Dan works for the customer success team, supporting all activities related to helping ClearPoint customers achieve their goals.
You’ve developed your objectives and identified the elements of your strategic plan.
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Strategic plans are devised by leadership teams, but employees are the ones who carry out the daily work. To get and maintain buy-in from them—and perhaps gain some valuable perspective your leaders haven’t thought of—give everyone opportunities to react, ask questions, and contribute feedback.
In a previous post, we identified the four types of strategy skeptics you’re bound to run into and how to help them get on board with your plan. But what do you say to those individuals if they need that extra “nudge”?
Chris thrives on making processes far more complex than they actually need to be. When Chris creates a complex report or process, he enjoys the feeling of accomplishment and likes being depended upon.
“What should I say to help Chris simplify his processes?”
You may consider sending out a pre-read of your reports so no one in management is confused or frustrated with complicated information during a meeting. On top of that, you’ll need to remind Chris that the number-one goal of strategy reporting is to provide clear, relevant information necessary to the management team so they can make decisions.
Express to him that the information he provides should be relevant, reliable, and clear. For example, explain to him that charts shouldn’t take more than 5-10 seconds to decipher—and that data tables shouldn’t have an overwhelming number of columns or rows. You also may want to give Chris a simple standard he needs to adhere to based on what he’s in charge of. That alone could prevent unnecessary complexity.
Deb doesn’t ever feel comfortable with the data being presented and brings her doubts up regularly—making it difficult for everyone in the department to stay on the right track.
“What should I say to help Deb trust the data?”
Presenting information as consistently as possible may help Deb benchmark results month-to-month and feel more confident overall. If Deb still isn’t confident in your data or results despite this, it’s time to turn the tables and begin asking her some questions prior to your next report. Pull Deb aside and ask her to walk through some of the metrics she’s skeptical about.
Explain to her that you want to be sure your data is valid and bring up any of her solid ideas from previous meetings. You may also want to implement a few rules on when someone can voice their doubts regarding the data validity. For example, tell Deb that it’s fine to bring up concerns before the meeting, but not during.
Once you’ve explained where your data comes from, Deb will either be satisfied and agree with the validity or you’ll get insight into her real concerns about data validity. For example, Deb may tell you that she’s skeptical because your data sources aren’t open for everyone in the organization to view. In that case, you may want to consider ways to be more transparent with your data. (Note that if you use good reporting software, you can add your formulas and data sources online next to the charts.)
Fred doesn’t ever follow through on his offers to assist with an initiative, which makes it very difficult for everyone else to do their job successfully.
“What should I say to help Fred complete his tasks on time?”
Fred needs to be held accountable for the task he was assigned. The next time Fred misses a deadline or “forgets” he was assigned to a particular project or initiative, take the time to explain why accountability is such a critical part of a successful strategy implementation. If this issue persists, you may want to consider implementing software that will assign out ownership of measures and projects. This may help Fred complete his work in a more timely fashion.
Teamwork isn’t something that comes easily to Sarah, and she doesn’t see the point in working with other departments.
“What should I say to help Sarah work well with others?”
Creating cross-functional teams can help Sarah step outside of her comfort zone. Give her some real-life examples of how working on a cross-functional team improved a process or helped an organization or department come up with a new idea.
For example, if you’re a municipality, tell her a story of how someone in parks and recreation worked with someone in the police department to develop a process for communicating which parks need maintenance for issues that could cause safety hazards. Or, if you’re a software-as-a-service organization, you probably have a story about how someone from the development team helped automate the solution to a problem your sales team was working through.
Note: If you use ClearPoint, you could make Sarah a “collaborator” on multiple projects so that she can see her connection to other work that relates to the strategy.
Included in the May–June 2007 Balanced Scorecard Report is an article written by business writer Lauren Keller Johnson called “Common Sense in Strategy Communication: Four Lessons from Canon USA.” (This article was obtained from the Harvard Business Review store.)
In her article, Johnson discusses four lessons that can be learned from the way Canon USA communicated its strategic plan throughout the company—a strategy that won them a place in the Balanced Scorecard Hall of Fame. These lessons are highly applicable to any organization, so we’ve summarized them below (and added one more of our own!) so you can avoid some of the initial bumps in creating your own strategic communications plan.
Your employees all absorb information differently. So, for example, if you only use posters to convey your communication strategy and have some employees who aren’t visual learners, those employees won’t be affected. Or, if you only send an email explaining the strategy in a long, drawn-out way, employees who routinely ignore long emails won’t be affected. Case in point—be sure you present your strategic plan in many different ways. You should use a mix of video, audio, visual, and written strategy communication to employees so everyone can learn about the plan in the way that is best for them.
For example, Canon USA created “Strategy in Action: Canon Americas’ Strategy Playbook.” This playbook featured a color-coded version of the corporate strategy map and was designed by a graphic artist who had worked for USA Today. Consider doing something similar in your organization for a unique spin on your communication strategy.
For example, if “customer” is one of the key terms in your strategy, consider defining it outright. In other words, don’t assume your employees know exactly who your customers are and why you’re targeting them.
Using industry-specific acronyms may seem “smarter” or “easier”—but it is actually just the opposite. For example, the Canon USA strategy map doesn’t talk about “maximizing ROA.” Instead, it encourages employees to “find ways of lowering the cost of doing business,” “work together,” and “make Canon number one in all businesses.” Additionally, try to cut out any useless, jargon-laden phrases like “leveraging talent” or “optimizing strategy.”
Do your employees know you want them to provide you with feedback? If you don’t have any defined venues for this bottom-up strategic planning communication, they probably don’t. Or, at the very least, they don’t know how to go about providing you with that feedback.
Consider the best avenue for constructive feedback based on your organizational structure and put it into place as soon as possible.
It’s one thing to have a strategic plan—and another thing entirely to find out how that plan is affecting your employees. If the leadership team is able to put themselves in the shoes of lower-level employees and see the strategy at work from their perspective, the leadership will be more willing to consider new and updated solutions to problems.
After you set your strategic plan, you need to be willing to make adjustments when necessary. Be sure to stay in tune with what is and isn’t working properly, and realize that you may need to step back and alter your strategic plan based on the feedback you’re getting.
Last but not least is a lesson that stems from our own experience, which is:
Provide a continuous stream of information to keep people interested and engaged. It isn’t enough to touch on strategy only once every six months, or even once a quarter. Instead, bring it to the forefront frequently. Encourage departmental teams to meet once a week to review their KPIs and discuss departmental strategy in connection with the organization’s overall plan. As an organization, try to meet monthly.
The more frequently you communicate results the simpler your communications should be—you can’t expect people to spend hours analyzing Excel spreadsheets every week. (Nor do you want to be stuck in a loop creating them!) Make use of a streamlining strategy software tool like ClearPoint.
Not only will it enable you to share visually attractive dashboards that show the most important KPI statuses at a glance, but you’ll also leave the hard work of generating reports to the software, which does that automatically and distributes reports on a predetermined schedule.
Bringing a strategic plan to fruition is a complicated endeavor; our mission is to simplify the process so you can get the job done. Not only do we provide an easy-to-use platform to communicate your plans and progress, but we also simplify the tasks associated with strategy reporting.
All those capabilities allow you to make strategy information visible and transparent for everyone in your organization—the stuff of strong communication. If you make it easy for your employees to both access the strategic plan information and provide you with constructive feedback, you’re going to see far more strategic success.
Interested in taking a tour of our software? Contact us and let us know what time works best for you. We can’t wait to show you around!
Implementing a Balanced Scorecard or any strategic plan is only effective if your employees understand and align with it. At ClearPoint Strategy, we provide the tools to help you develop a strong communication plan that ensures your strategy is known and embraced at all levels of your organization.
Ready to enhance your strategic communication? Book a demo with ClearPoint Strategy today and discover how our software can streamline your communication efforts.
A strategic plan is your organization's long-team goals and highlights how you want to grow in specific categories. The strategic plan lists objectives and goals for each area your company would like to grow, and lists initiatives the organization will take to meet their goals.
Design a strategy map, or design a visual showcasing your main objectives to improve engagement with strategy. Research indicates that communicating with visuals helps increase retention of information!
Leaders can show their buy-in to the strategy by continuously bringing up the strategy in discussions.
Communicate your strategy to employees, stakeholders, and potential investors to highlight the direction you hope to see the company grow. Depending on the target audience, how you communicate your strategy will change.
Yes, many large organizations publicly communicate their strategy and use their strategy to attract more buyes.
By sharing your strategy, you build trust within your team and allow them to feel connected to company goals. This will make it easier to meet your goals and make your vision and reality!
To create a strategic communication plan:
- Define Objectives: Clearly outline the goals you want to achieve with your communication efforts.
- Identify Target Audiences: Determine who your key audiences are and what they need to know.
- Develop Key Messages: Craft clear and consistent messages tailored to each audience.
- Choose Communication Channels: Select the most effective channels for reaching your target audiences (e.g., email, social media, meetings).
- Establish a Timeline: Create a detailed timeline for when and how each communication activity will take place.
- Assign Responsibilities: Designate who will be responsible for each aspect of the communication plan.
- Monitor and Evaluate: Continuously track the effectiveness of your communications and make adjustments as needed.
The five components of a strategic communication plan are:
- Objectives: Specific, measurable goals that the communication plan aims to achieve.
- Target Audiences: The groups or individuals that the communications are directed towards.
- Key Messages: Core messages that convey the essential information and persuade the target audiences.
- Communication Channels: The mediums through which the messages will be delivered (e.g., email, social media, press releases).
- Timeline and Responsibilities: A detailed schedule of communication activities and the assignment of tasks to specific team members.
Strategic plan implementation works by:
- Setting Clear Goals: Defining specific objectives and outcomes to achieve.
- Developing Action Plans: Creating detailed plans that outline the steps necessary to achieve the strategic goals.
- Allocating Resources: Ensuring the necessary resources (e.g., budget, personnel, technology) are available and allocated appropriately.
- Monitoring Progress: Regularly tracking progress towards goals using key performance indicators (KPIs) and other metrics.
- Adjusting as Needed: Making adjustments to strategies and action plans based on performance data and changing circumstances.
- Communicating Progress: Keeping stakeholders informed about progress and any changes to the plan.
A strategic plan is important because it:
- Provides Direction: Offers a clear vision and direction for the organization.
- Aligns Resources: Ensures that resources are allocated effectively to achieve strategic goals.
- Improves Decision-Making: Guides decision-making by providing a framework for evaluating options.
- Enhances Performance: Helps set measurable goals and track progress, leading to improved performance.
- Engages Stakeholders: Engages employees and other stakeholders by clearly communicating the organization's goals and how they can contribute.
To create a strategic plan roadmap:
- Define Vision and Goals: Clearly articulate the organization’s vision and long-term goals.
- Identify Key Initiatives: Determine the key initiatives and projects that will drive the achievement of the goals.
- Set Milestones: Break down the initiatives into specific, time-bound milestones.
- Allocate Resources: Assign the necessary resources (e.g., budget, personnel, technology) to each initiative.
- Develop a Timeline: Create a timeline that outlines when each milestone and initiative will be completed.
- Monitor and Adjust: Continuously monitor progress and make adjustments to the roadmap as needed to stay on track.
