Every time a firm asks me for help with strategic planning, we go round and round about who should be included in the strategic planning session.
Firm #1 thinks that the Strategic Plan participants should be limited to firm owners — those who have a financial stake in the firm. After all, they are the ones with the most at risk. Unfortunately, this assumes that direct financial risk is the only risk that matters.
Firm #2 thinks that the group should be expanded to include all firm officers. This expanded group would have an understanding that the risk is broader than simply direct financial risk. This broader risk may include risk to the brand or to the firm's standing in the local and extended business communities, or to the technical challenges of a catastrophic failure of computer system security.
Firm #3 thinks the group should also include all division, department and project managers because they are the ones who will be implementing the plan and directly monitoring its success. The people responsible for making the plan work must know how decisions were made.
Firm #4 thinks that the plan should be drafted by an outside consultant, with input from owners, officers and senior managers. This still begs the question of who attends the planning session to work through and approve the plan.
In a Jan.-Feb. 2011 Harvard Business Review article entitled, "The CEO's role in business model reinvention," Vijay Govindarajan and Chris Trimble wrote:
"Thirty percent of participants in any strategy discussion should be younger than age 30, because they are not wedded to the past."
I have known and acted on this understanding for quite a few years.
As discussed below, younger staff and those newer to the firm will not be shackled by the choices made in previous planning sessions. In addition, they are less likely to be caught up in "we've never done that before" or "we've always done it this way" attitudes.
My personal preference is to have either the firm's marketing leader or an outside consultant act as facilitator for the planning session, and to include the following participants.
- Owners — they have the greatest risk because of their direct financial ties to the firm.
- Officers and/or C-level leaders — they are responsible for firm policy and practices, which will determine how the plan is implemented.
- Division and department managers — they are leaders in plan implementation and need to know the thought process behind every decision and ultimate strategy
- Project managers — they are the "front-line" staff with primary responsibility for the firm's relationships with its clients
- Firm newcomers — these individuals will not be bound by previous decisions, and may have insights based on their experiences at other firms
- Under 30s — these are individuals you may have already identified as "rising stars," those you hope will become the next generation of firm leaders; including them in strategic planning is a great retention tool, confirming their importance and high standing in the opinions of the firm's leaders
I think the last two participant types are particularly important because, having not been part of previous strategic sessions, they will not know what you discussed and rejected last year. And sometimes, an idea that was rejected a year or two ago might be just what the firm now needs given changes in the marketplace and your specific market sectors.
If you want help with strategic planning activities, please contact me and let's talk about how I can help. You can reach me at [email protected] or 559.901.9596.