What’s That About Root Causes?

A Contemporary Fable: Upstream/Downstream

It's been many years since the first body was spotted in the river. Some old-timers remember how spartan were the facilities and procedures for managing that sort of thing. Sometimes, they say, it would take hours to pull ten people from the river, and even then only a few would survive. Though the number of victims in the river has increased greatly in recent years, the good folks of Downstream have responded admirably to the challenge. Their rescue system is clearly second to none: most people discovered in the swirling waters are reached within 20 minutes, many in less than ten. Only a small number drown each day before help arrives; a big improvement from the way it used to be.

Talk to the people of Downstream and they'll speak with pride about the new hospital by the edge of the waters, the flotilla of rescue boats ready for service at a moment's notice, the comprehensive health plans for coordinating all the manpower involved, and the large number of highly trained and dedicated swimmers always ready to risk their lives to save victims from the raging currents. Sure it costs a lot, but, say the Downstreamers, what else can decent people do except to provide whatever it takes when human lives are at stake.

Oh, a few people in Downstream have raised the question now and again, but most folks show little interest about what's happening Upstream. It seems there's so much to do to help those in the river, that nobody's got time to check how all those bodies are getting there in the first place. That's the way things are, sometimes. (Thanks to Linda Sunde for sharing this version)

The Hard Work of Getting to the Real Strategic Issues

We typically utilize an issues based approach to strategic planning. In this approach, after gathering and analyzing internal and external data, leadership identifies 3 to 5 "most critical strategic issues, choices and challenges" facing the nonprofit. The remainder of the planning process looks at developing the most effective responses to these critical issues.

Critical issues are fundamental policy or program concerns that define the most important situations and choices a nonprofit faces now and in the future. Critical issues can reflect long-standing problems in the nonprofit, the community served or recent events that are anticipated to have a significant impact on the nonprofit and/or community served. Critical issues can also reflect major shifts in thinking that challenge "business as usual.” The selection of issues is important because it determines range of decisions the nonprofit will consider in the future.

In some instances, the nonprofit is already aware of the critical issues that the strategic planning process must help it address. In most situations, the planning process participants discern critical strategic issues as they work on the external, market and internal assessments.

Real differences of opinion will likely surface when everyone begins to express their sense of what the real critical issues are. It's important to engage members of the planning team in deep discussion to get at the roots of any disagreement. Sometimes it will be possible to define the issue in a way that addresses the concerns of all involved. Sometimes, what appeared to be disagreement at first, is not, after people really listen to each other. Just be careful of watering down the issue to make peace. By definition, critical issues are controversial.

In the effort to identify the short list of most critical issues needing to be tackled in the strategic planning process, sometimes you will discover tension points. An example – for a hunger action organization, the tension between "should we focus on feeding hungry people today" or "should we focus on longer-term organizing and public policy strategies to address the root causes of hunger". Sometimes the answer is one and not the other and sometimes it's some form of "both/and".

This all-important process of surfacing and working through deep differences of opinion about what the critical issues are and how to best articulate them is made more difficult when people speak in code to each other. Let me show you what I mean by telling you about organization I once worked with. This organization was a group that provided cable access to a small suburban community. Within the group there were two factions that would set each other off with their respective battle cries. On one hand, there was a group that was ardent on the subject of First Amendment freedom. They wanted anyone in the community that had a message to have easy access to cable technology. For them, First Amendment freedom had to be protected at all costs. On the other hand, there was a group that felt strongly that program quality had to be increased if they were going to build an audience of cable viewers that would assure continued existence of the community cable access channel.

But here's where the problem came in: when the program quality group heard the others talk about First Amendment freedom, it conjured up images of controversial cable programs that were sloppily done that would offend the community. At the same time the First Amendment group, when they heard the others talk about the need to increase program quality, this conjured up for them images of censorship -- programs being kept off the air. The words "first amendment" became code for poor quality controversial programs. At the same time, the words "quality programs" became code for program censorship. It was important for this tension point to be surfaced. A thorough discussion led the leaders of this group to eventually realize that the organization in fact needed to be both an advocate for First Amendment freedom and quality programming that would build a solid audience. A situation of both/and instead of either/or. Group members also realized that the organization needed to strengthen the orientation and training program for new video producers to ensure programs of quality that would attract larger audiences in the future.

In this example, deciphering each other's code words set the stage for a real breakthrough in the strategic planning process.

Core Strategy #5 Develop Board And Staff Succession Plans

In an earlier post, I listed 10 key strategies that need consideration in the strategic plans of nonprofit organizations. The first strategy described in that post is “Embed capacity building into the fabric of your nonprofit". The second strategy is to "Build an exceptional board". The third strategy discussed in my last post is to engage in accelerated strategic thinking and planning. The fourth strategy is to "Forge partnerships, alliances and mergers to increase mission impact and sustainability".

The fifth strategy is to develop board and staff succession plans. A change in executive leadership is one of the most important and challenging opportunities a nonprofit will face. These executive leadership transitions have become more common. According research compiled by the Annie E Casey Foundation, leadership transitions from the Baby Boom generation to Generations X and Y will become more common within the nonprofit sector. Owing to these demographic and other factors, the number of executive director jobs that will turn over is therefore expected to increase. The recession has put off retirement for many older executive directors, at least for a while. But retirement or career moves by executive directors aren't the only cause for concern. Sudden absences due to illness, accidents or death also put many nonprofits at risk. Many nonprofits are highly dependent on their executive directors. If there were an unplanned absence, the organization would continue to exist without her or his presence, but very likely experience some significant setbacks.

The problem is that many nonprofits don't have succession plans in place; even more nonprofits have not begun to think about succession in an organized manner. A nonprofit organization's strategic planning process can present a golden opportunity to finally respond to this critical issue. The good news: over the last several years many excellent resources have become available. Some of the most important work has been done by The Bridgespan Group in Boston and Compass Point Nonprofit Services in the Bay Area. The Annie E Casey Foundation has published a series of monographs on all aspects of succession planning and executive transition available at no charge at their website. One of the most important, "Stepping Up, Staying Engaged: Succession Planning and Executive Transition Management for Nonprofit Boards of Directors" is geared to boards of directors who have an important governance responsibility to lead on this critical issue.

Another valuable resource is Executive Transition Initiative Succession Planning Toolkit. The Toolkit was developed by the Milwaukee-based Executive Transition Institute (ETI) directed by Mindy Lubar Price, CEO of LeadingTransitions. The ETI is a collaborative effort of the Donors Forum of Wisconsin, the Brico Fund, the Davis Family Foundation, and the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. The Toolkit consists of four manuals

· #1 Overview of Succession Planning

· #2 Departure Defined Transition Toolkit

· #3 Emergency Succession Planning Toolkit

· #4 Strategic Leadership Development Toolkit

Now for many of the same reasons, there needs to be a leadership succession plan for the board of directors as well. There are not as many resources available to help with board succession planning but here is an excellent one to consider:

· Succession Planning with Your Board with links to a number of worksheets and tools prepared by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)

A Hybrid Board Governance Model that Supports Strategic Planning

In previous posts, I’ve emphasized the close link between strategic planning and governing board development. Strategic thinking and planning is at the heart of what it means to serve on a nonprofit board. We therefore need a governance framework that fosters and supports a strategic planning mindset among board directors.

But there is a problem: What’s the right approach to board governance? There are a dizzying number of governance models that have emerged over the last several years and an equally dizzying number of valiant efforts to categorize and sort out the main models. (For one summary of major governance models complied by a former school superintendent, see the article “From Stewardship To Leadership”) At the same time there is broad emerging agreement about the core qualities of effective boards. These core qualities are summarized in a quote from Mel Gill, president of Synergy Associates:

There is a growing convergence of expert opinion that the most effective boards, regardless of the size, complexity or mandate of their organizations, concentrate their attention on those matters that are crucial to success or survival; that they focus on measurable results within defined timetables; that they engage in regular monitoring of the manner in which business is conducted, the efficient use of resources and the achievement of objectives; that their decision-making is transparent, and that they provide proper accounting to key stakeholders.

Effective boards focus their attention on "the critical few, rather than the trivial many", regardless of whether these are operational, management, or governance (strategic or fiduciary) issues.

The most successful boards, within this framework, develop a collaborative partnership with senior management; seek agreement between key stakeholders on vision, values, goals and expectations (tempered by the reality of available resources); ensure clarity with respect to roles and responsibilities; establish constructive processes for resolution of conflicts and conflict of interest; and cultivate an organizational culture characterized by trust, teamwork, mutual respect, flexibility, adaptability, and responsiveness in the face of the ever-changing realities, resources and needs of consumers.

Gill also talks about "dynamic hybrids” -- increasingly boards are developing dynamic hybrids of several board types, adapting concepts and practices that best fit their particular circumstances.

In response to this "dizzying array" of models and approaches, I propose that we draw on the following three resources as we think about the governance model, systems and practices that can serve as the foundation and the framework for board development work:

• Dynamic Board Model from McKinsey & Company
• 12 Governance Principles That Power Exceptional Boards from BoardSource
• Governance as Leadership Framework from the book by the same name -- Governance as Leadership by Richard Chait, William Ryan, and Barbara Taylor

Taken together, they provide a solid framework that supports the strategic mindset I spoke of earlier. For more information about these three excellent resources, go to the article “A Hybrid Board Governance Model”.

Core Strategy #4 Forge partnerships, alliances and mergers to increase mission impact and sustainability

In a previous post, I listed 10 key strategies that need consideration in the strategic plans of nonprofit organizations. The first strategy described in that post is “Embed capacity building into the fabric of your nonprofit". The second strategy is to "Build an exceptional board". The third strategy discussed in my last post is to engage in accelerated strategic thinking and planning.

The fourth strategy is to forge partnerships, alliances and mergers to increase mission impact and sustainability. Even before the severe economic downturn, in recent years, there have been a number of sector trends encouraging increased partnership and alliance activity among nonprofits. The best guidance available to nonprofit leaders includes the following:

• Even though mergers are getting the most attention, there are a number of strategic restructuring options available: administrative consolidations, joint programming, management service organizations, joint venture corporations, parent-subsidiary structures and more.
• While there are a number of economic benefits touted, I think it's important to view strategic restructuring first and foremost as a strategy to increase mission impact. It's not about survival as an end in itself.
• It's all about relationship building and so it's important to prioritize trust building and communication. It takes time but getting to know each other is critical to long-term success.
• One of the most promising approaches has been articulated by Ben Gomes-Casseres, Professor at Brandeis University and co-author of Mastering Alliance Strategy. He encourages organizations to develop a diversified portfolio of partnerships and alliances. Lots of good resources can be found at his website. Go to: www.alliancestrategy.com.
• Finally, it's critical that nonprofits commit to increasing their internal capacity for building partnerships and alliances. Most of us don't know as much as we need to to do this work well.

The great news is that there are a number of excellent resources available to nonprofit leaders in the area of strategic restructuring. Here is my starter list:

• Strategic Restructuring: A Podcast (Time 10 minutes). Where do boards begin when considering restructuring options? Pat Wyzbinski of the Nonprofit Management Fund talks with Jean Butzen about questions a board can ask regarding the sustainability of the organization’s business model, changes in revenue sources, staff talent, quality of services, potential duplication of programs, and other critical factors. Jean Butzen is the president of Mission Plus Strategy Consulting, specializing in growing nonprofit social value through strategic restructuring. Go to: http://www.smallpackageproductions.com/BoardStar/play/podcast86

• Jane Arsenault, Forging Nonprofit Alliances: A Comprehensive Guide to Enhancing Your Mission Through Joint Ventures & Partnerships, Management Service Organizations, Parent Corporations, and Mergers. San Francisco: Jossey Bass, 1998. 10 years since it first appeared and still one of the best resources on the subject. Click here to preview this book on Amazon.com

• Strategic Restructuring Website. Developed by Strategic Solutions, a project of LaPiana Associates. Go to: http://lapiana.org/Strategic-Restructuring.

• Partnership Matrix by David La Piana. Go to: http://www.fieldstonealliance.org.

• Decision Tree: What Form of Strategic Restructuring Is Right For Us? Go to: http://www.fieldstonealliance.org.

• Prepare Your Nonprofit Organization to Meet the Collaboration Challenge: Worksheets. Go to: http://media.wiley.com.

• Models of Collaboration: Nonprofit Organizations Working Together by the Lodestar Foundation. Go to: http://www.asu.edu. This is excellent!

• Nonprofit Mergers Workbook Part I: The Leaders Guide to Considering, Negotiating, and Executing a Merger by David La Piana. Based on experience with more than sixty mergers, this handbook is the perfect starting point for any nonprofit exploring a possible merger—and a basic resource for all nonprofit managers. Click to preview this book on Amazon.com.

• The Nonprofit Mergers Workbook Part II: Unifying the Organization after a Merger by David La Piana. You've completed the merger agreement. Now, how do you make the merger work? Nonprofit Mergers Part II helps you create a comprehensive plan to achieve integration. Click to preview this book on Amazon.com.

• Merging Nonprofit Organizations: The Art and Science of the Deal – Go to: http://case.edu/mandelcenter/publications/casestudies/MergingNonprofitOrgs.pdf

• Issue Brief: Investing In Nonprofit M&A – The Donor Perspective by Bruce Boyd and Reginald Jones, Arabella Advisors. Go to: http://www.arabellaadvisors.com/images/IB_files/Mergers.pdf.

• Nonprofit Leadership and Administration Faculty at Western Michigan University. Merger Process Flow Chart, 1998. Go to: http://www.wmich.edu/nonprofit/Guide/guide1.htm.

• Nonprofit Mergers and Acquisitions: More Than a Tool for Tough Times. The Bridgespan Group. Go to: http://www.bridgespan.org/Nonprofit-M-and-A.aspx.

• Karen Ray, The Nimble Collaboration, St. Paul: Fieldstone Alliance. 2002

• Shirley Sagawa, Creating “New Value” Partnerships with Business: Step by Step. Adapted for INDEPENDENT SECTOR by Shirley Sagawa from chapter 10 of Common Interest, Common Good: Creating Value through Business and Social Sector Partnerships, by Shirley Sagawa and Eli Segal (Harvard Business School Press, 2000). For a PDF version, go to: http://www.independentsector.org/mission_market/sagawa.htm.

Core Strategy #3 Engage in accelerated strategic thinking and planning

In a previous post, I listed 10 key strategies here that need consideration in the strategic plans of nonprofit organizations. The first strategy described in that post is “Embed capacity building into the fabric of your nonprofit". The second strategy discussed in my last post is to "build an exceptional board".

The third strategy is to engage in accelerated strategic thinking and planning.

Sometimes strategic planning gets a bad rap -- and deservedly so -- when the process goes on for so long that leaders forget what the purpose and intended outcome was supposed to be in the first place. In today's changing environment, it has become even more important for nonprofits to respond to new opportunities fast -- really fast! There's really no choice. And this has helped to create the interest in accelerated strategic planning.

If organizations are going to effectively engage in accelerated strategic planning they need to increase their capacity to do so. Nonprofit leaders are looking for methods, approaches and processes that will speed up their strategic planning efforts. We can learn by doing. At the same time, several books and models have emerged offering guidance on how to speed things up:

• The well regarded new book by David La Piana, The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution.
• The One Page Business Plan for Nonprofit Organizations by Jim Horan
• Question-Based Planning by Derrick Van Mell. Also see http://www.3goodquestions.com.
• and many others

In a recent workshop presentation I included a couple of tools for that can be used to design accelerated strategic planning sessions. Go to the presentation handout and take a look at pages 8 and 9. While you’re at it, review the Strategic Planning Resource Bibliography on page 10.


A couple of additional thoughts including a caveat:

Collaborative strategic planning. Today it's becoming increasingly common and more important for nonprofits to engage in collaborative strategic planning efforts in which the focus is on a shared customer/constituent base or pressing community issue rather than development of a strategic plan for one organization alone. I talked about this in an earlier post.

For some of the same reasons, such collaborative strategic planning efforts need to be accelerated as well.

Create opportunities for ongoing strategic thinking. Look for ways to incorporate strategic thinking activities in board and staff meetings now. Here's how: in board and staff meetings, make references to your nonprofit’s vision of future intended impact and strategic priorities as defined in your strategic plan. Use the vision and strategic priorities as a framework for board and staff deliberation and decision-making. Share trend and market information in meetings to provoke discussion and dialogue.

And one caveat. Accelerated strategic planning is a way to develop strategies and action plans in response to rapidly changing conditions and promising new opportunities for your nonprofit. It's not a substitute for the sometimes longer and more difficult work of defining the mission or fundamental purpose of an organization or crafting a new compelling vision of intended impact. And doing this work in a way that leads to excitement and commitment among board and staff leadership.

In thinking about accelerated strategic planning, a few of the laws of systems thinking may apply. First “Faster is slower”. Accelerated strategic planning makes great sense when we are clear about mission and vision and we are faced with an opportunity that clearly aligns with these governing ideas. But if, within your nonprofit, there are fundamental disagreements about organizational purpose and future direction, then an accelerated planning and decision-making process may make us feel like "take-charge leader of the year" but we run the great risk of taking the organization in the wrong direction. And we’ll pay for this later. It'll be back to the drawing board. Faster is slower. This is especially true if, in our haste, we didn't include enough key leadership in the process.

And this reminds me of one of the other laws of systems thinking -- "Today’s problems come from yesterday’s solutions".

Core Strategy #2 Build an Exceptional Board

In my last post, I listed 10 key strategies that need attention in the strategic plans of nonprofit organizations. The first strategy described in that post was “Embed capacity building into the fabric of your nonprofit".

The second strategy is to build an exceptional board.

There are a dizzying number of governance models that have emerged over the last several years and an equally dizzying number of valiant efforts to categorize and sort out the main models. At the same time there is broad emerging agreement about the core qualities of effective boards. Here is a quote from Mel Gill, president of Synergy Associates:

There is a growing convergence of expert opinion that the most effective boards, regardless of the size, complexity or mandate of their organizations, concentrate their attention on those matters that are crucial to success or survival; that they focus on measurable results within defined timetables; that they engage in regular monitoring of the manner in which business is conducted, the efficient use of resources and the achievement of objectives; that their decision-making is transparent, and that they provide proper accounting to key stakeholders.

Effective boards focus their attention on "the critical few, rather than the trivial many", regardless of whether these are operational, management, or governance (strategic or fiduciary) issues.

The most successful boards, within this framework, develop a collaborative partnership with senior management; seek agreement between key stakeholders on vision, values, goals and expectations (tempered by the reality of available resources); ensure clarity with respect to roles and responsibilities; establish constructive processes for resolution of conflicts and conflict of interest; and cultivate an organizational culture characterized by trust, teamwork, mutual respect, flexibility, adaptability, and responsiveness in the face of the ever-changing realities, resources and needs of consumers.

Gill also talks about "dynamic hybrids” -- increasingly boards are developing dynamic hybrids of several board types, adapting concepts and practices that best fit their particular circumstances.

In response to this "dizzying array" of models and approaches, I propose that we draw on the following three resources as we think about exceptional board governance. The three governance frameworks that stand out for me are:

First, the Dynamic Board Model developed by McKinsey & Co. The source document is The Dynamic Board: Lessons from High-Performing Nonprofits. This monograph summarizes the best practices identified through McKinsey’s interviews with the directors or board chairs of 32 highly-regarded nonprofits. The report also provides a valuable self-assessment tool for nonprofits available in 5, 15 and 30 minute completion time versions. (Free registration may be required to access this article) Go to: http://www.mckinsey.com. Scroll down to “The Dynamic Board” and Assessment Tool links.

Second, the 12 Governance Principles That Power Exceptional Boards from BoardSource. This framework describes twelve common traits and actions that distinguish “exceptional” boards from “responsible” boards. Taken together, they describe an empowered board that is a strategic asset to be leveraged. For a fuller description of the 12 principles go to: http://www.ctp.uk.com.

And third, Governance as Leadership Framework from the book Governance as Leadership authored by Chait, Ryan and Taylor. They describe three types of governance: fiduciary, strategic and generative
• Fiduciary mode: key question -- "How are we doing?"
• Strategic mode: key questions -- "What are we doing?" "Where are we going?" and
• Generative mode: key questions -- "Why are we doing this?" "What are the possibilities?"

For an excellent description, go to: “Rethinking the Board’s Central Purposes.” A Review of Governance as Leadership http://www.intrust.org.

Sustaining A Mission Focused Nonprofit in Hard Times

The nonprofit sector in the Bay Area is one of the most vibrant in the country. And yet on May 29, 2009, the Wall Street Journal reported that one-third of San Francisco-area nonprofit groups are worried they may have to shut down in the next year, and 34 percent say they have no more than two months’ worth of operating funds in reserve, this according to a survey by the regional United Way. Another sign of hard times.

The many challenges that nonprofits were already facing have intensified in the last year owing to the severe economic downturn nationally and globally. And if we need to be reminded about how bad things have gotten, today, General Motors filed for bankruptcy.

What's a struggling nonprofit to do? I think there are at least 10 strategies that need to be considered. These strategies will have greatest impact if they are implemented in a coordinated fashion over time -- and they need to be incorporated into your strategic plan.

Here they are:

1. Embed capacity building into the fabric of your nonprofit
2. Build an exceptional board
3. Engage in accelerated strategic thinking and planning
4. Forge partnerships, alliances and mergers to increase mission impact and sustainability
5. Develop board and staff succession plans
6. Build capacity for effective public policy and advocacy
7. Master use of social media
8. Deploy targeted volunteer engagement strategies
9. Review and revise your theory of change
10. Adopt regional thinking and problem solving approaches


CORE STRATEGY #1 Embed Capacity Building into the Fabric of Your Nonprofit

Over the next few months I'll devote attention to each of these 10 strategies, starting with the first – “Embed capacity building into the fabric of your nonprofit.”

I want to begin with a quote from Paul Light:

“Capacity building well done in the nonprofit sector, I believe, is a critical answer to the extraordinary uncertainty we face and also to the tremendous political pressure under which most nonprofits are operating. Capacity building right now is arguably the most important investment the nonprofit sector can make.”

Strong leadership is one of the factors that ensure success in capacity building. Capacity building is a team sport that requires board and staff leadership. Organizations that are serious about building capacity are advised to convene a team consisting, at a minimum, of the Executive Director/CEO, other staff members selected by the ED and board members, at least some of whom are in key leadership positions. This team will have primary responsibility for leading the organization’s engagement in the core capacity building activities. Additional board members and staff can also be involved and this is highly recommended. There are several advantages to this group approach. By sharing multiple perspectives on some of the problems and issues needed to be addressed it is less likely that problems will be misdiagnosed or that key issues will be overlooked. Another advantage to the team is that more people will gain a deeper understanding of critical organization challenges that can be addressed through your capacity building efforts.

We've developed a capacity building toolkit that reflects best practices and lessons learned from the field. The toolkit consists of four tools:

• Tool #1 – Assessment and Benchmarking
• Tool #2 – Capacity Building Action Planning
• Tool #3 – Capacity Building Resource Inventory
• Tool #4 – Capacity Reassessment

Go to: www.createthefuture.com/CBtoolkit to access the toolkit. There is a description of the four tools along with guidance on how to utilize each of them.

I'll be talking more about capacity building and the remaining nine strategies in future posts.

The Networked Nonprofit: A New Mental Model of Organizational Growth

In a previous post, I talked about the impact of mental models on our work. Mental models are deeply ingrained assumptions, beliefs, generalizations, or images that influence how we see the world and how we take action in it.

I suggested that "if we proceed with strategic planning without examining our mental models, we run the great risk of creating a plan based on assumptions and beliefs that are, in whole or in part, obsolete. A plan based on faulty thinking is not going to lead to the kind of impact we desire."

I recently came across an excellent article that challenges some of the traditional mental models we have about growth in the nonprofit world.

The article is The Networked Nonprofit by Jane Wei-Skillern and Sonia Marciano. It appeared in the Spring 2008 issue of the Stanford Social Innovation Review. The authors suggest, with some compelling examples and arguments, that nonprofits that pursue their missions through networks of long-term, trust-based partnerships achieve more sustainable mission impact than would be possible through traditional approaches to organizational growth. Some quotes appear below, but please read the article. It carries an important message that should have an impact on your future strategic planning efforts.

"We have studied several organizations that exemplify this network approach. By mobilizing resources outside their immediate control, networked nonprofits achieve their missions far more efficiently, effectively, and sustainably than they could have by working alone. Many traditional nonprofits form short-term partnerships with superficially similar organizations to execute a single program, exchange a few resources, or attract funding. In contrast, networked nonprofits forge long-term partnerships with trusted peers to tackle their missions on multiple fronts. And unlike traditional nonprofit leaders who think of their organizations as hubs and their partners as spokes, networked nonprofit leaders think of their organizations as nodes within a broad constellation that revolves around shared missions and values.

Most social issues dwarf even the most well-resourced, well-managed nonprofit. And so it is wrongheaded for nonprofit leaders simply to build their organizations. Instead, they must build capacity outside of their organizations. This requires them to focus on their mission, not their organization; on trust, not control; and on being a node, not a hub.

According to our research, nonprofits that pursue their missions through networks of long-term, trust-based partnerships consistently achieve more sustainable mission impact with fewer resources than do monolithic organizations that try to do everything by themselves. Unfortunately, however, many practices in the nonprofit sector inhibit the creation of such networks.

Nonprofit leaders often view organizational growth and revenue increases – rather than impact – as their primary metrics of success. As in the corporate sector, the nonprofit sector considers growth of some form – whether scaling up existing programs, expanding to new locations, raising more money, or proliferating new programs – to be a sign of vitality and impact. Organizations whose budgets, staff, and programs are growing in direct response to an urgent need are often viewed as the most successful.

Networked nonprofits like HFHE, WWB, and GDBA (three “networked nonprofits” profiled by the authors) share a third trait: They see themselves as nodes within a constellation of equal, interconnected partners, rather than as hubs at the center of their nonprofit universes. Because of the unrestricted and frequent communication between their different nodes, networked nonprofits are better positioned to develop more holistic, coordinated, and realistic solutions to social issues than are traditional nonprofit hubs."

Examining Our Mental Models: A Key to Breakthrough Thinking

In his book "The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization", author Peter Senge describes five thinking tools or disciplines. One of these tools is the discipline of “Mental Models”. Mental models are deeply ingrained assumptions, beliefs, generalizations, or images that influence how we see the world and how we take action in it.

Very often we are not consciously aware of our mental models or the effects they have on our thinking and behavior, including how we go about strategic planning.

For example, if our mental model of a library is that of a building where the community keeps its books, we will spend much of our time thinking about adding shelf space and buying more books. On the other hand, if we view the library as the community’s gateway to an expanding world of information, we will think and act very differently. Mental models of what can and cannot be done in different management and community settings are no less deeply entrenched.

Here’s the point: if we proceed with strategic planning without examining our mental models, we run the great risk of creating a plan based on assumptions and beliefs that are, in whole or part, obsolete. A plan based on faulty thinking is not going to lead to the kind of impact we desire.

The discipline of working with mental models starts with turning the mirror inward: learning to unearth our internal pictures of the world and our work to bring them to the surface and hold them up to tough questioning. It also includes the ability to carry on "learningful" conversations in which people expose their own thinking and make that thinking open to the influence of others.

The discipline of mental models is a key to understanding how organizational learning takes place:

• We begin by unfreezing ourselves from currently held beliefs, knowledge, attitudes or mental models. We determine which mental models are still valid and provide true pictures of the world and which mental models no longer work.
• Next we absorb new or alternative attitudes, beliefs and behavior.
• Finally, we begin to make decisions and take actions based on the new state of mind.

Of course we will repeat this learning process from time to time as some of the new mental models become outdated themselves.

At a recent conference, nonprofit leaders were asked to identify some of the mental models, paradigms and assumptions that they operate from that influence how they act internally and externally. The list of mental models included the following:

For one nonprofit engaged in racial justice work, some of the mental models:

• Racism is so huge we can't possibly effect or impact or end it.
• The corporate world is resistant to racial justice work.
• Only people of color can do effective racial justice work.

Other nonprofits identified the following mental models:

• Our identity as an organization is our current building.
• More money will solve all of our problems (if we only had more funding . . .).
• People find fundraising inherently distasteful.
• We are a flat organization so we cannot provide internal opportunities for promotion and advancement.

These mental models represent ways of thinking that will limit our stratgeic thinking in significant ways.

During the conference workshop, participants then began to examine these mental models by applying the following questions:

• Does this mental model represent an accurate picture of the world? Is it still valid and what is the evidence that the mental model still works? (Are we sure?)
• Is this mental model obsolete in some way and if so, how? Again what is the evidence that the mental model no longer works?
• How will this mental model affect our strategic planning efforts?
• Can this mental model be improved?
• How can a new mental model increase the mission impact of our work in the future?

If you’re interesting in exploring the discipline of mental models further, here are two good resources:

• Working with Mental Models by Roland Boettcher

• Mental Models: The Second Discipline of Learning Organizations by Marty Jacobs

I’d like to end with a few quotes that help to make the point about the importance of understanding the impact of mental models on our work:

"You never change something by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete." -- Buckminster Fuller

“The world we have made as a result of the level of thinking we’ve done thus far creates problems that we cannot solve at the same level at which we created them.… We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humankind is to survive”. -- Albert Einstein

And on the eve of President Barack Obama’s Inauguration, the words of Abraham Lincoln:

“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present…. As our case is new, we must think anew and act anew.”

New Planning Resources for a New Year

Yes We Can!

As the New Year begins, I'd like to recommend a few excellent resources to support your strategic thinking and planning efforts.

First, another great article from the Harvard Business Review. Appearing in the December 2008 issue, there is an article entitled Delivering on the Promise of Nonprofits by Jeffrey L. Bradach, Thomas J. Tierney, and Nan Stone. The authors, associated with the Bridgespan Group, propose that nonprofits wanting to dramatically increase their mission impact need to address five interdependent questions: Which results will we hold ourselves accountable for? How will we achieve them? What will results really cost, and how can we fund them? How do we build the organization we need to deliver results? These questions provide a framework for change that combines elements of theory of change, outcomes measurement, strategic and business planning, and organizational development. Included in the article, are a number of case examples drawn from the work of the Bridgespan Group. If you don't subscribe to the Harvard Business Review, you can purchase an electronic or hard copy of the article at www.hbr.org. Order Reprint R0812G.

The second resource is the Severson Center Trend Website. The Severson Center, a division of the Alliance for Children and Families, has opened their trend website to the general public, allowing access to a library of information in a user-friendly format. No login is needed for the website, but some reports are password protected for access by members of the Alliance. Trends and their impacts are organized under the following categories: Business/Economy, Education, Nonprofits, Technology/Science, Demographics/Population, Health, Social Service Issues, and Work. No question about it: this is the only resource of its kind and an invaluable resource for nonprofit strategic planning efforts. Go to: www.alliancetrends.org.

The third resource is Designing Your Future: Key Trends, Challenges and Choices Facing Associations and Nonprofit Leaders published in August 2008 by ASAE and the Center for Association Leadership. According to the authors, Designing Your Future “began with the analysis of several hundred trends. Association leaders and other experts and practitioners have winnowed the lengthy list of impacts to the most critical trends ranging from social to economic to political to environmental to technological impacts likely to affect associations.” Here are some of the chapter headings: Key Challenges: 10 Strategic Priorities Association Leaders Must Address, Key Choices: a Strategic Decision-Making Framework, 50 Key Trends, Scenario Analysis Workshop, Trend and Trend Analysis Workshop. Click here to preview this publication on Amazon.com.


And don't forget to check out our listing of Key Trends included in our weekly feature Nonprofit Picks Of The Week.

Happy New Year!

Strategic Thinking and Planning: A Resource Bibliography

Here is a newly revised resource bibliography on strategic thinking and planning:

• Basic Overview of Various Strategic Planning Models by Carter McNamara, http://www.managementhelp.org/plan_dec/str_plan/models.htm.
• Blueprint for Success, A Guide to Strategic Planning for Nonprofit Board Members by BoardSource (video/DVD), http://www.boardsource.org.
• Business Planning Resources for Nonprofits by The Bridgespan Group, http://www.bridgespan.org/kno_themes_businessplanning.html.
• Designing Your Future by ASAE and the Center for Association Leadership, http://www.asae.org.
• Effective Strategic Planning: Getting Your Organization Focused and Directed by Michael Burns and Paul Yelder, http://www.practitionerresources.org/cache/documents/36796.pdf.
•Field Guide to Nonprofit Strategic Planning and Facilitation by Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, http://www.authenticityconsulting.com/pubs/SP_gdes/SP_pubs.htm.
• Nonprofit Organizational Assessment Tool: Strategic Planning by Professor Andrew B. Lewis, Center for Community Economic Development, University of Wisconsin Extension,
http://www.uwex.edu/ces/cced/nonprofits/management/assessment.cfm.
• Presenting: Strategic Planning: Choosing the Right Method for Your Nonprofit Organization by Michela M. Perrone Ph.D. and Janis Johnston and BoardSource, http://www.boardsource.org/Bookstore.asp?category_id=47&Item=179.
• Stanford Social Innovation Review published by the Center for Social Innovation at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, http://www.ssireview.com.
• Strategic Planning for Public and Nonprofit Organizations: A Guide to Strengthening and Sustaining Organizational Achievement by John M. Bryson, http://www.josseybass.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0787967556.html.
• Strategic Planning Resource Collection by Professor Andrew B. Lewis, Center for Community Economic Development, University of Wisconsin Extension, http://www.uwex.edu/ces/cced/nonprofits/management/sites_strategic.cfm.
• Strategic Planning Workbook for Nonprofit Organizations by Brian W. Barry and the Fieldstone Alliance, http://www.fieldstonealliance.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=39.
• Strategic Planning: A Practical Handbook for Nonprofit Organizations by Michael Allison and Jude Kaye, http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0471445819.html.
• Strategic Planning: Frequently Asked Questions by The Alliance for Nonprofit Management, http://www.allianceonline.org/FAQ/strategic_planning.
• The Drucker Foundation Self-Assessment Tool Process Guide by the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management and Gary J. Stern, http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-078794436X.html.
• The MacMillan Matrix for Competitive Analysis of Programs, http://www.pasesetter.com/documents/pdf/turbtimes/Competitive%20Analysis.pdf
• The Nonprofit Quarterly published by Nonprofit Information Networking Association, www.nonprofitquarterly.org.
• The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution by David La Piana. www.amazon.com.
• Toolkit for Developing a Social Purpose Business Plan, by Structured Employment Economic Development Corporation (Seedco), http://nvn-toolkit.seedco.org/businessplanning.
• What If? The Art of Scenario Thinking for Nonprofits published by the Global Business Network, http://www.gbn.com/ArticleDisplayServlet.srv?aid=32655.

Strategic Planning Gets Better

These continue to be exciting and challenging times for nonprofit organizations. There is increased understanding among nonprofit leaders about the importance of strategic thinking and planning. The practice of planning itself continues to evolve – and improve. Here are some of the important developments:

Accelerated Strategic Planning: Most nonprofits don’t need to be sold on the value of strategic planning and thinking. At the same time, leaders have no patience for a process that goes on too long. The key is designing a process that gives adequate attention to information gathering and analysis and identification of critical strategic issues, involvement of key stakeholders, and the formulation of strategies and action plans that effectively address identified issues – and at the same time, making the most effective use of the valuable time of the leadership. Related to the theme of accelerated planning, is the growing interest in planning tools and approaches that facilitate just-in-time strategy development on an ongoing basis – a rapid response to new developments and emerging market opportunities that can’t wait for a formal strategic planning process. See the publication that everyone is raving about (and rightly so) The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution by David La Piana.

Collaborative Approaches to Strategic Planning: Nonprofits are showing new interest in collaborative strategic planning efforts in which the focus is on a shared customer/constituent base or pressing community issue rather than development of a strategic plan for their organization alone. Examples of this approach include several youth and family serving organizations developing a collaborative strategic plan to offer new services to children with special needs in a region or neighborhood development groups of the needs board effective strategic planning focusing on affordable housing in city neighborhoods. Such a collaborative approach to strategic planning that involves multiple perspectives can lay the groundwork for new cross sector partnerships that will increase the impact of a nonprofit in the future. For many nonprofits – even those who see the importance of planning collaboratively – this will require a commitment to build capacity to engage in such a planning approach. Here’s a recent news account that describes one such collaborative approach to strategic planning involving the Healthy Communities Coalition and Lyon County Human Services near Reno Nevada.

Reviewing Program Design With Theory Of Change: Strategic planning can also be an opportunity to examine the basic approach being used by an organization to achieve mission impact. The terms "business model" and "theory of change" are terms increasingly in use. We can stimulate fresh strategic thinking by posing questions like: “What are our basic beliefs, assumptions, or paradigms about how things work in our part of the world – our service area, our region, our profession or field of endeavor “What are the root causes of the problem or issue our organization seeks to address?” “Does the organization base its work on a coherent theory of change? “What is that theory of change?” “Is it working?”. For more information about theory of change, go to: http://www.theoryofchange.org/index.html. The site introduces a process for developing a theory of change, gives examples of this process, and tackles several interesting advanced topics on putting the process into practice. Be sure to take a look at Theory Of Change As A Tool For Strategic Planning and Making Sense: Reviewing Program Design with Theory of Change.

Strategic Planning as an Opportunity for Board Leadership Development: The board of directors, as one of the clearest expressions of its governance responsibility, needs to play a leadership role in strategic planning. Sometimes, executive directors, concerned that the planning process can invite micromanaging on the part of the board, will seek to limit involvement of the board in strategic planning. The concern is understandable but if the board is already operating from a clear understanding of its roles and responsiblities, this is less likely to be a problem. Terrie Temkin, a consultant to nonprofit organizations, has written a series of excellent articles highlighting the role of the board as strategic thinkers. Some of them are listed here: Recruiting Strategic Thinkers, Orienting Board Members to their Responsibilities as Strategic Thinkers and Structuring Board Meetings to Maximize Strategic Thinking Boards.

Strategic Planning and Succession Planning

Merianne Liteman, in her article “The Board’s Role in Succession Planning” makes some important connections between strategic planning and effective executive transition. While her primary audience is arts organizations, her advice is helpful for any nonprofit. She writes:

"A plan for transition to new leadership can’t emerge fully grown … . For leadership transitions to succeed, they must be consistent with and, indeed, grow out of the organization’s core strategy—its vision, mission, and values—as well as a clear understanding of its current status. This strategy is best expressed through a formal plan, which takes into account where the organization has been, where it is now, and where it wants to go. With a thoughtful and up-to-date strategic plan in place, an organization has a solid platform from which to launch a successful transition effort. Without such a plan, any succession effort it undertakes will rest on quicksand."

She goes on to say:

"A current strategic plan is essential for a smooth transition. The process of creating a strategic plan—or of reexamining and updating an existing one—offers an arts organization the chance to take a critical look at itself, reconsider its vision, assess its strengths and potential challenges, explore opportunities for growth, rethink its policies in line with current realities, and address issues that are critical for its future."

Sometimes nonprofit boards will leave this kind of strategic decision-making up to the new executive director. And this why some executive transitions end up as disasters. Liteman says that it’s a real mistake for organizations to assume that the new director is the one who should come up with the answers:

"Addressing these questions up front will yield dividends when the board makes critical decisions about the skills and competencies a potential successor should possess. Sometimes boards decide to leave such questions for the new director to address once he or she arrives. Bad idea; that’s like asking the pilot to decide on a destination after all the passengers are seated."

The succession plan may or may not be part of the nonprofit’s formal strategic plan. If not, it still needs to align with the strategic plan as Merianne Liteman points out. To download a copy of the article, go to: http://www.artsalliance.org/docs/al21c/book_sectionCch6.pdf.

Here are some links to resources on succession planning and executive transition. You can use these to educate board and staff leadership on this critical challenge as part of the effort to gear up for strategic planning or succession planning – or both.
• The Texas Commission on the Arts has compiled a number of leadership transition resources at http://www.arts.state.tx.us/toolkit/leadershiptransitions.
• TransitionGuides, a consulting and educational services company specializing in executive transition at http://www.transitionguides.com/about/about.htm.
• Leading Transitions, a firm specializing in providing technical assistance in the areas of executive transition management and succession planning at http://leadingtransitions.com.
• Compass Point Nonprofit Services provides access to research and articles on executive transitions, as well as templates for emergency succession plans and interim executive director job descriptions at http://www.compasspoint.org/content/index.php?pid=150

Key Strategies for Your Nonprofit

While strategic plans will address critical issues and challenges that are unique to individual nonprofits, it is also true that there are some key strategies that need to be incorporated into the strategic plans of all nonprofits in some way, regardless of mission focus. Here's my starter list:

Boomers. Your strategic plan needs a targeted strategy to engage baby boomers as volunteers, board leaders, donors, and activists. One of the best resources available for thinking this through is Generations: The Challenge of a Lifetime for Your Nonprofit by Peter C. Brinckerhoff which outlines in very specific ways what you can expect and how to plan for it. This publication also includes an assessment tool.

Strategic Restructuring. Your strategic planning process also needs to include exploration of partnerships, alliances and other forms of strategic restructuring. It's always been true -- and in the future even more so -- that the ability to forge partnerships and alliances that advance your nonprofit’s strategic priorities is a critical competency. Here are some excellent resources: LaPiana & Associates Strategic Restructuring Website. Also read Forging Nonprofit Alliances: A Comprehensive Guide to Enhancing Your Mission Through Joint Ventures & Partnerships, Management Service Organizations, Parent Corporations, and Mergers by Jane Arsenault. Also see AllianceStrategy.com which offers resources and readings on alliance strategy and management. The site is maintained by Ben Gomes-Casseres, author of The Alliance Revolution and co-author of Mastering Alliance Strategy, a professor at Brandeis University.

Leadership Succession. Your strategic planning also needs to address the challenge of board and staff leadership succession and related executive transition issues. Three of the best resources on this subject are: TransitionGuides, Compasspoint Nonprofit Services Executive Transition resources, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Executive Transition Monographs Series.

Regional Thinking. Another critical theme is regional thinking and decision-making. Increasingly local leaders are becoming convinced that solutions to local problems require regional strategies. Nonprofits also need to think about their missions, programs and services in regional terms. Obviously this will be more important for some organizations than for others. A good place to start is the Alliance for Regional Stewardship.

The Web. You also need to be thinking about technology and specifically Web 2.0. Don't know what Web 2.0 is? You'd better. What are the implications of these new web-based communications and networking tools? Nonprofits that figure this one out are way ahead. Start with Everything You Need to Know About Web 2.0 by Techsoup. And here is an excellent book Momentum: Igniting Social Change in the Connected Age by Allison Fine.

Collaborative Strategic Planning. Finally look for opportunities to engage in collaborative strategic planning with current and prospective partners. Nonprofits are showing new interest in collaborative strategic planning efforts in which the focus is on a shared customer/constituent base or pressing community issue rather than development of a strategic plan for their organization alone. Examples include several youth and family serving organizations developing a collaborative strategic plan to offer new services to children with special needs in a region or neighborhood development groups focusing on affordable housing in city neighborhoods. This theme was addressed in a February 14, 2006 post on this blog.

The Relationship of Strategic Planning to Other Forms of Planning

Often there can be some confusion and disagreement about the definition of strategic planning and its relationship to other forms of planning in nonprofit organizations. I have tended to view the strategic plan as a 3-5 year “strategic blueprint” that serves as the foundation for these other forms of planning. I recently conducted a webinar entitled "The Relationship of Strategic Planning to Program Planning and Business Planning”.

In preparing for the session, I came across an excellent article “Business Planning for Nonprofits: Why, When — and How It Compares to Strategic Planning” by Brigette Rouson. The article describes three approaches to defining the relationship of strategic planning to other forms of planning. According to Rouson, the three approaches include selection (opting for one over the other), synthesis (bringing elements of both approaches together) and sequencing (ordering one before the other). If you want to explore this relationship further, check out this article and others included in the resource bibliography I developed for this recent webinar:

Collection of Business Planning Resources for Nonprofits: The Bridgespan Group has assembled an excellent set of resources on business planning for nonprofits. In “Business Planning for Nonprofits,” Bridgespan draws on client experience to illustrate the key components of the business-planning process. http://www.bridgespan.org/kno_themes_businessplanning.html

Business Planning For Nonprofits What It Is and Why It Matters
http://www.bridgespan.org/PDF/BusinessPlanningforNonprofits.pdf

For an impressive example of business planning in the nonprofit sector see the Harlem Children’s Zone business plan. http://www.bridgespan.org/kno_case_hcz.html

Business Planning Toolkit by Seedco. http://nvn-toolkit.seedco.org/businessplanning/

Business Planning for Nonprofits: Why, When — and How It Compares to Strategic Planning by Brigette Rouson. http://www.1000cranes.com/downloads/Alliance.1kcranes.Article.pdf

Thinking about a Revenue Generating Venture as a Sustainability Strategy for your Nonprofit Organization by Mike Burns http://www.brodyweiser.com/pdf/RGVforNonprofits.pdf

Business Planning by Carter McNamara, Authenticity Consulting http://www.managementhelp.org/plan_dec/bus_plan/bus_plan.htm

Basic Guide to Nonprofit Program Design and Marketing by Carter McNamara. http://www.managementhelp.org/prog_mng/np_progs.htm

Strategic Planning for Your Organization and Its Fund Development by Lori Bertman
http://www.latour.lsu.edu/presentations/Strategic%20Planning%20Fund%20Development%20Tourism.pdf

One More Time - What’s Your Volunteer Strategy?

In my June 25, 2007 post, I asked the question “What’s Your Boomer Strategy?” and suggested that most nonprofits don’t have concrete strategies in place to tap into Baby Boomer charitable giving, volunteering and professional workplace skills and knowledge. I went on to highlight a number of excellent resources that are now available to help nonprofits craft such strategies.

More good news! For nonprofits that want to get serious about mobilizing volunteer resources in the service of their missions, the Corporation for National and Community Service recently released, Volunteering in America: 2007 City Trends and Rankings. According to the Corporation,

This publication ranks and includes profiles for 50 of the largest cities including the volunteer rate; the types of organizations through which residents serve; their main volunteering activities, the average hours per year and volunteer rates for age and gender demographic groups, and key trends and highlights. The report also analyzes social and demographic trends affect city volunteer rates and finds that there are four key drivers of volunteering: community attachment; commuting times, high school graduation levels and poverty; and the prevalence of nonprofits and their capacity to retain volunteers from year to year.

This data can help your nonprofit develop a volunteer growth strategy as part of your overall strategic plan. For links to an executive summary, the full report, and related resources, go to: http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/volunteering/cities.asp

Even more good news: To support your volunteer strategy development, the Points of Light Foundation has designed an Economic Impact of Volunteers Calculator that can assign a realistic economic value for volunteer time. Using the calculator, you can determine the value of the time current and prospective volunteers provide doing a wide variety of volunteer jobs. The Calculator estimates the appropriate wage rate for volunteer time based on what the person does and the value of specific tasks according to market conditions as reported by the US Department of Labor. To check out the calculator, go to: http://www.pointsoflight.org/resources/research/calculator.cfm

The Power of Vision

In previous posts, I’ve talked a lot about vision. “If we could create the organization of our dreams and have the impact we have always wanted to have in the lives of the people we serve, what would that success look like in five years?”

I regard vision as the centerpiece of the strategic planning process -- and the resulting strategic plan. Of course, we need detailed, financially viable action plans to get us to our desired future. But without a compelling, shared vision, really, what’s the point?

I want to share a favorite quote with you. Max DePree ends his book Leadership Jazz with a captivating story about leaders whose actions were inspired by vision. This story demonstrates to us the vital link between strategic planning, vision and the stewardship responsibilities of leadership. It's a lesson for all of us: our strategic plans will touch the lives of individuals and communities far into the future.

In the late fourteenth century, the members of New College at Oxford, moved into their quadrangle, the first structure of its kind, intended to provide for the residents all that they needed. On the north side of the quadrangle sit the chapel and the great hall, beautiful buildings and, as you might imagine, the focus of the life of the college.

In the middle of the nineteenth century, almost five hundred years later, the college hired architect Sir Gilbert Scott to restore the roof of the hall. The roof and the great oak beams that supported it had badly rotted. And so representatives from the college with Sir Gilbert visited Great Hall Woods, in Berkshire, where they expected to find trees for replacement beams. Sure enough, the replacements were standing there, waiting to be hewn out of the living oak trees planted a century before for just that purpose.

An anonymous leader's promise had been fulfilled. The voice and touch of a distant leader had been joined.

What’s Your Boomer Strategy?

What’s your boomer strategy? Don't have one? You're not alone. Here are some resources that can help.

An important part of the information gathering and analysis that lays the groundwork for successful strategic planning is the external assessment, sometimes called the environmental scan. The purpose of the external assessment is to identify and assess changes and trends in the environment in which a nonprofit operates that are likely to have significant future impact on the nonprofit itself as well as the people and communities being served. Typically, we look at political, economic, technological, social, lifestyle, demographic, competitive, regulatory and broad philanthropic trends. We then determine which changes are opportunities for our organization (for example, opportunities to grow) and which could be threats to us in some way (for example, trends that can have a negative impact on our revenue generating activities). Finally we identify implications for selected changes and trends -- ways our nonprofit might respond to the opportunities and threats we identify.

Some of the changes and trends will be of special interest to a particular nonprofit given its mission. For example, a nonprofit organization that promotes home ownership in city neighborhoods will focus on relevant federal and state policies, interest rates and other economic changes that affect family income levels.

At the same time, there are broad external changes and trends that will have impact on nonprofits regardless of their mission focus. Sometimes the anticipated impact is so great that every nonprofit doing strategic planning needs to craft a strategic response to that trend. For example, the effect of Sarbanes-Oxley and other developments that intensify the call for public accountability of nonprofits are prompting many organizations to change internal governance practices and, in general, to focus more on efforts to enhance public awareness and understanding of their work.

Today there are several other broad trends of this type that come to mind. One of the most important is the impact of baby boomers as they now begin to retire. A lot is being written about what boomers will be doing with their volunteer time and their charitable dollars. Also, for a number of reasons, many boomers will put off retirement to continue working in their current jobs or in new part-time positions. Several studies suggest that many boomers, when they think of employment "after retirement", express a preference for work in the nonprofit sector.

All of this represents great news for nonprofit organizations. The problem is that many nonprofits are not thinking about how to capitalize on this phenomenon. This trend and its implications are so important that a strategic plan that doesn’t include concrete strategies to tap into Boomer charitable giving, volunteering and professional workplace skills and knowledge is deficient in a serious way.

The great news: lots of excellent resources available with guidance to nonprofit leaders trying to better understand this trend, identify implications and develop a strategic response. Here are a few:

• One of the most recent books on the subject is Generations: The Challenge of a Lifetime for Your Nonprofit by Peter C. Brinckerhoff which outlines in very specific ways what you can expect and how to plan for it. This publication also includes an assessment tool.

• The Boomer’s Guide to Good Work by Ellen Freudenheim, published by The MetLife Foundation and Civic Ventures. Go to: http://www.civicventures.org/publications/booklets/boomers_guide.cfm
• Craver, Mathews, Smith & Company published a landmark study on Baby Boomer trends in fundraising and advocacy. Go to: http://cms.convio.net/site/PageServer?pagename=boomer

• A recent Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund survey reports that boomers are on track to give 20% more than the average donor. Go to: http://www.charitablegift.org/learn-about-charity/news/12-07-2006.shtml

• The best effort to date to bring resources together in one place is “Baby Boomer Volunteer Resources” compiled by the Alliance for Nonprofit Management. Go to: http://www.allianceonline.org/boomers.page

Anchoring the Organization in a Set of Governing Ideas

In "The Fifth Discipline" Peter Senge speaks of the importance of anchoring an organization in a set of governing ideas. According to Senge, MISSION is the "Why?" - the organization's answer to the question, "Why do we exist?" VISION is the "What?" - the picture of the future we seek to create. And CORE VALUES is the "How?" - the organization's answer to the question, "How do we want to act consistent with our mission on the path toward our vision?" An organization's values describe how the organization wants life to be on a day-to-day basis, while pursuing the vision.

Clarity about these governing ideas is the foundation for effective strategic planning, and organizational effectiveness in general. Our mission, vision and core values need to be in alignment. At the same time, while the words "mission" and "vision" are often used interchangeably, they are two distinct things. The mission refers to the fundamental purpose of the organization. The vision statement describes the hoped for destination, and therefore reflects the future direction of the organization. We can be completely clear about our purpose, and still be in complete disagreement about our vision for the future.

I regard the strategic vision as the centerpiece of a good strategic plan and organizational effectiveness in general. Without agreement about the "future we seek to create", we run the risk of devising a plan that may look good on paper -- bold and exciting strategic priorities, based on sound financial analysis, with a solid framework for evaluating results -- but a plan that takes us and the community that we are presuming to serve in the wrong direction.

Senge -- and I agree completely -- speaks passionately about the importance of a shared vision. A vision that people are committed to-- they'll do whatever it takes to make the vision a reality. He contrasts this with a vision about which people are apathetic (Neither for nor against vision. No interest. No energy. “Is it five o'clock yet?”)

And if we are to have a shared vision that inspires this kind of commitment, we need to make sure that the process we use to create the vision is one that fully engages board, staff and community stakeholders. The process needs to allow them to connect their personal dreams and their highest aspirations to the work of creating a shared vision for the organization. Visions that are handed down from on high without this kind of meaningful engagement don't inspire people to put forth their best efforts.

In the issues-based approach to strategic planning which I favor, the vision is rooted in the critical strategic issues which board and staff leadership identify in the planning process. In many ways, the vision represents the "big answer" to the "big questions" (issues) that surface in the early stages of our strategic planning.

There are lots of great web-based resources for developing this kind of shared vision. For a look at one approach that I have found useful, go to: http://www.createthefuture.com/strat%20vis.htm. And for a sampling of vision statements from a wide range of nonprofits, go to: http://www.createthefuture.com/sample_vision_statements.htm.

For some of the most inspired thinking about vision, go to the source: “The Fifth Discipline” by Peter Senge. "Vision" is one of the five disciplines of the learning organization as Senge conceives it. Read Chapter 10 "Shared Vision". In fact, while you're at it, read the book! It’s recently revised with lots of new material and will continue to be an influential work. And visit http://www.solonline.org for other Fifth Discipline resources.

Strategic Planning Surveys

Increasingly, leaders who see the value of strategic planning are looking for ways to engage in the process without taking any more time than is necessary. The demands on people's time -- especially board leaders -- means that strategic planners must look for ways of accelerating the planning process.

In my experience, in order to do credible strategic planning and at the same time meet the demand for a less time consuming process, information gathering and analysis must be completed before leaders engage in formal strategic planning sessions. When this is done, the planning group can hit the ground running.

I want to offer a glimpse at a few information gathering surveys for strategic planning I’ve been using for the last several years. They’ve all undergone a number of revisions and work well with a broad range of nonprofits. There is a survey tool for board and staff of organizations and a second survey tool I use for gathering information and insights from “key informants”. Key informants are individuals presumed to have special expertise, knowledge and insights that could be helpful in the strategic planning process. Informants may have an understanding of the changes going on in the community, trends specific to the field of work in the nonprofit is engaged in, the economy, the political environment, the impact of new regulations/legislation, charitable giving, etc.

To view the board and staff survey sample, go to: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=740623335077. To view the key informant survey sample, go to: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=426343335293

Disruptive Innovation for Social Change

Every once in awhile, an article appears that goes on to have significant impact in the nonprofit sector. In 1989, Peter Drucker wrote What Businesses Can Learn from Nonprofits, an important counterbalance to the prevailing belief that all of the answers to organizational effectiveness could be found in the for-profit sector alone. In 1996, Chait, Holland and Taylor wrote The New Work of the Nonprofit Board. This article led to a number of important efforts to improve board performance and these efforts continue. Now in December 2006, a new article in the Harvard Business Review promises to do the same. In the article, Disruptive Innovation for Social Change, Clayton M. Christensen, Heiner Baumann, Rudy Ruggles, and Thomas M. Sadler offer a challenge to the nonprofit sector:

"In the social sector, too much attention is devoted to providing more of the same to narrow populations that are already served. It's time for a fundamentally different approach. . . . it's not a lack of solutions, but rather misdirected investment. Too much of the money available to address social needs is used to maintain the status quo, because it is given to organizations that are wedded to their current solutions, delivery models, and recipients. ... While they may do a good and important job serving those people, and while there services may steadily improve, these organizations are unlikely ever to reach a far broader populations that are in need -- and that would be satisfied by simpler offerings, if only they were available.”

The authors advocate searching for “disruptive" or "catalytic” innovations that have the potential for dramatic breakthroughs in efforts to address pressing community needs and social issues. The article offers examples of disruptive innovation, qualities of catalytic innovators and advice to funders and investors who want to see their dollars lead to real change.

The relevance for strategic planning? The challenges posed by the authors of this article are ones that need to be incorporated into our strategic thinking and planning efforts. Whether we refer to it as "theory of change" or "logic model", we need to ask ourselves if we operate from an understanding of how change happens, if our programs and services reflect this understanding, and what is the evidence that our program/service approach is actually working. And as the authors of the article Making Sense: Reviewing Program Design with Theory of Change suggest, this analysis needs to take place before strategic planning -- not after. A strategic planning effort that avoids this analysis can lead -- as many strategic planning efforts do -- to the decision to continue with more of the same --ineffective programs with mediocre results.

More commentary on this important article can be found at ManyWorlds, New Profit, Community Health Edge, the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship and the Private Sector Development Blog.

Be sure to read “Disruptive Innovation for Social Change” and share it with board leaders, staff, colleagues, and friends.

Strategic Planning -- An Engaging Process

The latest program in Boardstar’s podcast series features an interview with me on the role of the board in strategic planning. The interview, led by Pat Wyzbinski of the Nonprofit Management Fund covers the following topics: use of an outside facilitator, how long does a strategic planning process take?, benefits of board and staff involvement in information gathering activities for strategic planning, growing interest in accelerated strategic planning, key components of an effective strategic planning process, composition of the strategic planning committee, including the value of involving "outsiders" in the planning process, measuring progress in implementing a strategic plan. You can listen to this podcast and download it to your computer, iPod or MP3 player at http://www.smallpackageproductions.com. The Board star program was recently featured as a noteworthy website in our regular Picks of the Week. Go to: http://www.boardstar.org/mc/page.do.

Shedding Old Rules

Two quotes to set the stage for strategic thinking for 2007.

The first quote on the difficulty in letting go from The Accelerating Organization: Embracing the Human Face of Change by Arun Maira and Peter Scott-Morgan ...

"At the Santa Fe Institute in New Mexico, mathematicians and scientists in physics, chemistry, biology, economics and computer science look at the mechanisms and principles whereby organisms and other complex systems change and learn. One principle of survival they've observed is continuous shedding of operating rules that cease to be relevant because of changing environmental conditions.

They found that complex systems, whether biological organisms or computer systems, can hold only a small number of rules in operation at anytime. So they must have an ability to shed old rules to make room for the new. Shedding becomes more complicated in systems involving human beings, because their sense of self-worth is often attached to many old rules."

The second quote on laying the foundation for new ideas from Where Do New Ideas Come From? Maximize the Differences by Nicholas Negroponte, Director, M.I.T. Media Lab ...

"The best way to guarantee a steady stream of new ideas is to make sure that each person in your organization is as different as possible from the others. Under these conditions, and only under these conditions, will people maintain varied perspectives and demonstrate their knowledge in different ways. There will be a lot of misunderstanding – which is frequently not misunderstanding at all, but the root of a new idea."

Wishing you a Happy New Year!

Why Strategic Plan Implementation Fails

There are several reasons why implementation of strategic plans fails. I’ve listed 4 here. In each case the problem is addressed by designing and facilitating the process in such a way that the issue doesn’t arise during the implementation phase.

1. Lack of board, staff, volunteer, member, partner and stakeholder commitment to the strategic plan. One of the hallmarks of a successful strategic planning process is high levels of understanding, enthusiasm and support of the resulting plan among the aforementioned constituents. The most effective way to achieve this is to build into the process a variety of engagement opportunities: participation on the strategic planning committee, involvement in information and data gathering and analysis, service on other planning committees and workgroups, focus groups, community partner dialogs, and others. Sometimes, involvement of many in the planning process is avoided for fear that large numbers are unmanageable. If clear roles and responsibilities are communicated and if meetings and tasks are carefully structured, large numbers of involved and engaged people contribute to a successful process. For one thing, it ensures a broad range of perspectives on critical issues, absolutely essential to innovative thinking. As a practical matter, we want and need large numbers of people at all levels of the organization and community who are committed to achieving the vision and strategic goals outlined in the plan. In a thoughtful planning process, the strategic planning committee will assess the most effective ways to involve all internal and external stakeholders.

2. Lack of alignment between governance structures (especially committee and workgroup structure) and the strategic plan. In nonprofit organizations, implementation depends on the support and involvement of professional staff, board leadership, other volunteers, members, and community supporters. Organizational structures that align with the strategic plan ensure that all of these individuals can be effectively organized to carry out their work and that they will be moving in the direction of the strategic vision. To the degree that the resulting strategic plan represents a new direction -- in some cases, a radical departure from old ways of doing business -- organizations will discover that many former governance structures constitute unintended barriers to implementation. New structures need to be created if implementation is to succeed. To assure effective implementation, current board committee and workgroup structure, therefore, will need to be reviewed in light of requirements of the strategic plan.

3. The design and format of the earlier strategic planning process does not easily translate to action planning and implementation. One of the greatest frustrations in strategic planning is the failure to complete the transition from the “visionary blueprint” (mission, vision, goals, and strategies) to the concrete plans of action (objectives: who accomplishes what, by when, at what cost, to be measured by what indicators). In order to avoid this disconnect, I have found it useful to do the following: From the beginning, it’s important to describe the strategic planning model in sufficient detail that it is clear to all how and when the transition to concrete plans of action occurs. Begin the conversation about performance indicators earlier in the strategic planning process. The identification of key performance indicators sets the stage for developing objectives that are concrete, measurable and tied in directly to the mission, vision and strategic priorities.

4. Related to the third hurdle is lack of an effective framework for ongoing monitoring of implementation. The strategic planning process presents an opportunity for the organization to develop an important tool for ongoing monitoring of the strategic plan implementation. It’s called the organizational dashboard (also referred to as scorecard). Using the metaphor of the dashboard in a car, this tool is based on selection of key performance indicators that need to be tracked on a regular basis by the Board of Directors. An effective implementation process will link the dashboard monitoring tool directly to the strategic plan, thus providing important support for implementation.

Two Excellent Trend Documents

I've come across two excellent trend documents recently. While the publications will be of special interest to nonprofits focusing on education, both resources will be useful to a broader audience of nonprofit leaders engaged in strategic thinking and planning. The resources are noteworthy because of the content they offer; they are also noteworthy because of the formats used to make the information more accessible and usable. These formats can be used to better organize trend data that you are gathering for your own strategic planning efforts.

The first resource is the book Sixteen Trends, Their Profound Impact on Our Future by Gary Marx. The author highlights a number of key trends, and then shows how each will influence educational policy in the future. Each chapter focuses on one major trend: there is a summary of the trend, implications for society as a whole and education in particular, and then a listing of questions and activities to stimulate further thought discussion and action.

The second resource is the Education Map of the Decade, created by the KnowledgeWorks Foundation to examine the forces affecting education and the economy. The map includes three key elements: trends, which represent major shifts, new developments and concepts and the driving forces that will shape the future of education; hot spots -- trends that the KnowledgeWorks Foundation thinks will have broad impact on education, and dilemmas -- problems that can't be solved and won't go away which require new thinking and new solutions. This map is more than a trend document -- it has to be experienced online. You'll find tutorials on the use of the map, discussion boards, links to additional resources and much more. This interactive website is a powerful example of how good information -- an essential ingredient of effective strategic planning -- can be gathered, organized and presented in user friendly ways.

Newsletters for Strategic Thinkers

There are several newsletters that provide information, and resources that will support strategic thinking and planning efforts. You can subscribe to these newsletters at no charge although some newsletters are also published in a “premium” version available for a fee.

Here is a newsletter listing with reference to recent articles relating in some way to strategic planning:

The McKinsey Quarterly published by McKinsey and Co. Go to: http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/. Free registration required. Recent article of interest to strategic thinkers: “Improving Strategic Planning: A McKinsey Survey.”

HBS Working Knowledge published by the Harvard Business School. Go to: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/forms/newsletter.html. Free registration required. Recent article of interest to strategic thinkers: “Failing to Learn and Learning to Fail (Intelligently)”

Nonprofit Online News published by the Gilbert Center. Go to: http://news.gilbert.org/. Free registration required. Recent article of interest to strategic thinkers: “The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct Them”

Fast Company Today published by Fast Company Magazine. Go to: http://www.fastcompany.com/homepage/index.html. Free registration required. Recent article of interest to strategic thinkers: “Demographics: The Population Hourglass.”

I’ll add more newsletters in the future. In the meantime, send your newsletter suggestions to frankwill@aol.com or post them to this blog.

Incorporating Strategic Thinking into Board and Staff Meetings

Recently I conducted a webinar entitled How to Incorporate Strategic Thinking into Board and Staff Meetings. The message: it’s not enough only to think strategically during a formal planning process. While it is important to periodically engage in a formal strategic planning process, there are many other ongoing opportunities for strategic thinking and planning in nonprofits. What are they, how can we use these opportunities, and how can we create other opportunities for strategic thinking? The webinar topics included: How to use your strategic plan to foster strategic thinking by board and staff; Sample agendas and facilitation designs that can be incorporated into shorter meetings; Techniques for information gathering and analysis to support strategic thinking and planning. For a copy of the session materials, email me at frankwill@aol.com

For a good discussion on the subject of the differences and relationships between strategic planning and strategic thinking, see Strategic Thinking: A Discussion Paper by Eton Lawrence of the Public Service Commission of Canada.