I had been riding a horse down the road the drivers would have been more courteous but they were not thinking about the impact of their on a runner.

Are you on the same page with your clients and customers? Do you both realize the consequences of your actions?

Fear Announcements


Flying home on United Airlines from Denver yesterday afternoon and the gate agent made the following announcement: “The captain wants to weather warn you that due to severe thunderstorms this flight may be diverted to Idaho Falls, Idaho or Spokane, Washington (both of which are a four hour drive or more from Boise, Idaho). The announcement complete the agent asked for Zone 1 to begin boarding. The hesitation to board was obvious. Should I get on? What are the chances of the plane diverting? Is the Boise airport open right now? Have planes been landing during the day? What happens to me if the airline deplanes me in a town so far away from my destination?

Passengers started asking questions and got no answers. Then the great mobile phone game began. Passengers called anyone who might be effected by a major shift to their itinerary. I overhear calls where people were forecasting not being able to arrive in Boise until noon the following day. I called my wife and she quickly emailed me the following photo from her phone

A quick check of Flightaware.com and I saw that the airport was seeing normal departure and arrival activity. My potential panic subsided with this information. I tried to share my ‘local’ knowledge of the situation but those around me continued to make a flurry of calls and emails before we departed.

From the moment the plane door closed until we arrived in Boise there was not a single announcement about our intended plan. The pilot and co-pilot or flight attendant never acknowledged the weather warning or calmed the frenzy by announcing that we were planning to fly direct to Boise. People discussed the potential diversion and their plans until it became evident that we were descending through the storm to the airport.

This was a great reminder that you need to remain cognisant of your message. You may have clarity about your strategy internally but have you fully communicated it to your customers and constituents? Do your customers think you are on a diversion when you are actually planning to proceed as planned? A lot of energy is used and mistrust developed when you are not transparent in these situations.

Data On Which Age Groups Use Specific Social Media


Clients who are later adopters of technology are always telling me that they need to get on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, etc. They need a great social media presence. I ask them who they are trying to reach with these forms of media. One group’s core audience is women between 40-70 years old. Another group serves young teens but raises 80% of its donations from the generation that would qualify as grandparents to these teens. Twitter may not be the right source to invest in for either of these groups (at least as they think it will be applied). I have mostly relied on anecdotal evidence but this recent study is truly helpful to quantify which generations are using which forms of social media.

http://www.insidefacebook.com/2009/07/30/new-study-shows-how-different-generations-use-facebook/

What has worked well for your organization? Who are you trying to reach? What feedback to you get?

“As military strategist Shun Tzu observed, it is victory, and not mere perseverance, that is the essential goal of any battle”

Have you ever noticed how many nonprofit organization’s and businesses pat themselves on the back for their perseverance? Enduring is noble, heroic, creates legends and is written about in history. It does not always mean that it is the most effective way to reach an outcome or goal. I have recently received numerous emails from social enterprise organizations highlighting their determination during difficult times. These narratives certainly stir emotions but they make me wonder if I am supporting an organization that is closer to its sunset than sunrise.

One of the strategies outlined by Hartmut Esslinger in his book a fine line is “The Fourth Line: Building Strategic Reserves.” He recalls how Caesar kept a fourth line of army hidden in the trees during a military battle. The fourth line was the ultimate strategy for success since the enemy was not expecting the reserves to appear. During more difficult economic times and challenges to programs and services, this is the time to reveal the fourth line. These are the organizations that seems to be thriving. Hartmut talks about Steve Jobs return to Apple and how he quickly changed the business model of the company without revealing the product that defined their sector such as the iPod, iTunes, and iPhone. Once each of these were launched they owned the marketplace and the competitors reacted with sloppy replicas at best.

How is your organization thriving? Do you have a fourth line? Are you persevering and enduring or are you thriving?

Nine is Devine

Imagine for a second, your best team experience. Think of an achievement in sports, theater, school, volunteering, travel, etc.

What was the team experience? How many people do you recall being involved in the group? When I do this exercise in a consulting engagement most people say their memory involves 5 to 7 other individuals. Nothing scientific, just anecdotal evidence.

I am more convinced that nine individuals on a board or committee is the ideal size. Here is my rationale. Studies have shown that groups of ten and over trend towards parliamentary communication patterns. There is less of a collaborative conversation and more often the speaker addresses the Chair (or leader) instead of the entire group. Individuals feel less accountable and are more willing to miss meetings because they are convinced that their point of view will be represented by another member of the board. The dynamics of discussions take on a different chemistry as group size changes. I am not saying the Supreme Court gets it right every time but it is interesting to me that there are nine justices. The other trait boards over nine tend to exhibit is to start adding as many major donors as they can to the board. Major donors clearly have passion and the talent to invest significant funds into a cause. That does not immediately make them great decision makers. I encourage groups to focus on identifying a committed group of nine individuals who represent diverse points of view and are willing to be accountable for the decisions they make. You can always expand but it takes years to contract for most organizations.

As a former firefighter and EMT, I took an Incident Command class as a prerequisite course. One of the skills you learned was to be very clear about who you were assigning a specific task. If you were dealing with bystanders then you would either refer to them by name or acknowledge them by saying, ‘you in the red shirt, I need you to to call 911, now.’ Make the same statement without making eye contact and assigning responsibility to a crowd of on-lookers and your chances of success are much diminished.

What has been your most effective group sizes when it comes to making decisions in a team setting? In reality, does your preferred group size meet reality? Are your boards and committees larger or smaller than your preference?

Q

Q, James Bond’s supplier of all things destructive and detonating. When watching the films today, the gadgets seem to be antiquated and almost humorous in their design. Polaroid cameras that shoot lasers, exploding alarm clocks, and plastic explosive tooth past. What was revolutionary is now better displayed in the spy museum as a relic of the a past era. I am reminded that fewer members in Generation Y wear wrist watches since their mobile phone or MP3 player serves as their time piece.

What has changed in your field of expertise? Does your success still rely on Polaroid cameras and wrist watches? Do you have the right people in the room when making critical decisions?

For Sale

I found a real estate magazines from ten years ago when I was listing a house for sale. I was back in the same resort town this weekend and compared the old to the current listings. Even with the current difficulties in the real estate market some of the same homes are on the market for a significant percentage increase when compared to the information I had from ten years prior. What may feel like a significant loss in value when compared to twelve months ago is quite a hansom gain if you expand your time horizon. How often do we get caught in the trap of feeling like we lost something (even if it is temporary) when in reality it is still a net positive? I recall an experiment where individuals would do significantly more to protect $50,000 that was potentially threatened by theft or loss than the same individual would do to gain $50,000 through an existing opportunity.

What is your time horizon? Do you protect what you have more vigorously than taking advantage of growth opportunities? Are you aware of how emotions impact your decision making?