Strategic Planning
How to Get Measurable Results
Julie Eckstein
Most people have been engaged in
some sort of strategic planning in their
organization, whether it is brainstorming
a new initiative or formally outlining an
organizational plan, but critics, particularly
internal critics, often question the value of
the process.
Three Examples of Measurable Results
Within the first year of performing a
comprehensive organizational assessment
and plan, a specialty provider organization
experienced a doubling of its priority
service line, a 25 percent increase in upfront
patient responsibility revenue collections
and a 30 percent decrease in bad debt.
Similarly, a nonprofit organization
conducted strategic planning with its board
and staff that transitioned an ineffective,
unengaged board into a refreshed, high-
performing one. The organization ended
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two programs that had poor outcomes and
poor financial performance and transferred
the resources into new programs that
a market study indicated were unmet
community needs and areas in which
funders were willing to invest.
Recently, a family-owned company went
through a leadership transition to other
family members. The organization had
not undergone formal strategic planning
for many years, if ever. They knew their
revenue was very stagnant and had ideas
of what they could do to improve —
from manufacturing process changes to
introducing new products — but did not
know how to get started with a strategic
planning process. Now underway, they
have captured their competitive landscape,
identified market opportunities and state-
of-the-art manufacturing processes, as
well as the necessary skillsets for current